What I've really noticed today is how glorious the dandelions are at the moment. A really under-rated flower, there's some areas of town densely packed with these vivid yellow-orange flowers, and they seem to be really large this year too. They are an important source of pollen for the early rising insects, especially queen bumbles who seem to love them.
Speaking of bumbles, saw my first common carder of the year, a very vivid orange specimen I found feeding on the honesty randomly growing along my drive. I'd been beginning to worry about carders, you normally see them quite early as they seem to be pretty tough.
Getting chillier by the day again. What an odd spring.
Si
All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 23.04.18
Dandelions are amazing this year. They are an invaluable source of nectar for bees of course.
ReplyDeleteSweet carder bee..........my absolute favourite.
Yes, there are whole fields of dandelions around here too. I was cycling into that headwind for a while yesterday; I don't know if it was something related to reverse swing but I nearly ended up in the hedge a couple of times.
ReplyDeleteSi - wildflowers in clumps like this can be so very attractive. I especially love the forget me nots.
ReplyDeleteA glorious set of flower photos. There seem to be a lot of dandelions flowering round here too - makes a wonderful sight. I haven't seen a Common Carder Bee yet this year.
ReplyDelete