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 

Recent Butterfly Finds amidst Illness.

 Well, been a interesting couple of weeks. 

Last week, I noticed that I had a very area on my shin, and another in my inner thigh, which by Tuesday morning had turned into a more or less shin sized hot swollen area with a rash in the middle of it, plus a hot rash on my thigh. 

A hurried snap of the afflicted area was dispatched to my GP surgery with a description of the symptoms, and sure enough, later in the afternoon they texted me the confirmation of what I had already suspected. 

I had got a cellulitis infection. 

Now, normally this doesn't sound like very much, but it can lead to sepsis if you don't get on top of it quickly with antibiotics. Not fancying hospitalisation, amputation or death, I was a good boy and cycled off from work to get my prescription like a Temu Tadej Pogacar. 

Having a very hot swollen leg infection in 34C temperatures isn't really ideal, but I didn't want to get cabin fever so I did take a couple of short walks outside for a cup of tea on the market square or at the library gardens. Plenty of flutterers around at the moment - red admirals, peacocks, various whites, holly blues and the inevitable painted ladies this summer. So I was able to get a few nice photos! 

Back at work this week, and only a faint trace of rash left, so all good! 

Si 

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 15.07.26 

Red Admirals and Ivy Bees

 We are deep into autumn now, the last of the hirundids are gone and the winter thrushes are arriving from Scandinavia. Locally the feral geese are arriving at their favourite muddy field down by the river. Cold morning cycling has returned, so its buffs, hats and gloves for me on my commute. 

But there are still bright days and enough verbena and ivy in flower to attract pollinators. The hardy red admirals, always the last butterfly on the wing every year, are still plentiful, and although it took me a while, I found my first ivy mining bee of the season.

I have upped my running, getting in a 10km run at one point, and it certainly seems to be helping with my mental health and burning off excess ADHD energy and reducing tourette tics. 

So let me show you what I've seen while out and about, and I hope you like it.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 16.10.23

Some Butterfly Studies

 I've started properly running again, to burn up some of that excessive Tourette and ADHD energy and for the good of my mental health. It is certainly proving to be more helpful in this regard than cricket has been; my bowling has sort of sine waved from awful to good and back to awful again. 

But cricket is over now, and I'm trying to capture what ever buzzers and flutterers I can before autumn takes a proper grip and everything goes to sleep until spring. 

So enjoy these studies I've taken of a couple of butterflies that were obliging enough to give me a good luck as they warmed themselves up in the sun. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 21.09.23

Moar Butterflies

 About the only day the sun managed to show its big yellow face last week, two things that had changed in the world of butterflies locally were revealed.

1) A big migration of red admirals had arrived.

2) There was a mass emergence of second flight peacocks.

(There's also a third, I suppose - I'm wondering if some of the small skippers I'm seeing are actually essex skippers)

They are particularly fond of flowering teasel and clearly don't mind the prickles!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 24.07.23

Bee-ing an Artist

 I keep inheriting little notebooks and felt tip pens in various places, and so when I get the chance it is fun to do a little sketching here and there.

My latest ones were done with no visual reference, and golly gee it shows! I couldn't remember how the stripes on a red admiral went, what actual colour a tawny mining bee was, and didn't have a purple pen to "illustrate" a buddleia. 

Still, I kind of like the results, and feel like I've upgraded my work to about seven year old levels, which is nice. 

I also guess drawing them makes up for not actually seeing them, these dark cold months.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 04.12.22

red admiral on boxing day