A common sight at this time of year is people in pub gardens suddenly screaming and flailing around as if a ferret has been dropped down their trousers/dress. The reason for this demented behaviour is of course late summer wasps, most likely the common wasp (Vespula vulgaris). We all have some very irrational prejudices regarding…
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220 for 2022 – July Update
Welcome to my 220 for 2022 – July Update. I seldom indulge in much birding during these hot, barren summer months. Normally my time would be spent looking for butterflies, dragonflies and suchlike rather than probing the slim pickings of the birding season. This year is different of course, with the irrepressible nag that time…
Swifts
Swifts are enigmatic birds. A delight. They are essentially an African species that chooses to spend 3 months here in the Northern Hemisphere, taking advantage of long hours of daylight and an abundance of aerial plankton to raise their young. Their decline in the UK is well documented, with reasons many fold and complex, but…
Lazy Sunny Afternoon
It was as I was closing my eyes to drift away on this lazy sunny afternoon, that I noticed a movement almost directly at my feet. Out of the deep shade of the garden hedge hopped our resident male Blackbird. He looked up at me with his warm brown eyes, decided I was harmless enough,…
The Swallowtail
The swallowtail occupies a precarious niche in the UK. Confined nowadays to the fens of the Norfolk Broads, they depend on the management activity of various conservation bodies and their dedicated staff to maintain the habitat that supports their larval foodplant the milk parsley. This fragile plant can easily be crowded out by more vigorous…
220 for 2022 – June Update
Welcome to my 220 for 2022 – June Update. Time can be a strange phenomenon; sometimes a friend, sometimes a foe. It becomes both during exercises of this nature, whether it’s conducted over a day or a year doesn’t seem to alter this basic fact. At commencement, when you are fresh and raring to go,…
30 Days Wild – The Middle 10 Days
Welcome to my account of 30 Days Wild – The Middle 10 Days. A bit later than planned, but hey ho! 11th June 2022 – a walk around the garden to find wild flowers in bloom. Some of these I grew from seed many years ago, others have arrived naturally. I’m no botanist, but I…
Little Terns
On a hot and sultry June afternoon, we walk for a half mile along the wide, largely deserted sea shore. Flanked to the west by a 15-foot-high dune wall, and to the east by an unusually calm North Sea; on this day a vast shimmer of Caribbean blue. Indeed, if it wasn’t for the absence…
30 Days Wild – The First 10 Days
Welcome to an account of my activities during 30 Days Wild – The First 10 Days. This initiative has been developed by the Wildlife Trusts to encourage people to celebrate the natural world in whatever way they choose, throughout the month of June. You can pitch this wherever and however you like, from simply feeding…
You’ve Got to Hide Yourself Away
It’s true, if you want to see UK wild animals close to you’ve got to hide yourself away. More explicitly position yourself in a hide of some kind, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. I’ve invested in a one man chair hide, comfortable, easy to put up and stow away, portable and effective. Ok,…