At Last, a Long Walk

 I've been so tired lately with having spent a long time organising a huge work event over the last couple of months that I've barely been out of the house in my spare time.

That being said, the event is now in my slipstream and after a week of recovery, I was able to take to the byways today to have a walk around Farndon and see how my camera does in the wilds.

The verdict is, pretty darn well. I walked around Farndon Ponds and Cottage Lane nature reserve and was able to do something I was never able to do with my old phone - get an in focus photo of a resting damselfly, a female banded demoiselle.

It just felt so good to be mobile and moving again, it was a pleasant afternoon, mild and dry, and I was back listening to the radio, the thing I loved to do while walking. 

It wasn't the most spectacular walk, there wasn't a huge amount to see, but it was good to be out in nature again. My mind needed it.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCRackeredNature 10.09.22

A Butterfly Kind of Day

 Late afternoon on Monday ended up being a pretty glorious kind of day, and with the buddleia now out in flower around the town, I thought it might be a nice sort of day to go out and look for butterflies. 

It's an odd sort of thing to do in many folk's eyes, but it gets me out of the house, gets me exercising and is of course a boon to my mental health. 

My greatest fear during lockdown was that we wouldn't be allowed out of our houses at all. 

As it happens, I didn't have to go very far to find my first butterfly, as right outside my door in my little yard, a male gatekeeper was feeding very placidly off the ragwort I have allowed to grow (read - can't be bothered to dig up) and is actually a more attractive source of pollen than the flowers I've tried to grow myself in various pots and planters. 

So, after managing to get a photo or two of this unusually co-operative gatekeeper, it was off for a walk to Cottage Lane Nature Reserve, taking in the various big buddleias I could remember on the way. Nothing on the one by Mill Lane Bridge, but the one down the side of the secure mental health unit was covered in butterflies.

There was even a rather tired looking brimstone feeding, and to catch one of those motionless is a real event, let alone get a photo of one. There was a really nice comma too, kindly showing off its, er, comma.

The cherry on the cake - mating ringlets in Cottage Lane reserve itself!

A very worthwhile walk indeed!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 05.07.22

The Golden Fields of Farndon

 It was a lovely early evening yesterday, so having done a circuit of the park earlier on where I failed to photograph banded demoiselles, I took myself off to Farndon to look at Cottage Lane nature reserve.

I noticed another decent sized swift colony at the back entrance to the village, but poppies aren't growing en masse in the field any more. Indeed with all the recent building works, poppies aren't growing en masse any more anywhere around here. 

I went around the Farndon Ponds, where all was quiet on the water but lots of birdsong in the trees, and after a walk through a wood found myself on Cottage Lane.

You may remember the last time I went there, there were a few snake's head fritillaries among the clumps of lady's smock. Now it is dominated by buttercups, with ragged robin thrown in. 

I was on the look out for dragonflies here, but maybe still a little early. 

Then I made my way toward the river, and found what I hoped for. The pastures next to the river were just yellow with buttercups, not perhaps as dazzling a yellow as that you get with oilseed rape, but still vivid and beautiful. Lots of moths were among the stems, flushed by my stomping feet. 

The golden fields, that I always love to see.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 17.05.22

A Floral First

 Took myself out to Farndon today, to have a look at Cottage Lane nature reserve, and by golly I'm glad I did.

It's only a small reserve, about the size of a football pitch with three ponds and a couple of hides slash shelters, and at first glance when I arrived - it isn't too far away - I was disappointed. There didn't seem to be much going on, the pasture largely devoid of flowers apart from a few clumps of lady's smock. 

However, closer inspection revealed a lot of male orange tips were fluttering about, and I decided to follow one, more in hope than expectation it would land anywhere, they are very restless butterflies after all. However, it did settle on some lady's smock, and I was able to get a not terribly good shot from distance. 

It wouldn't let me get any closer.

After a walk round the boundary, and nearly back at the entrance, I noticed in the field some drooping purple wildflowers I did not recognise. Having a closer look, I was excited to see that they were snake's head fritillaries, a species I have never ever seen before. 

What a pleasant surprise!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 19.04.22

How Vivid do you want it?

 Took myself off on a nice trip to Farndon, to have a good walk around and see what I might find at Cottage Lane Reserve.

The answer was, not very much. 

The tufted vetch that gives the reserve a feel of a bushy ocean in late summer was largely over, and red clover was the dominant plant in the meadow area, while purple and yellow loosestrife fringed the ponds in, er, purple and yellow. 

More yellow was supplied by a lovely second flight male brimstone that was feeding off clover. It's rare to see them settle for long, but this one took its time. Too far away to photograph however. 

Migrant hawker dragonflies were on patrol too, flying in those sinister zig zag patterns, always looking for hapless prey. 

OK, so, there was quite a lot to see really. I just didn't get to photograph any of it...

However, there were other beautiful things I found to show you. On the way out, I'd noticed that the red valerian outside the front of a sheltered housing complex was a bit of a butterfly magnet, and sure enough when I came back there were small tortoiseshells feeding off it, one of them pristine, the other so raggedy I was amazed it could fly. 

A marigold also provided the colourful backdrop for a bumblebee. 

Yeah! Let's turn that photo saturation up baby!!!

Si

All text and images copyright 26.08.21

Moar Butterflies

 I've not really seen much to photograph this week, work is picking up the pace big time, and the weather has been a little bit too meh really.

However, I did get an enjoyable walk in through the park to Hawton, and then into Farndon to see what was happening in Cottage Lane reserve.

Walking and listening to the radio is such a delight to me, although my increasing middle aged-ness means I listen to Radio 4 more than 6 Music these days; I rather lost interest after Radcliffe and Maconie lost the afternoon show. I like being spoken to when out on my long walks without the hassle of having to say anything in return. It keeps me calm, and the spoken word means I can still pick out interesting sounds to investigate further.

I also like to see how many of the contestants I can beat on "Brain of Britain". I reckon I would have come second in the final once. Or rather my ego does. 

So, butterflies. To say it is the longest flying of all our UK species in my experience, I'm amazed I haven't been able to to get a decent photograph of a speckled wood until now, in its classic pose settled on a leaf waiting for another speckled wood to come close to attack it. 

Other butterflies fed off clustertop verbena in Farndon, while Cottage Lane reserve is full of purple and yellow loostrife, patrolled by brown hawker dragonflies. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 29.07.21

Bimbling to Farndon

 This afternoon I decided to head out to Farndon, specifically to take a look at Cottage Lane nature reserve to see what I might see. 

As it turned out, there wasn't actually a lot going on, it seems to be a place that explodes into colour later in the summer. The chief plant growing was I think lady's smock, and not a whole lot else. 

However, as is often the case, the journey is better than the objective, and today the dandelions were a fruitful source of photo opps, with honey bees, solitary bees and a stunning peacock butterfly all nectaring off the mini yellow suns.

The fields next to the river will soon go yellow too, with buttercups, but not quite yet. 

Swallows are around over the river, but not seeing any house martins yet. Soon there will be swifts, although signs indicate they will be late this year.

I don't blame them, given the cool weather.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 26.04.21