slender St John's wort

one of the many species of St John's wort, again to be found in Penny's piece. The ecology of this little patch of rough grass is very different from everything else around.

marbled white, Luckett

One of the first marbled whites of the year, in Penny's piece near Luckett.

greater spotted woodpecker

an occasional visitor to our garden, this time with a mate (not shown but busy burrowing into the next apple tree trunk).

out of the nest

and into the firing line, a juvenile blackbird looking rather stunned and lost.

butterfly meadow, Cornwall

lesser butterfly orchid on left, greater butterfly orchid on right (see earlier pages and below for differences). The meadows are now full of cat's ear and rattle.



the middle picture is lesser butterfly orchid, and the bottom picture is the greater butterfly orchid.

dipper on Tamar

dippers are difficult to capture in flight because they are quick and direct. Just for once everything worked out for this photo, with the dark watery background for contrast. There is a nest very near to where this picture was taken so the parents were flying backwards (so to speak) and forwards.