Latest Photos and Half Marathon News

 Well, it's a scorched earth out there; scenes from a JG Ballard novel as the straw brown ground supports very little in the way of flowers now. The beautiful library gardens have gone over, with only a few white scabious still in bloom. My own flowers have gone over, although the buddleia I cut back to less than a metre high is now standing at well over two metres and will hopefully soon come into flower. 

Sunny days are no longer a novelty, they just drive anyone sane for the shade. 

On Sunday 16th I will take to the local roads for the Newark Half Marathon. Training went well up until a month ago, upon which I pulled a muscle in my backside, which has limited running since then, and has stopped me entirely playing cricket. 

I'm hoping a ten mile run a month before will be enough. Mercifully, cooler weather with perhaps a dash of rain is forecast. Hopefully I can drag my sorry old body round! 

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 11.08.26 

A Red Admiral - You'd Better Salute!

 No more cellulitis, but training for a half marathon on the 16th August and trying to play cricket at the same time have given me the indignity of a pulled muscle in my left buttock, and the hot weather has been very enervating for both human and wildlife alike. And that's before we (won't) talk about the debilitating bouts of IBS. 

I have kept on doing "my thing", whatever that may be, and a lot of that has involved getting a tea from Greggs or some other quality outlet, and visiting Sconce Park or the library gardens to read, clear my head. 

I have upgraded my garden with the pollinator stepladder of delight, and the various wild buddleias that have sprung out of the ground have flowered to attract more buzzers and flutterers. I did have a star visitor though, a perfect red admiral butterfly who was delighted to present itself for my irritating mobile phone camera. 

I hope you are all keeping well and enjoying the world around you, scorched and brown though it is. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 31.07.26 

A Holly Blue and other Insects

 After the blistering heatwave, we've had a slightly more pleasant week so far, with me enjoying time in the library gardens, running slowly and stiffly, and playing cricket. 

The latter causing the former. 

My best encounter in this time was with a well behaved holly blue butterfly I came across in the currently very colourful library gardens. It has been so species rich in there this year, in an area about the size of two tennis courts. 

I love to sit there with a cup of tea and read, take photographs, do some sketching either "live" as it were, or from photos later, I've dabbled with waltercolour, wax pastel and soft pastel, with varying degrees of semi-competence. 

Been playing cricket again too after a long time, and golly my body hates me for it. It doesn't go well with half marathon training! 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.07.26 

Bee Orchids Return to Campus

 They've been missing for a couple of years, but today, in the less than glamorous surroundings of a workplace smoking shed, that I came across some beautiful bee orchids in flower. 

I had been tipped off, and if it wasn't for my guide who took me there, I wouldn't have seen them in the longish grass. 

Relying on a species of bee you don't actually find in Britain to fall for their cunning apine ruse, they are self pollinating in this country, and are not uncommon. But still, I love finding them, after all they are an uncommon sight to me! 

It's been a day of intermittent heavy showers, with not much sun around until evening, but in a gap in the downpours, I came across a real bee, and a glittering swollen thighed flower beetle feeding of musk mallow that grows in a scrubby little spot next to a footpath. 

I wonder what a sunnier day will bring, as always. 

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 10.06.26 

Bumblebee Three Different Ways

 Struggling today with my various Tourettes and ASD associated symptoms - IBS, flaring eczema, rampant ADHD and all that stuff. 

We've been having more "Four seasons in one day" weather, and it was a brighter interlude that I got a decent capture of a buff tailed bumblebee feeding off bramble. 

In one of my fits of inspiration this evening, I decided to try and do a watercolour of it. I really am no kind of painter whatsoever, and I've never found a way of doing it that works. For this attempt, I decided to outline the subject matter in fineliner pen, before filling in with watercolours from my travel paint set. 

Not sure this has worked. 

In a flying flap of creativity, I then doubled down and did a soft pastel version which I am much more happy with, happy in the sense of not wanting to throw it on a bonfire in the morning. 

I suppose this is neurodiversity in manic action, I guess. I've started creating work relating to my Tourettes, but golly lolly gee, I won't be posting that here. 

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 04.06.26 

The Weather Warms, More Appears

 I'd been wondering where all the red tailed bumblebees have been this spring; I've not been able to photograph one, and have barely seen any at all. 

Today, as the weather warmed and brightened in the afternoon, they were suddenly everywhere in the nature garden area of campus. 

After a disastrous 2025, the mini meadows have recovered somewhat, and today buttercups were attracting many of these velvety, firey-tailed worker bumbles. 

Nearby, on the rock cransebill, a big queen red tailed bumble was at work, her mighty body bending the delicate stems of these flowers almost onto the ground. It's a relief to see them on the wing again. 

Nearby, found a lovely holly blue butterfly too. 

Around campus there are currently many clumps of ox eye daisies, and one one of these sunshine-meets-fried-egg flowers, I came across another welcome returnee - the characterful and glittering swollen thighed flower beetle. 

They are wonderful little insects, and I hope you have met one too this spring! 

Si 

All images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 22.05.26 

Rock Cranesbill Love

 On our campus, in the little nature reserve area I and others created many years ago, there is a patch of rock cranesbill growing happily away next to a hawthorn hedgerow. 

They are now blooming pinkily resplendent, and as such are a big attraction for pollinators. 

I saw three different species of bumblebee in short succession yesterday - a common carder, a buff tail and an early bumblebee - while today brought a tiny worker common carder in its distinctive golden furry coat. 

Lots of honey bees also flying around and I caught a glimpse of a red tailed bumblebee queen, the first I have seen this spring. Rather worried about their numbers after the wet winter. 

In other news, my local swift colonies are returning, and I'm starting to hear screeching...

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 06.05.26 

A New Species of Ladybird for me

 So today I took a quick wellbeing and Tourettes walk to the library gardens to see if anything much was around on what was a rather cooler day to what we've been having recently. 

At the moment, green alklet is the dominant wildflower in bloom at the moment, and the hairy footed flower bees absolutely love it. Males and females were zooming around like tiny aerial motorbikes, buzzing away and far too fast to photograph. 

But it wasn't a bee that caught my eye. 

Hunkered down on a bloom was a new ladybird species for me, a cream spotted ladybird. A little smaller than the 7 spots that were present in large numbers, this is a shiny brown lady bird with white spots that don't look particularly creamy. 

I was very pleased to see it. 

Also new to me was what I think might be a bicoloured mining bee on dandelion. Initially I thought it was just a honey bee, but looking closely I could bee that the banding on the abdomen was different. It was heavily dusted in yellow dandelion pollen. 

Not far away, a vestal cuckoo bumblebee was enjoying the mahonias that are still in bloom. 

Such a small space, but so much to see! 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 09.04.26 

A New Species! The Common Mourning Bee

 Was walking through the library gardens nature reserve during today's glorious spring weather, when I noticed a very dark bee feeding off dandelion. 

While I was photographing it, I knew it was a species I was unfamiliar with, and a long walk and some research later, I was able to identify it as a female common mourning bee and indeed this is a new species to me. The female is entirely black, with only a few pale patches of hairs on the abdomen and the legs. 

We are at the north edge of its UK range here, and it is a parasite, or cuckoo bee. It parasitizes the nests of hairy footed flower bees, which explains its presence in this little nature reserve, which is full of hairy footed flower bees whizzing about. 

It was a fine start to a fine day out in the sun, seeing what local nature I can find. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 31.03.26 

Exploring the Public Parks of Grantham

 Glorious spring weather saw a visit to Wyndham Park in Grantham, a park that I thought was a fine natural habitat full of ponds, boating lakes, an excellent cafe and wildlife everywhere. 

It wasn't quite like that. It was actually pretty small, with a boating lake for remote controlled sailing boats about the size of a swimming pool, and not a whole lot of natural habitat. 

Fortunately, Queen Elizabeth Park, a long linear park running alongside the River Witham, was just across the road. We took a path alongside the fast flowing turquoise waters, and although information boards teased the presence of kingfishers and otters, of them there were no sign. 

I did see my first brimstone butterfly of the year, lemon yellow flutterings above the grass. Many buff tailed bumblebee queens were looking for nest holes in the soft earth, and the park was full of the loudest great tits I've ever heard, their "Deeee-Dooo" calls sounding out from almost every tree. 

Plenty of robins, blue tits and wrens were about too, and a red kite soared overhead, its forked tail expertly manoevering it across the blue sky. 

Where were there were crocuses, there were also honey bees, saddle bags filled to the brim with pollen. 

I love spring so much. 

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 04.03.26