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| Blackberries, a fallen leaf and raindrops on a spiderweb = Autumn! |
I was keen to visit the Reserve on Wednesday as the Reserve Officer and her team of Merry Muckers had been there the previous afternoon to cut the damp meadow area with the Decimator. They had raked it off for us and transported all the cut vegetation to the compost heap. It will be worth keeping an eye on the compost area in future as all the spiders and insects that will have been raked off with the grass often draw in the birds, notably Goldcrests.
I should really have waited for the afternoon, I think, when the sun finally appeared and everywhere warmed up. As it was, the morning air was surprisingly cold and I could have done with a pair of gloves and some woolly socks! The wildlife seemed to be keeping warm down in the vegetation out of sight too but here is what I recorded:
Birds:
SC208694 Goldcrest; Chaffinch heard but not seen.
SC208695 female Blackbird; Woodpigeon flying over.
SC209694 ( hide) 2 x Heron flying in together
Ladybirds:
SC209694 4 x 7-spot all in very small area together.
Butterflies and Moths:
None seen - too cold and windy
Other:
SC208695 4 x Green Shieldbug nymphs and 1 adult
"Footballer " Hoverfly & Yellow Dung Fly
Eristalis Hoverfly; Unidentified Muscid Fly; Noon fly; Greenbottle fly ( Dasyphora or Eudasy phora)
Giant Willow Aphids ( recently arrived, no honeydew attracting insects as yet)
SC209695 Ersitalis pertinax Hoverflies x 2; Platycheirus albimanus flies x 2
SC208694 Crab Apple tree growing well
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| Just inside reserve - mown and raked off |
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Damp meadow area mown and raked off to bring down fertility
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compost piled high
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possibly the highest I've ever seen it!
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Crab Apple doing well
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Eristalis species Hoverfly
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Muscid species Fly
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Noon Fly top left. Bottom Right Dasyphora or Eudasyphora muscid fly
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Probably Muscid species flies
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Yellow dung fly
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Platycheirus albimanus fly
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Male Eristalis species Hoverfly - maybe pertinax
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Platycheirus albimanus
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Eristalis pertinax
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With thanks to Steve Crellin for fly identifications
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| Our largest Aphids |
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Giant Willow Aphids
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Adult Green Shieldbug
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Green Shieldbug Nymph
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and another
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I counted 4 altogether
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two of four 7-spot Ladybirds
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| I'm afraid I had to censor a rather puerile alteration to noticeboard! |
| Note Loch Ness Monster too!
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a rather chilly looking reserve
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We are very grateful to Tricia and her team for cutting the two meadow areas and raking them off. Removing the cut vegetation reduces the fertility year on year giving the wildflowers an advantage over the coarse grasses. There has been a steady improvement over the years but as the area was originally arable farmland, regularly fertilised no doubt, we still have a way to go yet!
With thanks to Steve Crellin for fly identifiactions
Please click on photos to enlarge them
