Saturday 11 August 2012

Bitten to Death in Langford Lowfields

So, yesterday, tired because of aforementioned late night meteor and rum sessions, got upon my bicycle and headed out for RSPB Langford Lowfields in my denim cutoffs and on my non Wiggins issue mountain bike.

Out at Langford Lowfields, the weather was beautiful...and the reed bed was deserted! Aside from a Swan, an Egret and a Great Crested Grebe.

The Egret however must have known I was there though, and put on a great show for me as I watched through my 10x50s...strutting elegantly through the reed bed, crest drooping right down its neck, and obligingly spearing a small fish as I watched its Max Wall stylee perambulations.

An Egret's plumage by the way, is the whitest thing I've ever seen in the Bird kingdom, and among the whitest things I've ever seen ever!

A Common Tern - think clean seagull that doesn't steal your Rick Stein Fish and Chips in Padstow - then turned up and had a little mosey round.

The Langford bods have refilled the feeders, and flocks of Tree Sparrows and Greenfinches were having a munch, in the non BDSM sense of the word. And also having a munch, on me, were the Vulcan bombers of the insect world, these camo winged flies that take great delight in biting me - I watched one actually make my arm bleed.

Research at home indicates that they are Twin Lobed Deer Flies, and yes they are vicious biters! Today, my arms and legs are starting to come up with the familiar big hot hard lumps. Why can't insects all be like the lovely Common Darters, Common Blue Damselflies and a big Southern Hawker that buzzed me, it's body hooped in turquoise.

Way out over the water, in my 10x50s, I even saw an Emperor, it's body big enough to be seen at 75 plus meters, and glowing blue over the water!

So the bites don't spoil it that much!

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