tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14176338994510714182024-03-19T10:25:12.708+00:00Devon occasionalAn occasional blog from Devon, SW England. Photos, days out, gripes and foreign trips will be written about at the least. Much of it may relate to birding, invertebrates and general natural history, so steer clear if that's anathema!jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.comBlogger180125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-45628615101325811612016-11-20T19:40:00.001+00:002016-11-20T19:40:42.222+00:00Time to turn a little more occasionalAs we've taken the decision to leave the UK, it seems a little too occasional to maintain a Devon Occasional blog full-time, so I'm taking the chance to make a new start. You can find out where we've gone (tricky guess) and a bit more about the local area at <a href="http://inselaffe-abroad.blogspot.de/">http://inselaffe-abroad.blogspot.de/</a> - and if you needed a clue, it's right there in the address.<br />
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It's been - generally - a pleasure jotting down my various thoughts and posting my hotch-potch of pictures. Look forward to seeing you on the other side of the virtual Channel...<br />
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Ciao!<br />
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-17109889216563706932016-09-18T20:06:00.002+01:002016-09-18T20:06:38.831+01:00Dripping towards a closeWe should have learned from the experiences of the last couple of days: never trust the forecast. Mainly sunny, but perhaps with the occasional shower, they said. Let's go to a lake where we can splash around, look at wildlife, hire a boat and generally enjoy the sun, we said. Fortunately it wasn't far. The sun was shining. The air was warm. There were frogs making that particularly joyous racket that only green frogs can (if you've only every heard a British amphibian chorus, I urge you to try out the continental green frog chorus. Like Lemmy said: if it's too loud, you're too old). Hey, look: there aren't any boats to hire anyway. Never mind, splashing in the moderately warm and delightfully chocolate-soup coloured splash zone is too much fun anyway. Hey, look: loads of orchids and damselflies and things to poke around at, pick up, taste, smell, chuck. This is fun! Oh: check out the big black cloud that's heading... oh. Oh well. Let's go home and ride the ponies instead.<br />
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It was fun while it lasted.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmQJcAS7Rh33bf-OdrCXD-ShrGUTQ8a9vMznvmuYQKlDStXWoBH9M1Z3DIJoLEF8uQX5d6-IEzFtBf2OImyChPEmg5QtRWfQm4ppimSdvw32sXO5G9VqArPSIiPDsxJyO_QO1DAFzZqM/s1600/DSC_4587.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmQJcAS7Rh33bf-OdrCXD-ShrGUTQ8a9vMznvmuYQKlDStXWoBH9M1Z3DIJoLEF8uQX5d6-IEzFtBf2OImyChPEmg5QtRWfQm4ppimSdvw32sXO5G9VqArPSIiPDsxJyO_QO1DAFzZqM/s640/DSC_4587.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whoever thought this was a good spot for a bench was absolutely correct.</td></tr>
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We also thought we'd try a walk along a gentle valley which runs east-west between Oberammergau and Ettal. Reports of nice things (Three-toed and White-backed Woodpeckers, for instance) and a favourable view or three on Google Earth made it seductively interesting. The misty clouds rolling around the scarps made it romantically interesting. The pair of Black Woodpeckers calling in the trees above us made it sound exotically interesting. The drizzle - and then increasingly steady rain - made it, frankly, untenable. I strapped Lissa into the sling and promised to meet the other two at the Ettaler Weidmoos for lunch, then headed east back down the valley for the walk. Rain aside, it was absolutely lovely.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbi2FJHpdMEmB-sZGS3F8ATElB8Tj0rbEI2XmczTEztozg7Rh_8RAd_CJe1jHeaEJJQ_u-X07VgXTdPbe-oVoFqx01O6cVdzR7VM8YAzDSqM_zaE_AmTtCh7DyPmSXqI426NWLkiZbvA/s1600/DSC_4601.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbi2FJHpdMEmB-sZGS3F8ATElB8Tj0rbEI2XmczTEztozg7Rh_8RAd_CJe1jHeaEJJQ_u-X07VgXTdPbe-oVoFqx01O6cVdzR7VM8YAzDSqM_zaE_AmTtCh7DyPmSXqI426NWLkiZbvA/s640/DSC_4601.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It just gets wetter. And wetter.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZT_z6KP2sRvrvxAqyXE45-8Y3UFXkOXCE8PZwUNKx4GLT_paQqFNSRjws1uP68nLGUXeHTGWtRfSnrO1GH3ibCnmKldXw10GpQZuz4jfIQQHpx_428AAPAvtYT-uOZiI0uEQHx5OU78/s1600/DSC_4597.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZT_z6KP2sRvrvxAqyXE45-8Y3UFXkOXCE8PZwUNKx4GLT_paQqFNSRjws1uP68nLGUXeHTGWtRfSnrO1GH3ibCnmKldXw10GpQZuz4jfIQQHpx_428AAPAvtYT-uOZiI0uEQHx5OU78/s640/DSC_4597.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And wetter.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiveRy5HgSL_ayqPfpFU8xH02Bg3nhGyBk-0bXNQqLncmOUku5RUR1knqYyfimhXQgE3pRkqa9okmbLE2y_NtnlmSWLOLaCd7BXsP9al255GMgLsx9HcHKxw4Ltqbj4rgrJHVCYSbwsis0/s1600/DSC_4598.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiveRy5HgSL_ayqPfpFU8xH02Bg3nhGyBk-0bXNQqLncmOUku5RUR1knqYyfimhXQgE3pRkqa9okmbLE2y_NtnlmSWLOLaCd7BXsP9al255GMgLsx9HcHKxw4Ltqbj4rgrJHVCYSbwsis0/s640/DSC_4598.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tree Lungwort <i>Lobaria pulmonaria</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQfjhFBWmb5fNjzmKn4ISoWVsFahqzUvJaLV5djGWw8RZSFpiuEu5Q6IGkh2w47LWsKPoNX7wRqBtplSOGCj5OOwHn8o4EiLrIsan9UfnlwBmhPQ3KCw0xtTE8mf3zkK3gZlp5WFna3Ec/s1600/DSC_4604.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQfjhFBWmb5fNjzmKn4ISoWVsFahqzUvJaLV5djGWw8RZSFpiuEu5Q6IGkh2w47LWsKPoNX7wRqBtplSOGCj5OOwHn8o4EiLrIsan9UfnlwBmhPQ3KCw0xtTE8mf3zkK3gZlp5WFna3Ec/s640/DSC_4604.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Romantically mist-clad slopes over the meadows</td></tr>
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We ended up at the bog, all arriving fortuitously together and had a drizzled-upon lunch, but then - horrors - the clouds began to roll back and a fragment of blue poked through. That was enough for us: we set out to explore a little of the bog, the girls rejuvenated by the sight of sunshine and the heat on our skin. Indeed it got so warm that Lissa stripped off completely to rush about and chase butterflies. For butterflies there most certainly were. First of all we were visited by a Chequered Skipper, which sunned itself teasingly on various items of clothing. This was then joined by a Mazarine Blue, equally at home on our abandoned pullovers and jackets. The competition spurred the skipper to new heights of daring, landing with increasing confidence on legs, then hands and working round the whole family. Finally, fritillaries put in an appearance - singletons gliding jerkily past us and then several at a time batting around over the flowers. Closer examination proved intriguing: not a species I recognised... but fortunately the trusty field guide put me out of my misery: Bog Fritillary. How appropriate.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVopULDtOmPNntprf6t19aNEfli8Ve_JtBlFmNLfmilezGYFT5N4YWuJ47792fEOrDgHxV8bFkMlOoLcrklBdzLd-kGYiEJifh9soGGDuGrBJKRhzPzR2_GFC8pmP1h6otpNGUgTh6Bo/s1600/DSC_4614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVopULDtOmPNntprf6t19aNEfli8Ve_JtBlFmNLfmilezGYFT5N4YWuJ47792fEOrDgHxV8bFkMlOoLcrklBdzLd-kGYiEJifh9soGGDuGrBJKRhzPzR2_GFC8pmP1h6otpNGUgTh6Bo/s640/DSC_4614.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty. Soggy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4F9PjyhkbvsK2mUN-Al9LgG3wR8mrM1GrAjaEjUZd0ED430BCYUbAjmCNzPblAQPwX_x3wJt3D_AXr6GXNpsFY48NBGtFjal4oO50xnxfvhp_ENTmkJSpSJCS4nefGtpEpG7KdQXocc/s1600/DSC_4631.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4F9PjyhkbvsK2mUN-Al9LgG3wR8mrM1GrAjaEjUZd0ED430BCYUbAjmCNzPblAQPwX_x3wJt3D_AXr6GXNpsFY48NBGtFjal4oO50xnxfvhp_ENTmkJSpSJCS4nefGtpEpG7KdQXocc/s640/DSC_4631.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mazarine Blue<i> Cyaniris semiargus</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqzWmTClT1NmHls__yHILr8CLdCppcF8IsPr9cZItXudhkex120Zx3iDJxKy9xPwpuFis_EDvaQj3z0CpW6CA5Qc0ThLM_sjr7pLrrftkqY6crjJO-EvvI81mNEFf85yyyhJ0wVyHE_1c/s1600/DSC_4632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqzWmTClT1NmHls__yHILr8CLdCppcF8IsPr9cZItXudhkex120Zx3iDJxKy9xPwpuFis_EDvaQj3z0CpW6CA5Qc0ThLM_sjr7pLrrftkqY6crjJO-EvvI81mNEFf85yyyhJ0wVyHE_1c/s640/DSC_4632.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mazarine Blue</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxWfPCk17LTew4MYFgiB0sIE-1hlIRVy1IUAEwatolftAbmZDN03AYEs_eDiA71WOOgypqN8CzUBYyegSjJfa6rYfhePao1BW0SK-AGdIDnnaUlA6-oCU4R2CSZKKoraDdMu9-YvQjGE/s1600/DSC_4640.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxWfPCk17LTew4MYFgiB0sIE-1hlIRVy1IUAEwatolftAbmZDN03AYEs_eDiA71WOOgypqN8CzUBYyegSjJfa6rYfhePao1BW0SK-AGdIDnnaUlA6-oCU4R2CSZKKoraDdMu9-YvQjGE/s640/DSC_4640.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chequered Skipper <i>Carterocephalus palaemon</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwaaNZc4OwPQFUZxp9XiBDOJA6JKTPDvHwaacuJt_OgEPrwJnsaBhzODU1JnnQuCnS85HE5QcyVTSu79OAAsLpXtTlPk75s17Hr4tTg-ZZr8qzvbJ0Bm1vbrgcc8-q-l44El8a-6VVm8/s1600/DSC_4637.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwaaNZc4OwPQFUZxp9XiBDOJA6JKTPDvHwaacuJt_OgEPrwJnsaBhzODU1JnnQuCnS85HE5QcyVTSu79OAAsLpXtTlPk75s17Hr4tTg-ZZr8qzvbJ0Bm1vbrgcc8-q-l44El8a-6VVm8/s640/DSC_4637.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Skipper raises the stakes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggXI3PZ_ZpIwbWGSqEbLiJ7pwG_ZH5zXcEi-xcdKHqphj9qismknOCGR6nIAFdGXjVFdyg4U275MtPbSftMkLcJKEu62Yy4jRsNyDUZdNyh9JUjZ20eBUM_GI-D2JPa5rOX2EVQ6oZsP4/s1600/DSC_4655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggXI3PZ_ZpIwbWGSqEbLiJ7pwG_ZH5zXcEi-xcdKHqphj9qismknOCGR6nIAFdGXjVFdyg4U275MtPbSftMkLcJKEu62Yy4jRsNyDUZdNyh9JUjZ20eBUM_GI-D2JPa5rOX2EVQ6oZsP4/s640/DSC_4655.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bog Fritillary <i>Proclossiana eunomia</i> from below</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEgqKPQdmD4_DIWoM2lFDF2d5jvCq8XdKmkAeXD0yFwmMx2QvLpCObScgsUyaPrKwJs3UVBvtGJVWcnYAbit1W4WQwvlwYkHaZZx7L9alm0BOLkH_Jq8qrPR4DNBhEIsxbAti9Tr1i-IQ/s1600/DSC_4657.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEgqKPQdmD4_DIWoM2lFDF2d5jvCq8XdKmkAeXD0yFwmMx2QvLpCObScgsUyaPrKwJs3UVBvtGJVWcnYAbit1W4WQwvlwYkHaZZx7L9alm0BOLkH_Jq8qrPR4DNBhEIsxbAti9Tr1i-IQ/s640/DSC_4657.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bog Fritillary from above.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ37_7C9Pr2lFx7PksjD27rP4_-opbmyI93xhPgsu22y0VBqWFZBeQI1aPI5cJpoSUKiaX6vgY0vIpFW7gW3rY44K_-7mkNPNazoA8N_D7BKlNHQJjWr4re5cJGpQv838g7lSG4TrlDn4/s1600/DSC_4660.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ37_7C9Pr2lFx7PksjD27rP4_-opbmyI93xhPgsu22y0VBqWFZBeQI1aPI5cJpoSUKiaX6vgY0vIpFW7gW3rY44K_-7mkNPNazoA8N_D7BKlNHQJjWr4re5cJGpQv838g7lSG4TrlDn4/s640/DSC_4660.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Dactylorhiza c.f. traunsteineri</i>. I think.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYExantw689cIbetGFWk0ntKucex5vlynyVh2NpUMiJdjWVa1baXrtNwLrRIPLQlldCDDspHN734A9UY-uDFuUy5Cba3R2IregVQ28LS-Z-OJiH7VccUDX0HTGAMZqUEGB5OJclWuO_0/s1600/DSC_4662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYExantw689cIbetGFWk0ntKucex5vlynyVh2NpUMiJdjWVa1baXrtNwLrRIPLQlldCDDspHN734A9UY-uDFuUy5Cba3R2IregVQ28LS-Z-OJiH7VccUDX0HTGAMZqUEGB5OJclWuO_0/s640/DSC_4662.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statuesque plant (False Helleborine <i>Veratrum album</i>). Amazing spider! (No, I don't know what it is - yet)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6UFjS_PPuXHIaC9SjCHoTd6yEe8Fe0MQA5HtLOJQPlXJ11b2hkMh2n0zz0p1YmW_Na5ZB18O7usPdZ_fDLNV6t5S6Q_2uZYYyQC0JaFSuyoAt3O8nFYrXL2Y6z16GTy660OJvoFxeRXQ/s1600/DSC_4664.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6UFjS_PPuXHIaC9SjCHoTd6yEe8Fe0MQA5HtLOJQPlXJ11b2hkMh2n0zz0p1YmW_Na5ZB18O7usPdZ_fDLNV6t5S6Q_2uZYYyQC0JaFSuyoAt3O8nFYrXL2Y6z16GTy660OJvoFxeRXQ/s640/DSC_4664.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alpine Bartsia <i>Bartsia alpina</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnihofpqya46BAs-SI6-j5U88RNMZHni8selImNzRD3zba9xfRrDpzmPPDYC9FHia9OSSU-F3A0Yb7iCnszvsVhRnHme09ZUdp47mQzHFyVnQ3_4631rgH0HPOj-UpIXvMbOdbGLG7DEM/s1600/DSC_4666.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnihofpqya46BAs-SI6-j5U88RNMZHni8selImNzRD3zba9xfRrDpzmPPDYC9FHia9OSSU-F3A0Yb7iCnszvsVhRnHme09ZUdp47mQzHFyVnQ3_4631rgH0HPOj-UpIXvMbOdbGLG7DEM/s640/DSC_4666.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Primula farinosa</i> is an ever-present feature of the bog.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEXKB1WugS_r21HhQL2mm-wWpoxqczFktLZXZqwKIRTP3YNvJQbIqW4wq4ClX11k2FGsoSBPfo1QZN0bDqverDGhfuGXlGls7fzvl9cvI1H-Tq0oz2X88jw5m0kkxj5fovC5IvXmiqPI/s1600/DSC_4671.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEXKB1WugS_r21HhQL2mm-wWpoxqczFktLZXZqwKIRTP3YNvJQbIqW4wq4ClX11k2FGsoSBPfo1QZN0bDqverDGhfuGXlGls7fzvl9cvI1H-Tq0oz2X88jw5m0kkxj5fovC5IvXmiqPI/s640/DSC_4671.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's beautiful when it's not raining!</td></tr>
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<br />
Somehow, we managed to save the best for last. Even though it wasn't meant to be the most exciting day - in fact was really only a chance to use our travel cards one more time and ride another cable-car. We drove to Oberammergau for our last full day, to take the Laberbergbahn to the top of the mountain. The day was spectacularly good: blue skies, calm, warm. Just what we'd come to the Alps for in the first place! The journey to the top was smooth, peaceful and sufficiently hair-raising for Na and the view from the top was - frankly - gorgeous. We walked back down to the car through meadows of brilliant flowers, then woods that deserved much more scrutiny than we were able to give them. A place to return to in the fullness of time, I think.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhawvIaQ-xtgT9oulmZZjtIhdKuEHUI-GZpDRJLmPHq1Pw5SV4TdCrxN654tzKeQF4TLr9mxyT6NF9M04QGjWZSNrpsZw-EftKexj4vWgVxN-dKIPjnu61whbZ6Q6icZytnengLiPgGEo8/s1600/DSC_4691.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhawvIaQ-xtgT9oulmZZjtIhdKuEHUI-GZpDRJLmPHq1Pw5SV4TdCrxN654tzKeQF4TLr9mxyT6NF9M04QGjWZSNrpsZw-EftKexj4vWgVxN-dKIPjnu61whbZ6Q6icZytnengLiPgGEo8/s640/DSC_4691.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snowbells were still flowering on the north-facing slopes - the ballerina of the alpine flora</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bDHwAqC2sHiaLWViFNR3wF2p8w1uqCbiaqOOYboHNetMFRS_9S-RqV7X3E2irDDZmDxw3E43UZCvs30tm_wlTkz_0ta1n-U1w1c7yMfpnDfj9XAkT0Ta1Qrq4vM54vlMiQOBngArti0/s1600/DSC_4703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bDHwAqC2sHiaLWViFNR3wF2p8w1uqCbiaqOOYboHNetMFRS_9S-RqV7X3E2irDDZmDxw3E43UZCvs30tm_wlTkz_0ta1n-U1w1c7yMfpnDfj9XAkT0Ta1Qrq4vM54vlMiQOBngArti0/s640/DSC_4703.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out the sedges! There's the odd gentian and Bear's-ear to get past first, of course.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLv6ALbD54mFYF09E56IDs4HsOHf_9zsQZXZJ6vklz2owrSwSxrtJID99t0gklWgCgaT6w8DhD0trGNWfHjMC5dzNUFiyN1MvVCwJjZDSoye7JHUJEHywsLZ0ljzDT6yB8pp8UN4TPjQk/s1600/DSC_4707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLv6ALbD54mFYF09E56IDs4HsOHf_9zsQZXZJ6vklz2owrSwSxrtJID99t0gklWgCgaT6w8DhD0trGNWfHjMC5dzNUFiyN1MvVCwJjZDSoye7JHUJEHywsLZ0ljzDT6yB8pp8UN4TPjQk/s640/DSC_4707.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One-flowered Fleabane: common as muck.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgrAR2VM1YBHQDyMzRo8XTmJ8zpjIOgdJbX4Tl2hJilzrL43YI8yjJmU8mj-qR3GwkkBaX0PcCAAPtKpBsPQoyEe4vD-f2nKzcBnG5hzQnPa581EuMOVyN3H5NpnlP_LmrLmHttXfA9M/s1600/DSC_4720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgrAR2VM1YBHQDyMzRo8XTmJ8zpjIOgdJbX4Tl2hJilzrL43YI8yjJmU8mj-qR3GwkkBaX0PcCAAPtKpBsPQoyEe4vD-f2nKzcBnG5hzQnPa581EuMOVyN3H5NpnlP_LmrLmHttXfA9M/s640/DSC_4720.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A parting view: the path down from the Laber summit leads through the valley running up and right across the middle of the picture. Not too shabby at all.</td></tr>
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-35921356658370276952016-07-04T20:41:00.000+01:002016-07-04T20:41:13.391+01:00Alps - Partnachklamm and ZugspitzeAs the weather forecast was a bit iffy, we thought we ought to go somewhere with the option of some shelter. We drove off towards Garmisch Partenkirchen via Oberammergau - in retrospect something of a mistake. Everything went swimmingly until somewhere between Ettal and Garmisch, where we found a group of workmen repairing the crash-barriers. This in itself was not a problem, but the traffic coming uphill was: particularly the inability of articulated lorries to overtake cyclists along a single track section. Despite being no distance to the traffic lights, it took over half an hour to cover a couple of hundred metres. Situation not improved by desperate cries of need for a toilet from the back seat. Hey ho. Would have been worse if she'd meant it!<br />
<br />
We finally arrived at the winter Olympic stadium and found somewhere to park, then set off in the drizzle towards the Partnachklamm. The meadows on the way up were predictably beautiful with Wood Cranesbill making a strong contribution and little subtleties like Astrantia to be found with a little patience. Before we got to the gorge we found that Lissa wanted to have a nap, so she was tucked into the sling on my front and we ambled slightly more rapidly along the ever-narrowing valley. As the sides of the valley grew steeper and rockier the air became more humid and the sound of the river was magnified until it drowned out almost everything else. Yellow wood-violets and saxifrages appeared, and the proportion of mosses and liverworts grew higher, with mats of <i>Conocephus conicum </i>looking particularly impressive.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1goNWWYtCaUOhGgXk9lZMhFd6YIGdZm8_phsCbqiZW3G4YtDaTJFUe899cFLWMYsrQmCViqzP6V7lPFFteECoJZBXLJX9t7SwoM4y8WzJtva639Ts7COvSP3UwsMPwFl1NMilvTNSyk/s1600/DSC_4477.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1goNWWYtCaUOhGgXk9lZMhFd6YIGdZm8_phsCbqiZW3G4YtDaTJFUe899cFLWMYsrQmCViqzP6V7lPFFteECoJZBXLJX9t7SwoM4y8WzJtva639Ts7COvSP3UwsMPwFl1NMilvTNSyk/s640/DSC_4477.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood Cranesbill</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUZG4aWPqawZ1s6BUpwEk-wCv658k_CHinP73C44LffuLDgwW0qmza7isHhdUMOkpGpm9MBbmlKjSR6JR3sN7xqD8iUB9iXz40F49t4Syapr-sVJWtrOw8Dj_YaShDyMPflFsz1YiwZcs/s1600/DSC_4478.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUZG4aWPqawZ1s6BUpwEk-wCv658k_CHinP73C44LffuLDgwW0qmza7isHhdUMOkpGpm9MBbmlKjSR6JR3sN7xqD8iUB9iXz40F49t4Syapr-sVJWtrOw8Dj_YaShDyMPflFsz1YiwZcs/s640/DSC_4478.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Astrantia and gratuitous wire fencing</td></tr>
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<br />
We made our way into the gorge for free (thanks Koenigskarten) and were immediately walking under an overhang with veils of water cascading over - and onto - us. The path crept along the side of the river, and to Bina's delight soon began to dip in and out of tunnels through the cliff as the gorge narrowed further. The river was squeezed into a thunderous torrent, the recent rain adding depth and power. The river surged through the narrow walls of the gorge, roiling and tumbling over boulders. Cascades of water fell from the walls, the more permanent of them onto small roofs placed there to shelter walkers; others fell gently over us as we walked. Lissa was so interested that she forgot to either fall asleep or howl with tiredness.<br />
<br />
After a steady last climb through a long tunnel we suddenly emerged into startling sunshine with the river tumbling merrily along below and steep forested slopes above us to both sides. As Lissa was by now asleep, I carried on up the valley for a while and the other two returned to get their lunch. The routes away from the gorge proved to be less than popular with most of the walkers, so I had a very peaceful time ambling along and trying to botanise without disturbing a sleeping child: surprisingly effective considering the constraints!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1fC2QVsJ7KB6jRO-fT3_HCih2CCB50LCI8uTBl6gZA-WU87TyQxPJr_ErZ19Y5CeTa1IGQvUJVBxkazt16g5m-vsivK_-kXsfkjXFcxCMe7EOFEYJNv-eke4ABlA5fUVPhF6LUHDt8VA/s1600/DSC_4486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1fC2QVsJ7KB6jRO-fT3_HCih2CCB50LCI8uTBl6gZA-WU87TyQxPJr_ErZ19Y5CeTa1IGQvUJVBxkazt16g5m-vsivK_-kXsfkjXFcxCMe7EOFEYJNv-eke4ABlA5fUVPhF6LUHDt8VA/s640/DSC_4486.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An unexpected bonus: <i>Lobaria pulmonaria </i>looking fabulously healthy. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SD5YMjyJ3a3De73pGE7MNhh8Mp4sZ6ldB6VCNvhEIGPkb2mIR3Vs3ceAM1aXXL5TuZpbJgidNgq_2l_YL6VSzDM0AFC67l0cdX1sNQf_Ja0gzN1ckqHezayVdCqoiCSCgsHCzNrQLwQ/s1600/DSC_4482.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SD5YMjyJ3a3De73pGE7MNhh8Mp4sZ6ldB6VCNvhEIGPkb2mIR3Vs3ceAM1aXXL5TuZpbJgidNgq_2l_YL6VSzDM0AFC67l0cdX1sNQf_Ja0gzN1ckqHezayVdCqoiCSCgsHCzNrQLwQ/s640/DSC_4482.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A large and spectacular burdock/heliotrope-esque plant</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxCBN5l-MHl6BMSb9J8eX6emfyhX_-gXS0iihQuo2DheveSDOdRcls1FBl9eV8Ol9turyARI-6feFnhmie1Gwq8moMduFrIyIB5EX7XadSo-mRDf7Ktarr242GgLYs0myan_Xjs3zRWAo/s1600/DSC_4483.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxCBN5l-MHl6BMSb9J8eX6emfyhX_-gXS0iihQuo2DheveSDOdRcls1FBl9eV8Ol9turyARI-6feFnhmie1Gwq8moMduFrIyIB5EX7XadSo-mRDf7Ktarr242GgLYs0myan_Xjs3zRWAo/s640/DSC_4483.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Aposeris foetida</i> - so good I can't find an English name. Easily recognisable even with a sleeping child strapped to one's front.</td></tr>
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The walk back to meet the others was enlivened by the discovery, most of the way down, that Lissa had lost her cuddly monkey, popularly known as Mau-Mau. Despite a return march to the entrance of the gorge and asking at the kiosk, there was no sign and we had to explain that Mau-Mau was now on her way home as she was fed up with the weather.<br />
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The following day was a complete write-off. The rain was persistent and made everything really quite difficult. Must have been because the forecast was relatively good and - perhaps also - because we went back to the Murnauer Moos.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkS6J0Zo-S5pkVUaky4LNBr2KzPv_CHrr81t7uzMBs726W_exM3mMmJF_mRVsepwhyzga5I4pDeXHixnc3K6hPe_tZFKJzRGd_Y6J69TGeeQBP5u0e1IXpJ_9_bOhmdXE1t0WC23xYAg/s1600/DSC_4499.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkS6J0Zo-S5pkVUaky4LNBr2KzPv_CHrr81t7uzMBs726W_exM3mMmJF_mRVsepwhyzga5I4pDeXHixnc3K6hPe_tZFKJzRGd_Y6J69TGeeQBP5u0e1IXpJ_9_bOhmdXE1t0WC23xYAg/s640/DSC_4499.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Perhaps these appreciate the weather better than most. A constant source of fascination for the girls to see a snail that is as long as Papa's palm. They were strangely reluctant to pick them up though...!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijcH0sQl95HWwXM_e9pwuF7JNHckKNFo9Qx7JyWwGn8GlD4PpwWbyq7CocT6nfZSXvFhE1uq-pvIpMzhKVqQlwYps5hD7umMSWsbqSJi683Vc1lK2NbcEwtx8vVI85k-YS2g0VUDWkI6E/s1600/DSC_4498.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijcH0sQl95HWwXM_e9pwuF7JNHckKNFo9Qx7JyWwGn8GlD4PpwWbyq7CocT6nfZSXvFhE1uq-pvIpMzhKVqQlwYps5hD7umMSWsbqSJi683Vc1lK2NbcEwtx8vVI85k-YS2g0VUDWkI6E/s640/DSC_4498.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit of meadow-rue makes the day brighter...</td></tr>
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<br />
The third of June, however, was an entirely different kettle of ferrets. The air had the feel of a day which might just be ok, so we grabbed our chance and headed back south past Garmisch to Eibsee and the cable at ascent of Germany's highest mountain. The peak of the Zugspitze was lurking ominously in cloud when we arrived, but there were areas of blue sky to be seen, so we headed confidently into the building. The price seemed steeper than the ascent at €53 per adult, but at least the girls travelled for free. We got into the car with two other couples and set smoothly off. <br />
<br />
The ascent was so quiet and smooth that it seemed to take no time at all - we sailed over the forest, into cloud, then suddenly out into sunshine drifting past sheer cliffs and patches of snow. A solitary Alpine Chough whirled past below us: the sole bird of the journey. We disembarked into a rather incongruous medley of older folk from a tour group and wandered out into the sunshine to admire the view, play with the piles of snow in the corners of the platforms and generally enjoy ourselves. Easily done!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHMS-uuWmQuzdSbrzkC7wmG4rdAGsGVCN0NgL0CWjO334GJZqJJxkwchTfg3Cq7HyCRMFSzHY6642PHZh7R9mhbuJOaF3dTF5jQibDneE1LCeXOZ6oSdyXHkr1DRNvt92M1N0nPGfeTc/s1600/DSC_4508.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHMS-uuWmQuzdSbrzkC7wmG4rdAGsGVCN0NgL0CWjO334GJZqJJxkwchTfg3Cq7HyCRMFSzHY6642PHZh7R9mhbuJOaF3dTF5jQibDneE1LCeXOZ6oSdyXHkr1DRNvt92M1N0nPGfeTc/s640/DSC_4508.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going up. Bina gets to ride in the operator's seat!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UzgPFG6CrsHOR4WxtvBkK-MI_ZDtpcSSbWnz_fZMtSUeX2GxMGWW1kRuMZyTn1QAEPS-1Q03sK-GNb_UqwdzBIVr_P_6e6WDurGSVNX6LMZtOZUGPrf6ZjsM2IVP1KTeG9WdQY4geWA/s1600/DSC_4513.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UzgPFG6CrsHOR4WxtvBkK-MI_ZDtpcSSbWnz_fZMtSUeX2GxMGWW1kRuMZyTn1QAEPS-1Q03sK-GNb_UqwdzBIVr_P_6e6WDurGSVNX6LMZtOZUGPrf6ZjsM2IVP1KTeG9WdQY4geWA/s640/DSC_4513.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And at the summit, it's clear that the weather in Austria is actually no better than in Germany at present.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKBRqg1rkjxwaOcUe-zMWNif1nL89kGjZ4P7KxYRvLXPOHSAUw2bvkknZTy_ZGAP8vcddRXQHaxz9Yu4iUHtSZG855_sSyvMUFPpHIN2xK_ArJqUldQbj3JeMsV_ALOQ65PLlqT9w1c84/s1600/DSC_4525.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKBRqg1rkjxwaOcUe-zMWNif1nL89kGjZ4P7KxYRvLXPOHSAUw2bvkknZTy_ZGAP8vcddRXQHaxz9Yu4iUHtSZG855_sSyvMUFPpHIN2xK_ArJqUldQbj3JeMsV_ALOQ65PLlqT9w1c84/s640/DSC_4525.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But what a fine-looking mountain.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilhY6kagbQYsSTV2HEIsOOieOfOzJagLRznGlGOhPa6ZKNIlzzdl7k8knebUt3qELU4HFBwp9nHYwAWu731kOqK8Y4APHJRyY_x-RBXfV0hRLtdI1jurBrPwb-Upy4cCqFNs6jtvwb1KE/s1600/DSC_4520.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilhY6kagbQYsSTV2HEIsOOieOfOzJagLRznGlGOhPa6ZKNIlzzdl7k8knebUt3qELU4HFBwp9nHYwAWu731kOqK8Y4APHJRyY_x-RBXfV0hRLtdI1jurBrPwb-Upy4cCqFNs6jtvwb1KE/s640/DSC_4520.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The black dot in the cloud lower right is the cable car coming up. The Eibsee is by the base of the cable car line...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJQwZlRSfoLVacI2cJfdcNrsmKquloz-cDhDS3Jtg0NCy7EtSaSaX28jxbQ5hSKjXbzqM6nmbyxQ3_9VydpU5jYIlVQBSf10SyYjCQtmxmpIm76mrHMqiul53b0-jokWqK6nRB9jYWjw/s1600/DSC_4516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJQwZlRSfoLVacI2cJfdcNrsmKquloz-cDhDS3Jtg0NCy7EtSaSaX28jxbQ5hSKjXbzqM6nmbyxQ3_9VydpU5jYIlVQBSf10SyYjCQtmxmpIm76mrHMqiul53b0-jokWqK6nRB9jYWjw/s640/DSC_4516.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Budding graffiti artist? ...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQWBH0zcIB9WJ7VDNo3I4OFZOIMIZ0PgETMgBkTf7_61wt58uwqEiB7JrpIC5-1Vph-n4Nea1tDfOnYckPihvFCb4lu_QyFG5misCHREe-MGdhGs25T0AeXixpxUn0H5PrHgKkEvAQqKw/s1600/DSC_4521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQWBH0zcIB9WJ7VDNo3I4OFZOIMIZ0PgETMgBkTf7_61wt58uwqEiB7JrpIC5-1Vph-n4Nea1tDfOnYckPihvFCb4lu_QyFG5misCHREe-MGdhGs25T0AeXixpxUn0H5PrHgKkEvAQqKw/s640/DSC_4521.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...stroking Chamois in Austria...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Dmx786dgYdM-kDxeH20puorlZ38fly9_HaVuJHP-BQO_NcU36VCmiumeHwXk2sz8VgD1JMokmuzrzyIsxS7_KFZOg7ayJpPT0cKYUkoyJ61z7LxAZFVOtPTNLtR6wlLO5DEsl9eCerA/s1600/DSC_4524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Dmx786dgYdM-kDxeH20puorlZ38fly9_HaVuJHP-BQO_NcU36VCmiumeHwXk2sz8VgD1JMokmuzrzyIsxS7_KFZOg7ayJpPT0cKYUkoyJ61z7LxAZFVOtPTNLtR6wlLO5DEsl9eCerA/s640/DSC_4524.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and just playing with all that snow!</td></tr>
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<br />
The view across the summits was spectacular and the walking direct from the summit would have been great, except that it was soft snow and clearly not going to be worth the attempt for people who are shorter than the snow is deep. Though we seemed to be well above the vascular plant line, tucked into the cracks in the paving slabs were a smooth green mat of moss - looking like <i>Bryum argenteum</i>, though I don't know whether that species is recorded at this altitude - evidence that bryophytes have got what it takes.<br />
<br />
The return journey was through the rather more sedate medium of the toothed railway, which was also quite rapid, but spent a lot of time in a long tunnel through the mountain. We emerged into high conifer forest which looked very interesting botanically and was scattered with butterflies, but alas were unable to get out and explore... Another time maybe. The rest of the day was spent ambling around the Eibsee.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsiQFNAzQnW6wj03IuJiS_pvPimn_Swx5RYQLJQczlXKota1G_3BhxJqvelj5uuvnK77g3rEYYh2SxVi0_Of_7HJEHEV4UlThOGZtI17I6pMtlehF2h9eMy2sIgbhFSylfA2xAjR04eZY/s1600/DSC_4540.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsiQFNAzQnW6wj03IuJiS_pvPimn_Swx5RYQLJQczlXKota1G_3BhxJqvelj5uuvnK77g3rEYYh2SxVi0_Of_7HJEHEV4UlThOGZtI17I6pMtlehF2h9eMy2sIgbhFSylfA2xAjR04eZY/s640/DSC_4540.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Eibsee - from ground level - looking northeast.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qXgbjEzil1dgo-jv0fFa8PEexYL_yZUpldgbwzNWP_hCqHSaUk-pWQQqe-_AG2G14ZOIZdsyEDwoQ_Z_XPh_RtO8sS2GGRep5YzD-9s7_sl1qX4of0lgaZP9yYrdfIGhHYmQiHiAqTE/s1600/DSC_4548.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qXgbjEzil1dgo-jv0fFa8PEexYL_yZUpldgbwzNWP_hCqHSaUk-pWQQqe-_AG2G14ZOIZdsyEDwoQ_Z_XPh_RtO8sS2GGRep5YzD-9s7_sl1qX4of0lgaZP9yYrdfIGhHYmQiHiAqTE/s640/DSC_4548.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild child of the woods</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Nlk8BasSEB75Zs7CaW3ayLNIQWjMFzw1s7kiF8iU74eRLR0gYFip94sXoK_OAar4NUhu8cuAGEexmYeWemFtu5yF4oJP4ebZIaw_non43-9wpzD1hCUmllfRFg02HqwS6hco-ZOKkyE/s1600/DSC_4545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Nlk8BasSEB75Zs7CaW3ayLNIQWjMFzw1s7kiF8iU74eRLR0gYFip94sXoK_OAar4NUhu8cuAGEexmYeWemFtu5yF4oJP4ebZIaw_non43-9wpzD1hCUmllfRFg02HqwS6hco-ZOKkyE/s640/DSC_4545.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amongst many other very nice things to see, Herb Paris is a particular treat for a Devonian</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULoCpCpfwyrFcByn8fRlUc3gYTc9lls88WJD3WLmWbjdknnJgWDaR5MCX7qsjhDW3epkKOaD5mCkVE1cIJoPlG_RLue5M3oOy_Ly9OAMUjie2YThW8TfdnwG4ITap-3n4CRcV4eTd8ec/s1600/DSC_4554.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULoCpCpfwyrFcByn8fRlUc3gYTc9lls88WJD3WLmWbjdknnJgWDaR5MCX7qsjhDW3epkKOaD5mCkVE1cIJoPlG_RLue5M3oOy_Ly9OAMUjie2YThW8TfdnwG4ITap-3n4CRcV4eTd8ec/s640/DSC_4554.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A tiny fraction of countless tadpoles in a small lake to the side of the Eibsee: a four-metre wide band of tadpoles around the entire waterbody, so several hundred metres long in total, constantly circling the pool like wildebeeste traversing the Serengeti...</td></tr>
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-60920836025342388342016-06-24T21:46:00.000+01:002016-06-24T21:46:05.945+01:00Alps, day two...A nice thing happened at the beginning of Sunday: having arrived relatively late on Saturday, we made a brief trip to stock up on food at the airport Edeka on the basis that one of the local supermarkets in Murnau was open on Sunday morning. I duly headed down to Murnau on the Sunday morning to make a dent in our shopping list and, sure enough, the doors to the Fenemann were indeed open: even people inside. The shop looked dimpsy, but sometimes that's life. I duly headed in, grabbed a basket and began to look for some fruit and veg, only to hear a rather frantic 'Entschuldigung!' from behind me. Oh.<br />
<br />
I turned, and the lady explained - very nicely - that the shop is not in fact open, just the bakery at the front of store. Oh. So, putting on my best confused foreigner display (not hard, you might unkindly say!) I explained that we'd just arrived the night before, had seen on the internet that the shop was open and had no idea it was just the bakery - was there anywhere in town where I could get food for two small children and their parents? Bless her, she was kind enough to take me round the supermarket, find me enough to get us through the next three meals and ring it all up on a side till - I cannot imagine that I would ever have been treated so generously in the UK...<br />
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So - partly because of this semi-aborted shopping trip - we headed to Murnau for Monday morning to finish off the shopping, find out what there is to do when you have small children in these parts, and let the girls let off some more steam at a playground. The tourist office were very helpful and the playground was great: a ride-on rocking motorbike a particular hit. We then walked down to the Staffelsee to see whether there might be some wildlife, some views and some more space to play. The verges on the way past the railway underpass were casually stunning: Meadow Clary, Nottingham Catchfly and Viper's-bugloss rubbed shoulders (leaves?) amongst the grasses, set off by Bird's-foot Trefoil and poppies.<br />
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The lake offered all three opportunities: the girls fished with twigs, ran riotous games of tag and cooed over ducklings. A small family of Coot were also entertaining: the parents delicately feeding their half dozen offspring with fragments of water plants and then disciplining the more insistent with a brief shake whenever they got too excited. A family of mallards with larger young were tolerated when they passed through, but a pair of Red-crested Pochard were driven off with great enthusiasm whenever they got within ten metres: no apparent reason - perhaps the Coot just didn't like the male's flamboyant hairdo?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3apMTSIcnVKThXSDxtD-EanQsLFhKkwXfGVFsPk5ZpuUZgYWnUXJTVjrThZSv9_UUcSrig3W6Apegm1K7J8YSWo5HhelvJ4Ac_6ZzggCB-RbUTWtJngV7qMnzwLQRJRoZ-SH0xbwrnqI/s1600/DSC_4383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3apMTSIcnVKThXSDxtD-EanQsLFhKkwXfGVFsPk5ZpuUZgYWnUXJTVjrThZSv9_UUcSrig3W6Apegm1K7J8YSWo5HhelvJ4Ac_6ZzggCB-RbUTWtJngV7qMnzwLQRJRoZ-SH0xbwrnqI/s640/DSC_4383.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coot tending offspring</td></tr>
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We thought we might try and have a look at the Murnauer Moos in the afternoon as the background reading and info we had seen looked amazing. We discovered that nearly thirty square kilometres of valley bog are indeed fabulous, just not when you have a long walk through boring conifers to overcome first, and most particularly not when it's steadily raining and one child is steadily howling. Perhaps another time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYLEgvPpjSMR9my7vb5QL-I-24b9aYn-jigEHgbDpqNNqfFyF0KoEoTTwmVb0jy0LrCGrXRBv4u_MZC0AIh-NPdkEOShwz8SJFCKlvColjlvW4HftxcFu8aE6vQrBvu7vamcsWfA7G0E/s1600/DSC_4380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYLEgvPpjSMR9my7vb5QL-I-24b9aYn-jigEHgbDpqNNqfFyF0KoEoTTwmVb0jy0LrCGrXRBv4u_MZC0AIh-NPdkEOShwz8SJFCKlvColjlvW4HftxcFu8aE6vQrBvu7vamcsWfA7G0E/s640/DSC_4380.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful flowers of Cranberry - <i>Vaccinium oxycoccos</i> - at the Murnauer Moos.</td></tr>
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Another day, another thing to try. The weather forecast was ok and so we thought we could try something a little more flexible. We trundled down to the Staffelsee again, and hopped on the boat to Uffing, gliding across a glassily calm lake under a mist-shrouded hillside. The boat company provide blankets for the trip and these were eagerly snapped up by the passengers. As everyone migrated for the cafe at Uffing, we made the most of the chance to explore.<br />
<br />
Lissa soon wanted to have a nap, so was strapped into the sling. Na wandered off ahead and Bina and I ambled along behind. Initially we walked along a fairly standard piece of lakeside fen which rose up to some fairly undistinguished farmland - the occasional pair of Canada geese honking forlornly in the damp areas - and the gentle burble of Marsh Warblers from the fen. Taller trees hosted a plethora of Fieldfares fussing over well-grown young and a couple of Icterine Warblers spinning out a reel of frenetic mimicry as an aural backdrop.<br />
<br />
After skirting a campsite and working our way through a small woodland - nothing more interesting there than a Grey-headed Woodpecker - we dropped back to the lower-lying fenny land near the lake and, my word, but it was impressive. The wet meadows were studded with orchids, mainly broad-leaved marsh, but also the occasional twayblade skulking in the sedges. Pale pink spikes of Bistort rose through the longer vegetation, towered over by vivid purple irises. Splashes of blue proved to be rampion flowers, and a closer look revealed an abundance of spike-rush, sedges and butterworts. Drier land was a riot of yellow composites, Oxeye Daisy and buttercups - all in all a feast for the eyes. To cap it all, the most abundant butterfly was Marsh Fritillary. Very satisfying!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRIXKqm0GtwBedBJtKnAgSE3qr2bYGht55zE7qH1XcQ2rcWrDgPMI_dDSZEV9X0nAaHf1Yc0sk2qHui0CpsBIgV2XGf-RZDWa5G5Io92JFuhgX980ijTER5-U46mdPY58pPbqi5f7iPg/s1600/DSC_4397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRIXKqm0GtwBedBJtKnAgSE3qr2bYGht55zE7qH1XcQ2rcWrDgPMI_dDSZEV9X0nAaHf1Yc0sk2qHui0CpsBIgV2XGf-RZDWa5G5Io92JFuhgX980ijTER5-U46mdPY58pPbqi5f7iPg/s640/DSC_4397.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking back down towards the Staffelsee from the road back to Uffing. Note the lowering cloud on the Hoernle behind!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj8BbKXbrBoFrJ-f-GZGJO6ZsKHvO3RTBhwetZkeEcUQdD8TJYDaLCROSPXDqWV_nDrX_QBf9Y4AISNhHk6dfyFIAwwT-e0Ga4jZ9DK8la_iV5XtipWyaiFpOOQ14FSb3pTbTZJImjWfY/s1600/DSC_4388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj8BbKXbrBoFrJ-f-GZGJO6ZsKHvO3RTBhwetZkeEcUQdD8TJYDaLCROSPXDqWV_nDrX_QBf9Y4AISNhHk6dfyFIAwwT-e0Ga4jZ9DK8la_iV5XtipWyaiFpOOQ14FSb3pTbTZJImjWfY/s640/DSC_4388.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Iris germanica</i> - how appropriate.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkbz6Cb5YUKvVZ3mr-J17QoB0sPFl3dOqIlzt46q0EC8VWCl64W9SMPhrGwEGI9mcYpMoGj_7-lmQ9cpuaUFmx-_WGqDw8rI5o0R8tQu69qmDxm0jqhtTTG7y8kNUJI3BeyjM0hCkFns/s1600/DSC_4389.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkbz6Cb5YUKvVZ3mr-J17QoB0sPFl3dOqIlzt46q0EC8VWCl64W9SMPhrGwEGI9mcYpMoGj_7-lmQ9cpuaUFmx-_WGqDw8rI5o0R8tQu69qmDxm0jqhtTTG7y8kNUJI3BeyjM0hCkFns/s640/DSC_4389.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A trio of marsh-orchids</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCltcrZAaoWDStWPhfWkYVZHyqurAcVSV6pbY68RSR_jdUAplw3GWDSMTlnsO1qQHqwC-KpNw7J6tS8FdAchGSrirZieNMJ2pBnoSl38A2Y7xZAtHKu9ZPBtOYiym_D-ESEEg6vNQDeJI/s1600/DSC_4393.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCltcrZAaoWDStWPhfWkYVZHyqurAcVSV6pbY68RSR_jdUAplw3GWDSMTlnsO1qQHqwC-KpNw7J6tS8FdAchGSrirZieNMJ2pBnoSl38A2Y7xZAtHKu9ZPBtOYiym_D-ESEEg6vNQDeJI/s640/DSC_4393.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rampion species - <i>Phyteuma orbiculare</i>, I think.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibtTtrRnpDx8Q5qPkL0NA66Fopi4StQ6552IqH_eLirqs9SoyHqy8IXYYjFDLMPGO2v4qg5JIe6vFz7iw3hJ6iR9Rf3nWLtY60Bbi1bBqPxvCjGv6jk0J1ZspjZQN_R-UGxsP0cTY3m1E/s1600/DSC_4391.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibtTtrRnpDx8Q5qPkL0NA66Fopi4StQ6552IqH_eLirqs9SoyHqy8IXYYjFDLMPGO2v4qg5JIe6vFz7iw3hJ6iR9Rf3nWLtY60Bbi1bBqPxvCjGv6jk0J1ZspjZQN_R-UGxsP0cTY3m1E/s640/DSC_4391.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Token picture of Marsh Fritillary</td></tr>
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With the cloud lowering across the Hoernle, we made it back to the cafe for lunch in time to hear some ominous rumbles of thunder across the lake. The boat arrived promptly when due, and we hurried on board to travel serenely back to Murnau. Fortunate perhaps that we got back when we did: the rain began to fall and as we arrived, the captain announced that this was to be the last boat of the day as the weather conditions precluded further trips! What about the poor souls waiting at Uffing, we wondered - presumably there is an alternative bus service, but how would they ever know that the next boat was not in fact coming?!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRIxaGQljveEMj9kmEN2XR83nUFK7we6YgQhy8FQd4NZmH72exRxx51jaPy2WnRm6_pSyOWttdq47XafV9NTyIUw5QiyGIERufiBMGrI91xIJiWVrEE9fzCx7qvWlAxk8BrZNFgAisQ8k/s1600/DSC_4408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRIxaGQljveEMj9kmEN2XR83nUFK7we6YgQhy8FQd4NZmH72exRxx51jaPy2WnRm6_pSyOWttdq47XafV9NTyIUw5QiyGIERufiBMGrI91xIJiWVrEE9fzCx7qvWlAxk8BrZNFgAisQ8k/s640/DSC_4408.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cloud closing in over the Hoernle did at least make for some dramatic colours...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kfCzOi52vuMQVNjP9fvUWtrpbGZcyaWm9SNyDhuHXkRf0qTTGEfEKHDZVMPjPNoTjAAYBOZs37OLJbvOBIPoaGe1n6_EyjPl4cHEXNRTGdJurjYDdjcKbQziXazUP1pt-WlohxrAg5c/s1600/DSC_4431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kfCzOi52vuMQVNjP9fvUWtrpbGZcyaWm9SNyDhuHXkRf0qTTGEfEKHDZVMPjPNoTjAAYBOZs37OLJbvOBIPoaGe1n6_EyjPl4cHEXNRTGdJurjYDdjcKbQziXazUP1pt-WlohxrAg5c/s640/DSC_4431.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and some moody views</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-52699445240956131382016-06-09T21:28:00.000+01:002016-06-09T21:28:16.615+01:00VoralpenI feel I should probably rename the blog 'what I did on my holidays' or somesuch nonsense. The winter has been long and wholly lacking in inspiration, the spring has sprung equally uninspiringly and summer once again arrived. Time to get out of this country and see what else there is in this world. So we - temporarily - 'Brexited' (bleagh!) and a couple of hours after leaving Bristol found ourselves in the sizzling sunshine of the foothills of the Alps, on the edge of a small town called Bad Kohlgrub.<br />
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The scenery from our holiday flat was suitably grand - traces of snow on the distant mountains, rich green conifer forests on the neighbouring slopes and flower-bedecked hay meadows right outside - more on those later. The air was ringing with the songs of crickets and the mellow clonks of the cow-bells. More on these sounds in a later post.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixqjMQcW1daCgXjNj2Gm4x6kCq5uPvkFY2ERkqzYqXPu0EWdj9u8WJipGDhyphenhyphenhP4KiezqWh9ETR_71YqZ8qEM1tO-4tFC1aJw9OJWmSTLQYokFOL5ntM3k9rmqOsHPSWZDbL4eFXJcNaDE/s1600/DSC_4241.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixqjMQcW1daCgXjNj2Gm4x6kCq5uPvkFY2ERkqzYqXPu0EWdj9u8WJipGDhyphenhyphenhP4KiezqWh9ETR_71YqZ8qEM1tO-4tFC1aJw9OJWmSTLQYokFOL5ntM3k9rmqOsHPSWZDbL4eFXJcNaDE/s640/DSC_4241.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking east across the Murnauer Moos (a whacking great valley bog, not a large deer) to the Alps</td></tr>
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For the girls, the best point of all was that the railway line between Oberammergau and Murnau ran just below the house, so the hourly train was visible from the neighbouring bench or the edge of the balcony - not only that, but the existence of an unguarded level crossing just down-line meant that the uphill train had the decency to announce itself with a short blast on the horn a minute or two before passing, leading to wild cries of "Zug! Zug!" and an undignified scramble for the nearest viewing point, often up an unsuspecting parent.<br />
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We started out on the Sunday morning, not unreasonably, with some exploration of the immediate surroundings. The day had begun with a pair of Spotted Flycatchers zipping and twirling around the balcony catching sundry unfortunate flies, whilst a Black Redstart scratched out his song on the neighbour's satellite dish rim. A Cuckoo threw in a few exploratory notes just to emphasise the fact that we were no longer at home.<br />
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We took a walk along the road to see what the immediate surrounds had in store for us - it proved to be flowers. And what flowers! The hay-meadow just along the road was spectacular: a riot of buttercups, dandelions, Goat's-beard, Red Clover, Yellow-rattle and Marsh Hawk's-beard, spattered with Spreading Bellflower and Broad-leaved Marsh Orchid. Getting past that initial impression took a little while, but was worth it: below and between the immediate eyecatchers were Horseshoe-vetch, Yellow Rock-rose, Ragged-robin, Fairy-flax, Shrubby Tormentil, Kidney-vetch, thyme, Germander Speedwell, Hedge Bedstraw, Lady's Bedstraw, Oxe-eye Daisy, Chalk Milkwort, Thyme Broomrape, Salad-burnet and much, much more. That's without even mentioning the grasses, the sedges, the spike-rushes... We definitely weren't in England any more.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJgCbF1RvXxJcWtmJicEzppUyV8JQrz5g6Dqe_Vtxy3ao4JuUCAwMfplmuwhXlWpa6zd37QElmu7H30BYkXgaMhhFcoc-MRpT4sEK1BawHn5t6tiKbzkghLDv3RR_d5jKLFNLVgcqBFY/s1600/DSC_4299.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJgCbF1RvXxJcWtmJicEzppUyV8JQrz5g6Dqe_Vtxy3ao4JuUCAwMfplmuwhXlWpa6zd37QElmu7H30BYkXgaMhhFcoc-MRpT4sEK1BawHn5t6tiKbzkghLDv3RR_d5jKLFNLVgcqBFY/s640/DSC_4299.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lissa realising she has the wrong colour clothes on to blend with her surroundings. Yellow is by far the order of the day. In the background is the Hoernle... more below</td></tr>
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After some parental brain burn-out (too many plants!), we split up: Na to take Lissa to the flat for her lunchtime nap, Bina and I to head off along a little loop around the back of the farm and see what else we can see. The flora proved equally diverse and interesting: wet field-edges garlanded with the salmon-pink bells of Water Avens, a dry bank with spreading mats of Mouse-ear Hawkweed and thyme, punctured with Heath Sedge and a solitary frond of Moonwort, a spring-head hazed purple with the spears of marsh-orchids.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxusrwOmtaZrITzOuWj85y8BHeyVaP6yJBg-XemjZjEwy4mIclZwXHfc2uEZcpyUKp4bpmcFIzttSjiIEMDnlmNVI1h_O_7TySW7fnso7T-G03TnyYBdSsZ6kK6fhWYbGtVvkt5veAQCs/s1600/DSC_4323.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxusrwOmtaZrITzOuWj85y8BHeyVaP6yJBg-XemjZjEwy4mIclZwXHfc2uEZcpyUKp4bpmcFIzttSjiIEMDnlmNVI1h_O_7TySW7fnso7T-G03TnyYBdSsZ6kK6fhWYbGtVvkt5veAQCs/s640/DSC_4323.jpg" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moonwort - <i>Botrychium lunaria</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnBvHuYM6YxsdqS5MTqoEADDjHtSOwEMu15gywscWMAUmS5FqnAsKtKTci8nAL9qoSEazm6WcvRm5X60ojqotqehPrOFst0toTenrlFQAmfJIns1WwarzoXabEkScqm7N0luh1MOggZo/s1600/DSC_4248.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnBvHuYM6YxsdqS5MTqoEADDjHtSOwEMu15gywscWMAUmS5FqnAsKtKTci8nAL9qoSEazm6WcvRm5X60ojqotqehPrOFst0toTenrlFQAmfJIns1WwarzoXabEkScqm7N0luh1MOggZo/s640/DSC_4248.jpg" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water Avens - <i>Geum rivale</i></td></tr>
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The afternoon was spent on the local hill: the Hoernle. We decided to brave the chairlift to take the effort out of the ascent. It certainly made our journey easier, though trying to pin down a wriggling two-year-old who's bored with the journey and wants to get off now, thankyou - never mind the drop, offers challenges of its own.<br />
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We were greeted at the top by a brisk breeze several degrees cooler than the valley below (to the surprise of the children), a neat welcome mat of One-flowered Fleabane and Spring Gentian, and a dramatic view across to the snowy summit of the highest peak in Germany, the Zugspitze. Underfoot were exotica like Hybrid Buttercup, Anemone-leaved Buttercup (cruelly white-flowered, so not offering a clue as to whether one might like butter), Monk's-rhubarb and bewilderingly foreign-looking dandelions - the latter offering some comforting sips to a majestic Swallowtail butterfly.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZRyI_92mCVS5eVPYTs0ytyl0j1Nsrrfo9lNyM7zfW-_MMs0TJIazr3Rc92E5mi5YUrnnuBBLsmEIfnO4PoJhr1ulRhOfc8qJ3Yc4ydxl7IJZPlBEDMJX9bqDG1xZ-YpgfKZjS2nJM1GE/s1600/DSC_4327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZRyI_92mCVS5eVPYTs0ytyl0j1Nsrrfo9lNyM7zfW-_MMs0TJIazr3Rc92E5mi5YUrnnuBBLsmEIfnO4PoJhr1ulRhOfc8qJ3Yc4ydxl7IJZPlBEDMJX9bqDG1xZ-YpgfKZjS2nJM1GE/s640/DSC_4327.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spring Gentian - <i>Gentiana verna</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbovNX5RMkitDeuxdedeElW_Y6Rp3t7xVM9lF6d1IpuNUhVcuhXWf7KTo8EQ80I-RyJDR79IJhrSeF70U1oOpJV7WpC3n0gsCIr1DIoINWsflbcR2mif8ANDDOr0EE8-riVL8Cy7PmTXM/s640/DSC_4342.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="424" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alpine - or Purple - Coltsfoot - <i>Homogyne alpina</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtqMWTjdgx0XSK2j3cEcYlhwNaUwvXZVCpjOv85wFqPVWMZmP7TUSzdOZ6zlOrzQYaN4amuXSin8qgE2P8N4V2LoDDCBpGa5hyabe8E2-q-Vk0BTzGKEXsNrJuy-A05xtV-kXFz8wbJiA/s1600/DSC_4334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtqMWTjdgx0XSK2j3cEcYlhwNaUwvXZVCpjOv85wFqPVWMZmP7TUSzdOZ6zlOrzQYaN4amuXSin8qgE2P8N4V2LoDDCBpGa5hyabe8E2-q-Vk0BTzGKEXsNrJuy-A05xtV-kXFz8wbJiA/s640/DSC_4334.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who cares about the view of the mountains...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTSRmJCfly8rTwy6yTWLG6_HeCSobZCLi5XwiEu_qzgKzqpH9S0kNInnWW2fZiR2NRwK5uDTmeE6JDxDlr-CNBfomyDYowQauvNIR0dOinBjjANsp2wHIaYpSwzFravqtwqy7GmwuO3qk/s1600/DSC_4335.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTSRmJCfly8rTwy6yTWLG6_HeCSobZCLi5XwiEu_qzgKzqpH9S0kNInnWW2fZiR2NRwK5uDTmeE6JDxDlr-CNBfomyDYowQauvNIR0dOinBjjANsp2wHIaYpSwzFravqtwqy7GmwuO3qk/s640/DSC_4335.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...when this is clambering over your seat!</td></tr>
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The lure of a refreshing Johannisbeerschorle got the better of us all, so we repaired to the conveniently-located Gasthaus, where we could shelter from the wind, sip our drinks and admire Nutcrackers - the bird, not the implement - at point-blank range. Almost cheating to see such goodies with such ease, but take 'em where you find 'em.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlKor8baeyOe7_AYQp6WgvkryenyqNFRW9UG1usvbFezhUwm55ZnoytdqsovB_Gd5v-uPxW4Bts-H8ztA-Vc2nIAiJBPCjtM9xFESU2AZz61Bx6wsCVhqK1lfrSgmgFwXzEg_QY89UhY/s1600/DSC_4348.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlKor8baeyOe7_AYQp6WgvkryenyqNFRW9UG1usvbFezhUwm55ZnoytdqsovB_Gd5v-uPxW4Bts-H8ztA-Vc2nIAiJBPCjtM9xFESU2AZz61Bx6wsCVhqK1lfrSgmgFwXzEg_QY89UhY/s640/DSC_4348.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bina's working her way through the European corvidae: just Alpine Chough and Siberian Jay to go now...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4avCpxTHWaJvt-zqovmDil5UoJ2ZTI02LO2IysBpu4ASLkF2uYQdG5hUn8usR0urt4NAxieYve9W4yF7JjueAeOrq0fl5FUYm_Ig2aNuaoYXafArorB88Wdlc5GFgBQTmGsuESilJDs/s1600/DSC_4357.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4avCpxTHWaJvt-zqovmDil5UoJ2ZTI02LO2IysBpu4ASLkF2uYQdG5hUn8usR0urt4NAxieYve9W4yF7JjueAeOrq0fl5FUYm_Ig2aNuaoYXafArorB88Wdlc5GFgBQTmGsuESilJDs/s640/DSC_4357.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just don't look down, whatever you do...</td></tr>
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-49597641761394107442015-07-29T20:09:00.000+01:002015-07-29T20:09:31.350+01:00Inselaffe am See - part IIOnwards!<br />
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The weather continued to suggest that we'd be best off sticking to well-wooded and sheltered areas - so that's exactly what we did. We collected Bina from her morning activity (making a jamjar aquarium) and sped off to Blankenfoerde, where we had a picnic lunch in a carpark sheltered by tall trees and watched the clouds race by overhead. As the clouds broke up and the sun warmed us, insects responded by appearing apparently from nowhere. Large and Small Skippers bounced jazzily across the glistening grass heads, competing for the best spots near the tastiest bramble blossom. A sparklingly-fresh Comma played grandmothers' footseps with the girls, allowing approach to oh-so-close before abruptly moving on another couple of metres. More exotic, a Pearly Heath or two skittered past like Gatekeepers with go-faster stripes, whilst a Mazarine Blue slurped liquid from some bare soil on the path.<br />
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Our short round walk took us through another re-wetted area. This time the intent has been to restore the natural floodplain of the river Havel, as far as possible, so a series of small lakes amidst extensive conifer plantation are becoming increasingly large and increasingly less dominated by the conifers. The largest of the lakes that we came to was indeed quite spectacular: dead stumps liberally scattered through a mouth-wateringly diverse wetland plastered with sedges, rushes and interesting herbs, none of which was really quite accessible to explore. Never mind: there was plenty to see, including a fine couple of male Red-backed Shrikes hawking for dragonflies when the sun gathered enough strength.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMCb2TfFjTTp-5ZlFlTL-EVwxAO4Mf7UlA_t8WS8ZYAvvSn5vxVYGcVPPooW_BtBkhHRGt-QG7VP9RziTvqS3yUn1wdqlK8vW3zuFVjvodIkeU0fjGWM-aUiaxNZJKj2sz8fkKUOjxuo/s1600/DSC_3020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMCb2TfFjTTp-5ZlFlTL-EVwxAO4Mf7UlA_t8WS8ZYAvvSn5vxVYGcVPPooW_BtBkhHRGt-QG7VP9RziTvqS3yUn1wdqlK8vW3zuFVjvodIkeU0fjGWM-aUiaxNZJKj2sz8fkKUOjxuo/s640/DSC_3020.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Re-wet my floodplain. Death by drowning for the conifers, life through light and water for the rest.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiou2L42ze9tcUUHoSgkMJWpq1eHi_XAjROYSzAJOA18SMB3o-0y8tLT31KytPl9e8UfTD7_V1NpVdLrycYyvSsJ_XTliizagfnOkprDSXzl1O9u_HQZ2r77Ue2771YOblX49FK8CgZhQ/s1600/DSC_3021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiou2L42ze9tcUUHoSgkMJWpq1eHi_XAjROYSzAJOA18SMB3o-0y8tLT31KytPl9e8UfTD7_V1NpVdLrycYyvSsJ_XTliizagfnOkprDSXzl1O9u_HQZ2r77Ue2771YOblX49FK8CgZhQ/s640/DSC_3021.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A wonderful wet mix of marsh and swamp vegetation</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiymRQ0_gPbgIlpjzEgaDOusMm11HrfTWzzizUJs1XBQZ7WEME3UhUwYmMb5M55qDNBKcfjPR8tE3PvQ8Xhv89Qb6ciIPPOKuld2F6skmYucJD7eQNv2C46R_xxA3hvMACW81GdDBa_lQ/s1600/DSC_3024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiymRQ0_gPbgIlpjzEgaDOusMm11HrfTWzzizUJs1XBQZ7WEME3UhUwYmMb5M55qDNBKcfjPR8tE3PvQ8Xhv89Qb6ciIPPOKuld2F6skmYucJD7eQNv2C46R_xxA3hvMACW81GdDBa_lQ/s640/DSC_3024.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A small, but rather beautiful, micro-moth in the margins of the re-wetted areas near Blankenfoerde</td></tr>
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By the next day, 10th July, the rain had settled out and we were left with a fresh breeze and some lengthy spells of sunshine. A good day to give the girls a break from all the wildlife and let them play. I took Lissa for a walk around the nearest fields out of Boek so that she could have a proper afternoon sleep, I could get some exercise and the other two could spend some time doing more exciting things for small children, like a carriage ride and playing in the playground.<br />
Setting off, Lissa snuggled down and went to sleep within about two minutes - result! I set myself into a gentle amble and did some mobile birding, botanising and general wildlife-watching on the hoof.<br />
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The walk took me out of Boek to the northeast, along the edge of the national park and round to Amalienhof before returning to Boek along the road. As soon as I left the houses, a large dark eagle flew over. Heart leaping at the prospect of finally seeing Lesser Spotted Eagle in Europe, I raised my bins to see it flying off steadily, trailing falconers' jesses. It didn't even have the decency to be a LSE, looking more like a Steppe Eagle. Perhaps I was fortunate though - it would have been a terrible view with a sleeping baby strapped to my chest! Another White-tailed Eagle drifted over to compensate me slightly. The rest of the walk was rather uneventful after that. More Red-backed Shrikes, a Glanville Fritillary and piles more Heath Fritillary. A single Middle-spotted Woodpecker was nice, but hardly exceptional. Back to Boek, where a very flavoursome icecream was just the job to refresh us all.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfZqLoTvCx1m-VqZOH3RneWdcJWrjE7d9ILpVna6poZbrSxl6a2gXffsXyG4EfFAQ3MH3XThhU0yWEJwYXmN5f3i3-IYhxapPWpirNWhyqaxMjK1h-fWflYHKtDk3yIsCHvWtmiy23lw/s1600/DSC_3027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfZqLoTvCx1m-VqZOH3RneWdcJWrjE7d9ILpVna6poZbrSxl6a2gXffsXyG4EfFAQ3MH3XThhU0yWEJwYXmN5f3i3-IYhxapPWpirNWhyqaxMjK1h-fWflYHKtDk3yIsCHvWtmiy23lw/s640/DSC_3027.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCTuLMawgwA1Xyy04rIzFYauH8Udn4kuwSX0T5jWEdy2Khjgo7UaO0wlzVOhV52D8nKvqpZ1Q9Nu4P-7LYw45G_5bDzD7gmofeUj_O9eluWE5ppHxoH0ieo_LpSYCtOjBrTqIafBkRe8/s1600/DSC_3032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCTuLMawgwA1Xyy04rIzFYauH8Udn4kuwSX0T5jWEdy2Khjgo7UaO0wlzVOhV52D8nKvqpZ1Q9Nu4P-7LYw45G_5bDzD7gmofeUj_O9eluWE5ppHxoH0ieo_LpSYCtOjBrTqIafBkRe8/s640/DSC_3032.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thrift + </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic2Ww_D98rIfUADkoB9OoLUV61RWYIwOoP8z638ainaOZyAUDekLyIiboqCPuPqoPeSF-icjY4sUYXTqSixWCioLUeh5vS7tf1d-RKkwMbU-BnhWfEZkmSEnBsJPwpOBBMKeJQQ0zR_ao/s1600/DSC_3035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic2Ww_D98rIfUADkoB9OoLUV61RWYIwOoP8z638ainaOZyAUDekLyIiboqCPuPqoPeSF-icjY4sUYXTqSixWCioLUeh5vS7tf1d-RKkwMbU-BnhWfEZkmSEnBsJPwpOBBMKeJQQ0zR_ao/s640/DSC_3035.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beetle of obvious striking appearance on Thrift flower. </td></tr>
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Another day, another trip! We hired bicycles again for the day, strapped the children into their seats and headed off for the high point of the park. This is the tree-topping Kaeflingsbergturm, an observation tower which is definitely not for the faint-hearted. The journey there took us through Boek, then into the pinewoods and along the eastern side of the Priesterbaekersee before joining the closed road which runs between Amalienhof and Speck. The tower is reached via a half-kilometre walk from the road. The ride there was uneventful, the walk up from the road pleasantly enlivened by finding Pine Marten scats along the way, as well as the sound of a distant Gruffalo (unmistakeable once you know it).<br />
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The tower is a solid steel beast which reaches an impressive 30m into the sky - some 171 steps if you include the four concrete ones at the base. The view from the top is undeniably big, and more impressively for a Brit, the landscape is one of forest, punctuated by a scatter of lakes and the very occasional open patch. The most prominent of these is where the Russian troops stationed in the area used to do a lot of training, denuding that patch of land of vegetation. This is now apparently a quite superb patch of open heath and acid grassland, in a completely closed zone (another distinction from the UK - a wildlife-rich area which no-one is allowed into! Imagine the outrage!) and being left to its own devices to do as it will.<br />
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A White-tailed Eagle drifted by.<br />
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We returned to the outskirts of Boek, where we found a nice sunny meadow to eat our lunch and generally allow the girls to wander, botanise and harrass grasshoppers. The spaces between grass stems were liberally filled with small orb-spiders patiently awaiting a flying meal. The air was filled with Black-tailed Skimmers and Ruddy Darters. Grasshoppers sizzled in the grass. A Grass Snake slithered up, saw us and rapidly departed, much to everyones dismay. An hour or so when life feels just fine, thankyou so much...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFiD-RnQ1iwmzl2hbABh1ZS8yNquB1MmqHYeXGL2s1rZ5b7ZQRF1Nz0yj8KelUXRPuPKIyspc9rte5RVbjmS_C_uKNrHJZFnWmi9cbM2_iEilN8tyB9zIfO2tV3OtIVL8VzlThc66jbY/s1600/DSC_3036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFiD-RnQ1iwmzl2hbABh1ZS8yNquB1MmqHYeXGL2s1rZ5b7ZQRF1Nz0yj8KelUXRPuPKIyspc9rte5RVbjmS_C_uKNrHJZFnWmi9cbM2_iEilN8tyB9zIfO2tV3OtIVL8VzlThc66jbY/s640/DSC_3036.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A fine orb-web spider</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1MJkp7l6TQUvjd9mnP-GUCXkEsN63ZswMgGc85eisul24kckqf3-aAKPVNX_THe2bwyw_iX4cNjQr1bip5eiwqJsympYbOUMTTdzlCaxsTUifC_wEj-4gceej9rvYkWeDVxoAQlp8KG4/s1600/DSC_3046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1MJkp7l6TQUvjd9mnP-GUCXkEsN63ZswMgGc85eisul24kckqf3-aAKPVNX_THe2bwyw_iX4cNjQr1bip5eiwqJsympYbOUMTTdzlCaxsTUifC_wEj-4gceej9rvYkWeDVxoAQlp8KG4/s640/DSC_3046.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grass Snake basking in a rotting treestump</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLYEiovIylEX0jWVWkJbSkf8B7M-Yof5VjAx1xeDBfgkSuqktWyDfs59ZjQSjHhhA1IEHVIvDICt4Cl3weNCcm8-ISSDmn8rsY4CJKFf-aOkVE4UuPPb49TLw8jyIrSr3_-ipVc5YBY4E/s1600/DSC_3055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLYEiovIylEX0jWVWkJbSkf8B7M-Yof5VjAx1xeDBfgkSuqktWyDfs59ZjQSjHhhA1IEHVIvDICt4Cl3weNCcm8-ISSDmn8rsY4CJKFf-aOkVE4UuPPb49TLw8jyIrSr3_-ipVc5YBY4E/s640/DSC_3055.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of many blue damelflies which almost without exception turned out to be Azure Damselfly, <i>Coenagrion puella</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGvb9L2oiKrLR6_3SplrrxKcDbLuA9yjrFm370uwvHxtQ-M9uzlOnQeYxR68szR0W1q6Aw7k9KlzU0dgVftWk2IDmuP0yh3ew2inVX7hiicPI_zYtEChJJ6htfVSGRlEBX8i4C8Cjrisg/s1600/DSC_3059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGvb9L2oiKrLR6_3SplrrxKcDbLuA9yjrFm370uwvHxtQ-M9uzlOnQeYxR68szR0W1q6Aw7k9KlzU0dgVftWk2IDmuP0yh3ew2inVX7hiicPI_zYtEChJJ6htfVSGRlEBX8i4C8Cjrisg/s640/DSC_3059.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A young Speckled Bush-cricket on White Campion</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQM4tspptsR5rQBu0afVqphoKzRjsFZT19eRtMrSO2h8MRKo3lOXMETa6ML1dnQkdmsJOGWMZFAstUfZnxHYSFczS99d5jK1dPMhRQPEgM-drhNFwJ8mEiGWLfPasghGQKnDOjM9hUX8/s1600/DSC_3060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQM4tspptsR5rQBu0afVqphoKzRjsFZT19eRtMrSO2h8MRKo3lOXMETa6ML1dnQkdmsJOGWMZFAstUfZnxHYSFczS99d5jK1dPMhRQPEgM-drhNFwJ8mEiGWLfPasghGQKnDOjM9hUX8/s640/DSC_3060.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That Blue Featherlegs again</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-pI60uq1DWLzk_2P5k-95ppTsxHuqUsrr1OegTxTVWObXwlBWmsoWtx-ZumUfCi9lNFPinZCjNvBS8AfTSSalRi74lblFAGMIKLf38qdV8TOUXZlk7SE7MTb4TWW9ftCzWNhliwb-DVg/s1600/DSC_3065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-pI60uq1DWLzk_2P5k-95ppTsxHuqUsrr1OegTxTVWObXwlBWmsoWtx-ZumUfCi9lNFPinZCjNvBS8AfTSSalRi74lblFAGMIKLf38qdV8TOUXZlk7SE7MTb4TWW9ftCzWNhliwb-DVg/s640/DSC_3065.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willow Emerald damselfly</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3DzYw0zinqPsczLAxkEreYbnwE3-Tcj_o6Um1ID0-B1cGucf2h0anMsSsSRGyKj-PAp9FwBzYCg4_oSypKiIDHemUsudtx2MQIlL83Sq1jrfGDBd93mS5ZOGt0vKiUodnRqyi89xuMY/s1600/DSC_3068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3DzYw0zinqPsczLAxkEreYbnwE3-Tcj_o6Um1ID0-B1cGucf2h0anMsSsSRGyKj-PAp9FwBzYCg4_oSypKiIDHemUsudtx2MQIlL83Sq1jrfGDBd93mS5ZOGt0vKiUodnRqyi89xuMY/s640/DSC_3068.JPG" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White Melilot, which grows along with Ribbed Melilot, all over the place</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmFmX-9oS1clCOxaAc7lqdam1v9oXcc43jTST3l9M-RHGF3JFxqvLWTRyzFm2_0lxfcvIzWyZcgEvLH-uXXyPk-AZHXcmEhuvJyn37H7tRoMipPZw7eatx4PRmRhyphenhyphenNepbtSNaT4qH7wO4/s1600/DSC_3071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmFmX-9oS1clCOxaAc7lqdam1v9oXcc43jTST3l9M-RHGF3JFxqvLWTRyzFm2_0lxfcvIzWyZcgEvLH-uXXyPk-AZHXcmEhuvJyn37H7tRoMipPZw7eatx4PRmRhyphenhyphenNepbtSNaT4qH7wO4/s640/DSC_3071.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Botanising on Tansy in the Acker-ecke</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToaUYzXNSOodRecesHcwrDdow1h6JTyW9B2fQCgzwhx4OGrZ3oK4Bn5qZLm1I5pqbYaKOrlh_-vAx3Qe9m9pCPmGHwhCrZarVizjraQByZTzkpTdUF24JZAaLPxB6ZHpF4ZR1s3eHK9o/s1600/DSC_3075.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToaUYzXNSOodRecesHcwrDdow1h6JTyW9B2fQCgzwhx4OGrZ3oK4Bn5qZLm1I5pqbYaKOrlh_-vAx3Qe9m9pCPmGHwhCrZarVizjraQByZTzkpTdUF24JZAaLPxB6ZHpF4ZR1s3eHK9o/s640/DSC_3075.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look what we found, Papa! A chilly beetle has no option but to be childhandled, unfortunately.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicgHO2SsvW1F1kWXTOknovfhTsgpw19Txo3EJwt0FHHX3nljgjNgboRgR-sCoEw3iGCNGbYsAyH9XsssMSDH6WsdIHgtQIIpio00-lVAoZVA0rocgtKLrYVaWF0vWsFqrdCEzTDT2GRZ8/s1600/DSC_3078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicgHO2SsvW1F1kWXTOknovfhTsgpw19Txo3EJwt0FHHX3nljgjNgboRgR-sCoEw3iGCNGbYsAyH9XsssMSDH6WsdIHgtQIIpio00-lVAoZVA0rocgtKLrYVaWF0vWsFqrdCEzTDT2GRZ8/s640/DSC_3078.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
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We rounded off the trip with two more nice woodland walks. The first, from the Gruenower See to Goldenbaum and back, took us out through more high-quality Beech forest in the eastern park of the National Park. The path wound along the edge of some marshily overgrown lakes lying between the Gruenower See and the Muehlenteich, redolent with the song of both Reed and Marsh Warblers still, before diverting into a small shallow valley which felt rather like a proper rural idyll. Flowery verges, patient cattle, sheltered-looking and pastoral. No traffic... We consoled ourselves with the view that it was probably bleak as anything in the depths of winter and walked back to the car. The second was a short wander around the Sehsee, lost in the middle of the forest near Zwenzow. One of those walks where you amble along, enjoying the sunshine and feeling yourself relax. We were treated to the sight of a large female Sand Lizard sunning herself in a powerline wayleave, where the children also found themselves running in circles chasing grasshoppers. The walk back through the woods was enlivened by regular encounters with the most enormous slugs - and a brief meeting with a Large Chequered Skipper butterfly.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXDw-xL_bS7QGMA5NJA_sA9VfDodjghdykUwRAhh4GZubgLVZEwL7B4xALAoroK6xvGC12Y5FM57XFPOnIEkc-HLI5urVG5DkkArCQQVKODeHxYiPqStDJ8e6HbcWud9tSN03_HfyVQ4/s1600/DSC_3083.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXDw-xL_bS7QGMA5NJA_sA9VfDodjghdykUwRAhh4GZubgLVZEwL7B4xALAoroK6xvGC12Y5FM57XFPOnIEkc-HLI5urVG5DkkArCQQVKODeHxYiPqStDJ8e6HbcWud9tSN03_HfyVQ4/s640/DSC_3083.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Large Chequered Skipper - a final surprise butterfly on a very quiet walk around te Sehsee</td></tr>
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The whole National Park is rather fine. The premise that the park be left to return itself to a more-or-less natural state is a bold one, especially when viewed from this side of the water, but undeniably worthwhile. The area remains hugely popular with visitors, yet feels rather unhampered by infrastructure and relatively quiet (though our being there the week before the locals schools broke for summer may have contributed). The birdlife is good: although we were there at a very quiet time of year, we still managed to see/hear a number of species which would be well-received by most (e.g. Red-necked Grebe, Bittern, Black and Middle-spotted Woodpecker, White-tailed Eagle, White Stork, Marsh Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Red-breasted Flycatcher, Golden Oriole) and ended up with a trip list of somewhere just over 100 species. There was rarely a day we didn't see or hear Cranes - they are everywhere - and Ospreys are abundant, even nesting on poles in the middle of arable fields.<br />
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The plant-life is also very diverse - certainly more so than we could appreciate with two small children to entertain, yet even so we managed to record just over 300 species of plants. A more determined effort would have added significantly more! Perhaps my only disappointment was that despite the vast variety of dragonflies and damselflies on offer (some 51 species recorded in all) we only managed to see about 16 species. A combination of the weather and family constraints was the main reason, plus perhaps being just a couple of weeks to late for the best of it, but it's not much to grumble about!<br />
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I think we'll return, perhaps at a more bird-rich time of year, and see what else we can find... So, just maybe - 'to be continued'.jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-14319265537037847982015-07-24T19:57:00.003+01:002015-07-24T20:08:32.862+01:00Inselaffe am See - part IIt should really be Inselaffen am See, I suppose, as we were all involved. So be it.<br />
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Four a.m. starts with small children are not wholly recommended as a matter of course, but once in a while is OK.<br />
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Birmingham airport is also OK once in a while - I wouldn't want to make a habit of it.<br />
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Arriving in Berlin in temperatures of 39C in the shade with two very tired small children, to discover that Flybe have mislaid your car-seat <i>en route </i>and that your car-hire company has no record of your having booked one car seat, let alone wanting two, and oh, I'm so sorry, we don't actually <b>have</b> any car-seats anyway... well.<br />
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To be wholly fair to everyone involved, the lady at the Enterprise desk was very polite, her colleague found two car-seats from a rival company and the children were really as good as gold.<br />
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So, our visit to Mueritz National Park, about 90 minutes northwest of Berlin, didn't get off to the most auspicious of starts. Be that as it may, wending our way gently through the summer countryside under cloudless skies, watching Black Kites glide elegantly across the stubbles behind gigantic combine harvesters, the children sleeping soundly in the back of the car, it certainly felt like it was shaping up to be a nice summer holiday.<br />
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We eventually arrived at Mueritzparadies, a small collection of wooden chalets next to Germany's biggest lake (Constance doesn't count, as it borders Austria and Switzerland too), where the girls gratefully spent the next couple of hours splashing in the waters of the lake and revelling in some playtime. Another Black Kite drifted over to remind us we weren't at home any more - as if we needed that, with Tree Sparrows flustering in the bushes, and temperatures which would probably be melting the tarmac in Devon. The main drawback was that the house had been shut for most of the day, so the bedrooms - upstairs - were sweltering. The only solution was to put the youngest daughter in the downstairs loo to sleep, the elder daughter adjacent and sleep on the livingroom floor ourselves. Needless to say that was great fun for all concerned (!) and sleep proved a little elusive for a while...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54SAXyk1y_W9SSBNqUDajAPesaXprDfP250JYIMYAf0B0fm5yFOjOi71k0DXZ6eOJTsWPTr3GrpCVkFDB3Jik2Lp9jXYpJC4OEgLCoedsFU_JwhRoDLMZLJRghVg9AXX1c3-2AISDLUQ/s1600/DSC_2984.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54SAXyk1y_W9SSBNqUDajAPesaXprDfP250JYIMYAf0B0fm5yFOjOi71k0DXZ6eOJTsWPTr3GrpCVkFDB3Jik2Lp9jXYpJC4OEgLCoedsFU_JwhRoDLMZLJRghVg9AXX1c3-2AISDLUQ/s640/DSC_2984.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A family of Hooded Crows - another sign we're not in Devon - sweltering in the heat atop a birch</td></tr>
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The next day dawned bright and fair, and promised to be nearly as hot as the previous, so the sensible decision was taken to stay in the lake as much as possible. The heat was well into the mid-30s, so the wildlife was doing just as the humans - staying in the shade and not making too much fuss. The odd Red Kite and Black Kite floated over, a Red-crested Pochard flew by offshore and the distant trumpeting of <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/244013" target="_blank">Cranes</a> provided a staccato background chorus every so often. All very relaxing. Time to take stock of our surroundings a little better...<br />
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Mueritzparadies lies just outside the edge of Mueritz National Park. The countryside is predominantly arable farming - with lots of arable 'weeds' like cornflower, poppies, fumitories &c evident in fallow plots and crops - interspersed with wooded land: lots of planted conifer in the main. There are marshy hollows here and there with willow, alder and aspen carr, reedswamps and luxuriant tall-herb fens. In spring the area must teem with migrant birds and echo to the sound of returning breeders, but in the heat of midsummer the song is mainly over and the air is filled with the buzz and rustle of insect wings and the soughing of the wind through the leaves instead. The lake itself is shallow, so the water is warm and tempting, even to non-swimmers.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5lowl7_yvekSy4lEiEo8kscUQKyIoV87XUo0dDZOXEz8fPE5mi9_NAVakUM1WCmOSTikfpG9myfnaiEnrB9aEJYMwEB-ThFlVOGlCOr31od1z9nVX5wc58WGOkJQGX5hdqsPltuRCOoo/s1600/DSC_3070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5lowl7_yvekSy4lEiEo8kscUQKyIoV87XUo0dDZOXEz8fPE5mi9_NAVakUM1WCmOSTikfpG9myfnaiEnrB9aEJYMwEB-ThFlVOGlCOr31od1z9nVX5wc58WGOkJQGX5hdqsPltuRCOoo/s640/DSC_3070.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cornflowers, bluer than the eyes of flaxen-haired maidens in some romantic poet's vision. The mist of blue across the gold of the ripening barley is stunning, poets aside.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj568iQb5BLDNfYPlRXna0dioWr4-J8w7iM2LBAfAVVs3A3iu-WakAqnt0RR2lYgoFQaFW6nFg-_Xsg3KGjVNbURnDmeG8f16BbtmdyKPq590B9lRZOsDDYEenCjYHGu2-WcInMPWaZbRg/s1600/DSC_3011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj568iQb5BLDNfYPlRXna0dioWr4-J8w7iM2LBAfAVVs3A3iu-WakAqnt0RR2lYgoFQaFW6nFg-_Xsg3KGjVNbURnDmeG8f16BbtmdyKPq590B9lRZOsDDYEenCjYHGu2-WcInMPWaZbRg/s640/DSC_3011.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The nearby field corner - it became known as the 'Acker-ecke' (sorry, just means 'field corner') - was a riot of colour and invertebrates. Clearly someone's forgoten to glyphosate this part of the world. Can't be having that.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs_zxrUHE2QVf6AQh73mBxs15CIUM9KUT-v8MIEaJjCUXX7kDUuqHkLzB9jDi-OO8V-2T2bWPimVtver1-j5gdhEQroft4r0Do74Lbd9LUrDSczmTQPoh_40aoKK5WvwnEwBu4drWHozE/s1600/DSC_3012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs_zxrUHE2QVf6AQh73mBxs15CIUM9KUT-v8MIEaJjCUXX7kDUuqHkLzB9jDi-OO8V-2T2bWPimVtver1-j5gdhEQroft4r0Do74Lbd9LUrDSczmTQPoh_40aoKK5WvwnEwBu4drWHozE/s640/DSC_3012.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even such goodies as <i>Consolida regalis</i> in there!</td></tr>
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There are also - just next door - some very extensive fishing ponds: the Boeker Fischteiche, which are well-known as a good birding spot (we saw one other couple birding, which is pretty high-intensity stuff). We thought we'd branch out a little, drag the children away from the lake for the next morning and see what the ponds had to offer. Two hides and a viewing screen attest to the birding interest in the site (I suspect in spring and autumn it is actually quite busy) and we were duly welcomed to the site by an Osprey fishing slap-bang in front of us, far too close to bother with things like binoculars to enhance the view. If you'd tried, you'd probably have had nightmares about the bird's feather-lice. A backdrop of Marsh Harriers and both kite species held Bina's attention and she duly got very excited about pointing out every soaring raptor that came over, soon learning to pick out the kites from the rest with their forked tails an easy clue. Just to cap it all, a young White-tailed Eagle drifted leisurely over us at treetop height, mobbed by a pair of Red Kites. 'Wow', said Bina, 'das ist gross'. Not wrong. [Na points out that I may be inadvertantly confusing English readers who lack basic German. To set the record straight, it means 'that's big'. Nothing yucky.]<br />
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Although the wind picked up strongly, there was calm enough water for us to be treated also to a couple of pairs of Red-necked Grebes feeding semi-stripy young. Perhaps the nicest thing of all, though, was walking along the boundary between a hayfield and woodland, feet drifting Heath Fritillaries with every step. Scattered amongst them were the more familiar fare of Meadow Browns, Ringlets and skippers, as well as ghostly-pale Blue Featherlegs sliding mysteriously between the leaves. Even the walk through the arable fields was worthwhile to a farmland-bird-starved Devonian: <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/243614" target="_blank">Corn Bunntings</a> and <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/243770" target="_blank">Yellowhammers</a> singing everywhere.<br />
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The cooling trend continued the next day - the wind stayed fresh and the temperature was down to the mid-20s. We met up with one of the park staff, Volker, who took us on a short bike tour within the national park to the Specker See and back. We passed initially through tracts of conifer, gradually returning naturally to broadleaf woodland (look Britain, no gardening!) before getting into areas where a mosaic of acid grassland, alder woodland and swamp intermingled. Climbing an observation tower, we were treated to the sight of a vast bed of Great Fen Sedge stretching out to the Binnenmueritz - a stretch of fen reminiscent of <a href="http://devon-occasional.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/inselaffe-abroad-part-ii-further-on-and.html" target="_blank">Biebrza</a>, albeit not on quite the same scale. Volker told us about the work that had happened since the park was designated: the re-wetting of drained agricultural land, the restoration of lake, swamp and fen hydrology, the natural recovery of broadleaf trees amongst the conifers. We cycled and stopped, talked, looked and listened - a <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/253262" target="_blank">River Warbler </a>briefly piped up, followed by a couple of <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/246209" target="_blank">Grasshopper Warblers</a>; the occasional <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/252783" target="_blank">Willow Warbler </a>fluted in the scrub. Another White-tailed Eagle passed by overhead. It's a tough life sometimes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjgp_Ej4EO5WCK9zf29i7RL5Q9X6sCWxCTGYyvn3l878_CDrzaDjXa46rxsKFsZ8bVeX2YAYgLL8UqnBxx2Fyvzr12-eNdpcy3Yu8TC8oov4ThzwPVL_FEXvZTOGGfSIXHP4CM4WRJ7Y/s1600/DSC_2985.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjgp_Ej4EO5WCK9zf29i7RL5Q9X6sCWxCTGYyvn3l878_CDrzaDjXa46rxsKFsZ8bVeX2YAYgLL8UqnBxx2Fyvzr12-eNdpcy3Yu8TC8oov4ThzwPVL_FEXvZTOGGfSIXHP4CM4WRJ7Y/s640/DSC_2985.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Cladium mariscus</i> swamp. Mmm...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhny9mf6ICtEmR7mRj4kIE9cVmI-3AozDCuYDqdWWBNuWQXcT2CRNPD0XUFLnZqxXi40zV-Iu3dgh6XCDF6KA3JsG9ksJ99gjMJKnLxJD7LuFDKfwozVDHskjERFJabYkaqWYpKaqmxh40/s1600/DSC_2986.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhny9mf6ICtEmR7mRj4kIE9cVmI-3AozDCuYDqdWWBNuWQXcT2CRNPD0XUFLnZqxXi40zV-Iu3dgh6XCDF6KA3JsG9ksJ99gjMJKnLxJD7LuFDKfwozVDHskjERFJabYkaqWYpKaqmxh40/s640/DSC_2986.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Re-wetting isn't to the taste of everything. There are plenty of trees which find the whole process just too, well, wet. The skeletal remains of conifers dot the wet grassland and swamps, making ideal perches for resting Ospreys.</td></tr>
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All good things come to an end, and our stomachs insisted that lunch should now be a priority, so we said goodbye to Volker and occupied one end of a spacious hide overlooking lake Mueritz to eat some food. We were immediately joined by a large touring group who abandoned bicycles outside and came in for a lecture from their guide about the national park and the lake. As this progressed, a wasp flew in and hung around us. It was soon joined by another, and then a few more. None of them seemed interested in our food (fortunately), but all of them seemed somewhat bemused, and before long we had about 50 wasps droning gently up and down the hide, to the mild consternation of some of the people sharing the space. The guide was obviously not to be fazed by a bunch of stripy insects and finished his talk. As the group filed out, the wasps - with an almost audible sigh of relief - found their route to their nest, lovingly built between two backboards, unobstructed once more and resumed their normal commute. Those of us left in the hide also breathed a sigh of relief and set to their food with enthusiasm.<br />
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The following day was forecast to be windy, cool and with occasional sharp showers - what better excuse to head for the UNESCO-listed beechwoods around Serrahn. This area is a peculiarity of Mueritz National Park: the park itself is in two separate parts; the one is the vast forest-bog-swamp-grassland complex around Lake Mueritz, the other an area of forest, swamps, bogs and lakes surrounding some undeniably fabulous ancient beech forest a short way east of the small town of Neustrelitz. We walked from the Zinow entrance along a small trail winding initially through open pinewoods. The floor of the woodland being liberally carpeted with bilberries, the children both soon had purple faces and wide grins.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnU1cPx7jhMJ2rC49JGvNTTcv2IR7qGyNiB55B-fqAhmCmeI7EMIMw2Lg5bsnlq_HPcf_8YuBs99Q2b4i8yzCklymWHySP0yLvK_-sip0gxSIZzUGw2M5Tv7ZQ2d6Q9UoK0vZ2bS2OW0/s1600/DSC_2993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnU1cPx7jhMJ2rC49JGvNTTcv2IR7qGyNiB55B-fqAhmCmeI7EMIMw2Lg5bsnlq_HPcf_8YuBs99Q2b4i8yzCklymWHySP0yLvK_-sip0gxSIZzUGw2M5Tv7ZQ2d6Q9UoK0vZ2bS2OW0/s640/DSC_2993.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caterpillar on <i>Deschampsia flexuosa</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqM4NJqFN3Fs86qRN_TiyzQVc6pfNW_LMrs4L_hRuaGUpPmgo62BN4I7RNG6SP4wEu66_EElEtuCScA_JsPZd1SOIXtPQHEBeHcI2C87Iu6vBZ-3oD7hQirdVLm7qe3jOaSqG14NnCYk0/s1600/DSC_2996.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqM4NJqFN3Fs86qRN_TiyzQVc6pfNW_LMrs4L_hRuaGUpPmgo62BN4I7RNG6SP4wEu66_EElEtuCScA_JsPZd1SOIXtPQHEBeHcI2C87Iu6vBZ-3oD7hQirdVLm7qe3jOaSqG14NnCYk0/s640/DSC_2996.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Heath moths - <i>Ematurga atomaria</i> - were abundant throughout the pinewoods near Serrahn</td></tr>
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As the path wound down towards a lake, the clouds closed in and the pines gave way to beech woodland. The rain was soon pelting down, so we scurried for the shelter of an observation tower overlooking the lake. The rain generously eased as we reached the shelter, so the families already in residence decamped and allowed us in. A wide soughing swamp of Harestail cottongrass gave way to reed, then open water. On the opposite bank a family of Ospreys did some vigorous exercise to rid their wings of water and get their muscles in fettle for their maiden flight. We admired, then headed on towards Serrahn for some lunch. The rain began again.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXFWeRGQWI9n4WX1WbNi-xLL2P-MDOaRCz0f6tBpEdnWLaIeHSUiyChZM4s0PrXHYK6CQkUNl_xA8VDLK1z-9kpRsmTL0XYsHQcrwiTKEdEvkuO6Ami477CzZbGczBxnMS6h4yNRWk1CE/s1600/DSC_2997.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXFWeRGQWI9n4WX1WbNi-xLL2P-MDOaRCz0f6tBpEdnWLaIeHSUiyChZM4s0PrXHYK6CQkUNl_xA8VDLK1z-9kpRsmTL0XYsHQcrwiTKEdEvkuO6Ami477CzZbGczBxnMS6h4yNRWk1CE/s640/DSC_2997.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from the observation tower near Serrahn. <i>Eriophorum vaginatum </i>swamps merge into <i>Phragmites</i> - the conifer line retreats from both sides of the lake and the alders march in</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkggn5FIKfyxHYkjTUBBfbStmxoZwPPHTaGhSB0lf76bJOZW1gMPyUGpSruoCbSSNiMoTN7Q71-1vs0R_RSqWRz07IAurErx46FDVUhEG0KmCSc78gsU7JhERNA0kfJ9sNKCFsOLvTekc/s1600/DSC_2998.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkggn5FIKfyxHYkjTUBBfbStmxoZwPPHTaGhSB0lf76bJOZW1gMPyUGpSruoCbSSNiMoTN7Q71-1vs0R_RSqWRz07IAurErx46FDVUhEG0KmCSc78gsU7JhERNA0kfJ9sNKCFsOLvTekc/s640/DSC_2998.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fir Clubmoss, <i>Huperzia selago</i>, by the foot of the observation tower</td></tr>
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We squelched on for the last kilometre, then came to a most spectacular boardwalk through an arm of bog. The rain was pelting down steadily, so no photos, but the path wound gently through perhaps the richest bog I've ever been privileged to see, with copious information boards about the plants to be seen - all of them carefully placed next to the plant in question: milk-parsley, bladderwort, round-leaved sundew, tufted loosestrife, marsh cinquefoil, bogbean, water-violet... the list went on. Everything was underlain by a thick, luxuriant carpet of Sphagnum. On a still and sunny day it would have been rustling and buzzing with dragonflies and damselflies, moths, flies and mosquitos - as it was, the gentle patter of raindrops made an appropriately liquid soundscape.<br />
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Lunch was taken <i>sans</i> rain (to our relief) and the walk back along the sandy cyclepath was less interesting, though a smart Red-breasted Flycatcher livened the start up. On a nicer day - and perhaps earlier in the morning - it would likely have been a very productive trip to make. Next time, maybe.<br />
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More soon...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV6q74NCqZsNmnlMp4uyppuRcMs2r8iIE8DQzpN3J_g1v-1jzJb5ostP1mNsxp4R3E-itryczReGsgDqO6yepU5ab4t4qtiVU4lsjBgGaFOs6JpVRcpKgBSicl7U4VcRrnh9l89l-G16o/s1600/DSC_2988.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV6q74NCqZsNmnlMp4uyppuRcMs2r8iIE8DQzpN3J_g1v-1jzJb5ostP1mNsxp4R3E-itryczReGsgDqO6yepU5ab4t4qtiVU4lsjBgGaFOs6JpVRcpKgBSicl7U4VcRrnh9l89l-G16o/s640/DSC_2988.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Platycnemis pennipes </i>- the Blue Featherlegs - displaying his fine and shapely tibias.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUeyQunriexEkV3vnP4wan2lhxPV3ZVNo-vaQxJ7RT_Z00oyVmSp1rI7CtdS02qSajK9blXk2axiLENKsxEEVPqapRTEnmIKCHizdCYOBei_U0tUTxANdzmpFaKjHSzwtPTtUt071tYf0/s1600/DSC_3005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUeyQunriexEkV3vnP4wan2lhxPV3ZVNo-vaQxJ7RT_Z00oyVmSp1rI7CtdS02qSajK9blXk2axiLENKsxEEVPqapRTEnmIKCHizdCYOBei_U0tUTxANdzmpFaKjHSzwtPTtUt071tYf0/s640/DSC_3005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ajuga genevensis </i>growing willy-nilly outside the house</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-23900343250765473932015-05-26T20:56:00.002+01:002015-05-26T20:56:56.722+01:00Seabird soundsSeabirds are really quite special. Birds in general are special, but there's something about seabirds which appeals to the romantic in one's soul (should such a thing exist). Quite apart from their supremely tough lives and amazing duarbility, you generally see them as little specks far out on the waves, bobbing in and out of view; or as purposeful figures flying past some coastal watchpoint.<br />
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Every so often, however, there is the chance to get to their breeding grounds. There they transform from silent and fairly solitary beings into a swelling mass of noise and activity. The sea is speckled with groups of auks preening, bathing, sorting out who's who, whilst the white shapes of gulls and Fulmars drift overhead.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjePYNK93r_1Y7Lga4O4XYE_aVtWGfLww4kwUSOjQIWs7AM-TiSwBikAHVh8_OVrsvZlsloxbfjZX52bcj1jb_WVPXBgpFmwxMvLs6CmVAsAKLgyyO_0NhFJoxX21QmPUb6fpONlvrCum4/s1600/DSC_3689.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjePYNK93r_1Y7Lga4O4XYE_aVtWGfLww4kwUSOjQIWs7AM-TiSwBikAHVh8_OVrsvZlsloxbfjZX52bcj1jb_WVPXBgpFmwxMvLs6CmVAsAKLgyyO_0NhFJoxX21QmPUb6fpONlvrCum4/s640/DSC_3689.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spot the Puffin...</td></tr>
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On the cliffs the Guillemots huddle in dense masses like football fans on the terraces, shoulder to shoulder with one another. Despite being crammed onto the sheerest of cliff faces, with seemigly minimal toe-holds, every so often you see a bird with an egg, a relatively huge egg, which may be cream or white or blue, blotched and bespattered with a Pollock-esque marbling of black - each one apparently uniquely marked. There is a constant coming and going from the ledges, accompanied by a <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/122846" target="_blank">growling yarring</a> which rises in waves up the cliffs with the updraught- and the fishy smell of seabird guano.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5yVUuNpQAisuanBYONjVLQ4qVLf-muC1FoCL4AayWpCHwI3HI6DVVpDjH9BycbdH8hW8EXlG3mNHPstxNoY0K0n6scGrwVQyEsvtbJhVuxcl1TUzjtfpv1o1IVlVllDkNLp9xEcnqzJE/s1600/Uria+aalge+Guillemot+P1010693.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5yVUuNpQAisuanBYONjVLQ4qVLf-muC1FoCL4AayWpCHwI3HI6DVVpDjH9BycbdH8hW8EXlG3mNHPstxNoY0K0n6scGrwVQyEsvtbJhVuxcl1TUzjtfpv1o1IVlVllDkNLp9xEcnqzJE/s640/Uria+aalge+Guillemot+P1010693.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guillemots loafing below the busy nesting cliffs</td></tr>
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More precarious even than the Guillemots are the Kittiwake nests:
lovingly constructed bowls of seaweed and guano, cemented to the
thinnest of ledges on the sheerest of cliffs. Each nest is attended by both partners, who tend to sit bill to bill, alternately nuzzling one another and reaching out to <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/145637" target="_blank">scream abuse</a> at passing birds.<br />
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Around the fringes, where the cliff face breaks into boulder-strewn chaos, Razorbills sit calmly, often in pairs and often with a studied distance between each pair. They seem more placid than the Guillemots, merely stretching a neck out and opening their bills to reveal a startling yellow palate whenever another bird encroaches on their patch. You have to be close indeed to hear the <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/113093" target="_blank">rattle</a> of their call, like a stick over a washboard.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV0vJNksk_nw4ny2g_Ze20xvD34xPUpdT1VgJm7Ei6ylALEobF4YVVHYrbWEa1hRg06YV0fxqlT7XQPK9LhuCT73x_XRhKlgMhroo2twOUkNZGoXsyF14tvBsuuFevoHda_pmHgMIaOLI/s1600/DSC_3727.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV0vJNksk_nw4ny2g_Ze20xvD34xPUpdT1VgJm7Ei6ylALEobF4YVVHYrbWEa1hRg06YV0fxqlT7XQPK9LhuCT73x_XRhKlgMhroo2twOUkNZGoXsyF14tvBsuuFevoHda_pmHgMIaOLI/s640/DSC_3727.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Razorbills</td></tr>
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A little further away from the boulders, the cliff edge breaks into deep terraces of rabbit-tunneled thrift, deep green at the base and crowned with a wash of pastel pink. Here, the Puffins trot busily in and out of holes on bright orange feet, multicoloured bills to the fore. Where they are abundant enough, you can hear them singing to one another with gentle groan, sounding somewhat like a <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/57541" target="_blank">creaking cupboard door</a>. Every so often one hurls itself off the cliff on absurdly whirring wings to drop down to the sea below, where it bobs buoyantly amongst the other auks. If you are lucky, you might see a pair clattering their bills together: the sound of <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/83910" target="_blank">clifftop castanets</a>. <br />
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Fulmar glide past constantly on stiff unbending wings - they are the masters of the updraught, adroitly riding the air currents up the cliffs until they appear about to crash into the rocks, when they suddenly twirl on a sixpence to drop back to the base, or in the right spot just hang, legs splayed and tail twisting, peerlessly riding the wind. Their mates sit in the deeper hollows towards the top of the cliffs, calmly waiting until their partner joins them, when they can greet each other with swaying necks, <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/83948" target="_blank">cackling and wheezing</a> all the while.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdNaqyOzBP-e3H0Y-n_DKNdOH2grjPqGHvTDvQ4v71QExH-UhXuRw5YICKlRu5updZAqpQD_EoexTfLdTKpSPuxGtG1KC5_3tFw3paXhSP_kCbuIe1pSUoz3HKxkb7qXDFYRxGxRD1b0E/s1600/Fulmarus+glacialis+Northern+Fulmar+DSC_3673.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdNaqyOzBP-e3H0Y-n_DKNdOH2grjPqGHvTDvQ4v71QExH-UhXuRw5YICKlRu5updZAqpQD_EoexTfLdTKpSPuxGtG1KC5_3tFw3paXhSP_kCbuIe1pSUoz3HKxkb7qXDFYRxGxRD1b0E/s640/Fulmarus+glacialis+Northern+Fulmar+DSC_3673.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fulmar</td></tr>
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Stay a little later - or come back at dusk - and as the light fades and the noise of the gulls subsides as they settle to sleep, the best bit of the day begins. Once the light is all but gone and the sea is just visible below as a wash of white surf around the outlying rocks, a <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/189581" target="_blank">weird and slightly hair-raising cry</a> echoes around the cliffs. After a while another bird calls, and as the darkness becomes complete, <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/189554" target="_blank">the slopes begin to echo</a> with the sound of Manx Shearwaters calling to their mates underground. Soon the first birds approach the cliffs: the air ripped beside your ear makes you duck instinctively, whilst you glimpse a gleam of white from the corner of your eye.<br />
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Soon, if you're lucky, you might hear a quiet thud nearby on the grass, and perhaps see a dark shape huddled quietly - waiting to be sure there is no predator around before heading for the nest burrow. Once in, there is a prolonged and noisy duet with the partner before the sitting bird heads off to sea to feed itself. It can be somewhat disconcerting to hear such a noisy concert going on below your feet!jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-25200681728366861532014-07-07T21:24:00.000+01:002014-07-07T21:24:47.916+01:00Promised photosLike a bus - wait ages for one, then two come in quick succession. The moth-trapping was not too bad. Some 60 individuals of about 30 species, though only one or two micro-moth species which were new to the garden list. The most spectacular was - of course - an Elephant Hawkmoth, pink and green like some over-the-top sweet. Their season is coming to an end now, so it wasn't quite the vibrant beauty of the earlier ones, but fun nonetheless.<br />
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Some pictures to make up for the boring previous blog - they're a mish-mash from this weekend and earlier in the year...:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dN3VOCLj7qy0CA6wWIB5CAuqQy0dxRjKbVDtJ1h8bOro2cgoB1ayK2WzGOFLiZdjrLFZyH6iQap4F5vgx47aWu7rTyzpEJR4drc5K-BnmqfdhJVApYkBGS85ft14q5ikzvLNycXPPhc/s1600/DSC_0617.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dN3VOCLj7qy0CA6wWIB5CAuqQy0dxRjKbVDtJ1h8bOro2cgoB1ayK2WzGOFLiZdjrLFZyH6iQap4F5vgx47aWu7rTyzpEJR4drc5K-BnmqfdhJVApYkBGS85ft14q5ikzvLNycXPPhc/s1600/DSC_0617.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Buff-tip. A moth that looks like a chip of birch-twig at rest. I'll take a decent photo from the side one day and post it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqzrN5NVSHwQX5FSEdtdFE5eqDU3qJL0pcOdfIjffm9c7KsnaDBuo2IbE6ZSOiGrujifdZAD9tbRRTpB4G63ysc185bhTd7Y8zHh__pNwn8XFLPeoiuzL0S-BNmK7Ya7URYt04Ro1Qzc/s1600/DSC_0676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqzrN5NVSHwQX5FSEdtdFE5eqDU3qJL0pcOdfIjffm9c7KsnaDBuo2IbE6ZSOiGrujifdZAD9tbRRTpB4G63ysc185bhTd7Y8zHh__pNwn8XFLPeoiuzL0S-BNmK7Ya7URYt04Ro1Qzc/s1600/DSC_0676.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sugar sugar. Our first hawkmoth species: Elephant Hawkmoth. Tropically exotic.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pgK30CTqGNGyEjwiolPaWK7cQyjrlvfvAglQWrJ9wFij3s7y3c83EiCB81OewIqM0p8x0SJPELWcrVB0rn0D095ZOcKApKxjU6sLVqKH7MMgJsPEhXDHAVd9aWRiLHJpgMHvVRPxT50/s1600/DSC_0678.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pgK30CTqGNGyEjwiolPaWK7cQyjrlvfvAglQWrJ9wFij3s7y3c83EiCB81OewIqM0p8x0SJPELWcrVB0rn0D095ZOcKApKxjU6sLVqKH7MMgJsPEhXDHAVd9aWRiLHJpgMHvVRPxT50/s1600/DSC_0678.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Papa! Eine rosa motte!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpOTMc4ruLuyyk3IZGy7lOnYHCM-xiaxzJrhpG6uZvpGzQ4ffUi91_Ni0_3RtwF2awBjLLdnlNB8KJK5C72R0aac9JMePhwwDXqcJ-AaGWdQy-u6TT0hIkd1DkLf43YHiu7gdAhZKaO-Y/s1600/DSC_0576.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpOTMc4ruLuyyk3IZGy7lOnYHCM-xiaxzJrhpG6uZvpGzQ4ffUi91_Ni0_3RtwF2awBjLLdnlNB8KJK5C72R0aac9JMePhwwDXqcJ-AaGWdQy-u6TT0hIkd1DkLf43YHiu7gdAhZKaO-Y/s1600/DSC_0576.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A popular hawkmoth: the second species we've recorded - Poplar Hawkmoth. One from earlier in the year</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpDuh3cRSQ-XURQz51tzYkLa9Gqm6YNf2FznkXl561AtTrHBmbFocmFSbUrteUXYL2o4Tku8fFdBSiMR3CPQvXQCtTgi2_SLtSl4kQMlULfqxh_uRgAe5Qa3CwXDY5xgGqwruDQ9lmOc/s1600/DSC_0794.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpDuh3cRSQ-XURQz51tzYkLa9Gqm6YNf2FznkXl561AtTrHBmbFocmFSbUrteUXYL2o4Tku8fFdBSiMR3CPQvXQCtTgi2_SLtSl4kQMlULfqxh_uRgAe5Qa3CwXDY5xgGqwruDQ9lmOc/s1600/DSC_0794.jpg" height="512" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The latest - and largest - of our hawkmoths: Privet Hawkmoth.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1x7YhbPVgsde2-d1DmGMzV-uYB0jIsjXcq7wNHzC94zcIQTFgmFpZ91aPD2UO715NM3wOCsYacqQ8U5xkCZCZU3sJWd1IHR6Og946ffl0sf7AdMs5LsKxAy1mlhYbQ090RId7T7p_dbg/s1600/DSC_0985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1x7YhbPVgsde2-d1DmGMzV-uYB0jIsjXcq7wNHzC94zcIQTFgmFpZ91aPD2UO715NM3wOCsYacqQ8U5xkCZCZU3sJWd1IHR6Og946ffl0sf7AdMs5LsKxAy1mlhYbQ090RId7T7p_dbg/s1600/DSC_0985.jpg" height="512" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Spectacle; so named because it looks like it's wearing spectacles from the front. I'll dig out a photo...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_0dZA0kKWicwFAq5ekrTjUy9Mt6LlHAjdbHtOY0XZdZUOntVYrROPFcDXlBoGIGAjdvNgLoIKxYKM8sMqM5ZBPOypWs20jgMbP-axtkkvIPw6dMY6sU20T6Ebs0f_Uk-6KJykBVOX1Pc/s1600/DSC_0989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_0dZA0kKWicwFAq5ekrTjUy9Mt6LlHAjdbHtOY0XZdZUOntVYrROPFcDXlBoGIGAjdvNgLoIKxYKM8sMqM5ZBPOypWs20jgMbP-axtkkvIPw6dMY6sU20T6Ebs0f_Uk-6KJykBVOX1Pc/s1600/DSC_0989.jpg" height="512" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Coronet. Not the best of photos, but a very fine moth.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUHRKwu16EAHT_mrBdx_wCzwmclXOulNnBgI11Q0FOfH3bOCYQaAWefHwaJ3hHURNuPDbCUcFt89RB7gra3FjyqTM2RK1hSK14xowC_k6xUV6c4vRLwOXPRmug04y88_pm3UBkpfwFCNQ/s1600/DSC_1005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUHRKwu16EAHT_mrBdx_wCzwmclXOulNnBgI11Q0FOfH3bOCYQaAWefHwaJ3hHURNuPDbCUcFt89RB7gra3FjyqTM2RK1hSK14xowC_k6xUV6c4vRLwOXPRmug04y88_pm3UBkpfwFCNQ/s1600/DSC_1005.jpg" height="512" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Wainscot. Perhaps a quintessentially boring brown moth?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCihDaa-9PbFl1l9izjV0tMkon2paBWWtO2ef6jtLwI8e88usjz0d6_vbwBEBrt82Me9lzB2tUW1CMC3g5mVd_wx1JB4XS3Crti63BAoHIvPyKSQhVaC8lXl_6j_QrUf3keamMl6a6SA/s1600/DSC_0973.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCihDaa-9PbFl1l9izjV0tMkon2paBWWtO2ef6jtLwI8e88usjz0d6_vbwBEBrt82Me9lzB2tUW1CMC3g5mVd_wx1JB4XS3Crti63BAoHIvPyKSQhVaC8lXl_6j_QrUf3keamMl6a6SA/s1600/DSC_0973.jpg" height="512" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finally, just because I like it, some ballooning spiderlings on the knapweed in our 'meadow'.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-4130917409157081802014-07-05T21:25:00.001+01:002014-07-05T21:25:30.900+01:00ReappearanceTonight (July 5th) I intend to run the moth-trap for
the sixth time this year (or thereabouts). It’s a miniature Robinson trap,
which looks something like the end of a plastic barrel with a conical lid, out
of which someone’s chopped the centre so that a second, inverted, cone can sit
inside, on top of which is a mercury-vapour lightbulb. Sounds more complex than
it actually is: in essence it’s a way of attracting moths to the bulb, baffling
them and then funnelling them down into a nice dark place full of old
egg-boxes, where they can wait out the rest of the night in safety.<br />
<br />
Moth-trapping is something which appeals when you have small children in the house. They can get involved catching the
moths in little pots to identify them, finding the right species in the book
(OK, not too exciting when it’s a boring brown one, but pretty whizzy when it’s
big and spectacular like a Privet Hawkmoth), and then have the fun of
releasing the moths into some suitable cover when they’ve been tallied. It’s
building an interesting picture of the Lepidoptera inhabiting the small patch
of woodland and grassland immediately adjacent to our garden and it’s also
keeping me working at learning something new on a regular basis.<br />
<br />
We started out with an overnight session in mid-November
2013, with just a single Feathered Thorn in the trap to show for the night. The
second session in early December was even less rewarding: not a moth to be
seen. The neighbours made some appreciative noises about how the oak looked
when floodlit from below, but that wasn’t really the purpose of the exercise.
Late autumn and early winter moths are obviously harder come by even if the
conditions seem good…<br />
<br />
By the time the weather had improved sufficiently to encourage
me to try again it was early March. Sixteen moths of six different species
seemed like a proper catch after the winter doldrums - and all of them were new
species for the garden. A March Moth (how appropriate), a Pale Brindled Beauty,
six Oak Beauty, five Common Quaker, two Early Grey and a Satellite. Not too bad
for a beginner!<br />
<br />
The season progressed from there. Bar the odd blip like one night
in mid-May, where only eleven moths bothered to show, the catch has got larger
and more diverse: last session was 91 moths of 39 different species, and each
time another handful are new for the garden: we’ve recorded about 120 species now and there’s plenty to be found, I’m sure.<br />
<br />
I’ve fallen into the habit of running the trap every couple
of weeks if there is suitable weather. That prevents me from overloading
mentally, becoming a moth bore, making it all too dull for Bina and running up
an extortionate electricity bill. So, let's see what tonight may bring... Some pictures may follow.jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-20399070316086081352014-02-17T20:07:00.001+00:002014-02-17T20:07:13.000+00:00Oldcrest and carrBack out to do some ringing - it seems like forever since the last session, though in fact it's only (only!) a month. My glamorous assistant cried off late on Saturday evening, so I had the site to myself - and as wife and child are living it up in Germany for a couple of days, I had the luxury of no guilty conscience at work by the end of the session...<br />
<br />
Having only filled feeders the morning before, I had little expectation of being overrun by birds and this proved to be the case. Sure, Blue Tit and Coal Tit made up the bulk of the catch, but there was plenty to appreciate. For instance: a Song Thrush. We only catch one or two each year on site, and have as yet had no recaptures or recoveries. The site is very edge-of-range - on the fringe of the high moors - but there are always a few pairs breeding in the adjacent conifers. What will happen when the conifers are felled and replaced by (presumably) native broadleaves? That will be interesting!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIUXjbhY8DZyF6na-VwJJgg14PUkKXrs9p1emGTzVpN_mr8L1d1q6QlqHSFeXJNN4aYiEWG51RqznKrJhGQG6ZsqeCzdsfzuDZL6J6LVmnjtUHkC5bEsxnwPza5gjE0x3iJdBv2Viuw2Y/s1600/DSC_0215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIUXjbhY8DZyF6na-VwJJgg14PUkKXrs9p1emGTzVpN_mr8L1d1q6QlqHSFeXJNN4aYiEWG51RqznKrJhGQG6ZsqeCzdsfzuDZL6J6LVmnjtUHkC5bEsxnwPza5gjE0x3iJdBv2Viuw2Y/s1600/DSC_0215.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old Coal Tit. Given the text in the Helm family guide (Tits, Nuthatches and Treecreepers), this ought to be a male, with such an extensive bib. We just don't catch them in the breeding season to be able to confirm!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
For the first time, a Sparrowhawk managed to stay in the net. We've had a couple of near-misses with this species in the past: a male low in the net last autumn managed to extricate himself before we could reach the net, and the year before that one left its dinner in the bottom of a net, in the shape of a freshly-plucked and trimmed Woodpigeon pullus. Yesterday, however, I turned the corner to a net and there was a male Sparrowhawk, neatly cushioned in the bottom shelf and glaring balefully up at me. I carefully disentangled him and took him back to the car to be ringed, measured and weighed - I wonder if he's the same bird as previously escaped?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqoakn6kdhuJzqOfXTU8ilbin7PShJpJtygCWPD59dtUVJKyERvfyBG5xwKtBTRktgSJ78dIJHp7x_qZNzaPj1HxEsdxLQPWnSuFVbHBTflpytenSY1IzHKa9e0Ct8F2fkhxbOizEgZg/s1600/DSC_0228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqoakn6kdhuJzqOfXTU8ilbin7PShJpJtygCWPD59dtUVJKyERvfyBG5xwKtBTRktgSJ78dIJHp7x_qZNzaPj1HxEsdxLQPWnSuFVbHBTflpytenSY1IzHKa9e0Ct8F2fkhxbOizEgZg/s1600/DSC_0228.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sparrowhawk. Talons safely the other side of my mitt.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The Willow Tits at the southern end of the site appear to have paired up. Both were in the net together and flew off together when weighed and released. It would be nice if they managed to breed successfully this year - last year's nest failed. The male was originally caught in October 2010, so is now a very experienced bird within his territory.<br />
<br />
Yesterday produced a handful of experienced individuals: two Coal Tits which were originally caught in January 2011 and a Goldcrest first caught in September 2011. The latter is always somewhat impressive: that a bird which weighs in the same as a sheet of A4 paper, or a 2p piece should survive year-round on Dartmoor is somewhat admirable. The <a href="http://blx1.bto.org/birdfacts/results/bob13140.htm#demography" target="_blank">longevity record</a> for Goldcrest in the UK is a whole 4 years, 2 months 24 days, so this one's got a while to go before he reaches the record, but he's doing well nonetheless!<br />
<br />
With it being a quiet day, there was also opportunity to admire the lichens and mosses on the trees around the car, to seek out the tiny red stars of Hazel flowers and to relish the willow carr - such an under-appreciated habitat. There are patches of carr woodland on site which are breathtakingly rainforest-like. Walk into them and the air is redolent with the fresh damp greenness of the carr. Old fallen willow stems snake across the ground, starring out from the original tree's base with linear thickets of young poles growing vertically from them. The old stems are felted with a luxuriance of mosses and lichens, whilst the young stems remain grey and smooth. The boggy ground between the wood is a verdant carpet of plants bewildering in its complexity of form and colour so that the eye just sees green at first, but has to then pull back, refocus and concentrate to appreciate the subtle beauty. Drips and drops fall all around and everything seems to pulse with moistness: whatever you touch, wherever you step, wherever your hand lands...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-9iCb8rAKVFuNhIAHb9reEZ8eB4tr-Wgpath6KQrAkCufnaMqP5U0QaWvHIuBp9WUmqX9g0SPxbrbJmmWskAbk4plNn8L3hO846ZHZsxZPyQYKpwTIrICt5X6xXyap9xsp-0tHmBDws0/s1600/DSC_0232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-9iCb8rAKVFuNhIAHb9reEZ8eB4tr-Wgpath6KQrAkCufnaMqP5U0QaWvHIuBp9WUmqX9g0SPxbrbJmmWskAbk4plNn8L3hO846ZHZsxZPyQYKpwTIrICt5X6xXyap9xsp-0tHmBDws0/s1600/DSC_0232.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hazel flower.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnI-CFgqTsCj1kICZe-5zTxAV2b-sZae678reIUiINbHmQJW_aYhAkVaQ5XvOv9oobaqJUk5ZQGDHPWbP9Sw6cKCqnZqavjjRVzNQkodXG36gO3i555kK6wC0ZPX1B0m7xEavu-EFKD-c/s1600/DSC_0253.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnI-CFgqTsCj1kICZe-5zTxAV2b-sZae678reIUiINbHmQJW_aYhAkVaQ5XvOv9oobaqJUk5ZQGDHPWbP9Sw6cKCqnZqavjjRVzNQkodXG36gO3i555kK6wC0ZPX1B0m7xEavu-EFKD-c/s1600/DSC_0253.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Masses of elf-cups, <i>Cladonia pyxidata</i> (I think) reach up from old willow stems in the carr</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCwwGQE3Oo9-T1Yh2Pk5Dna9YMcb_FGPd4reUmXCUVqkK7bkES11afbdDMNjpSpna5WA_XQV8NAieTg7AdMy25G_VPwGBqY65yWAdgMwmAAriOQNfsZgXWfBxavBvERBS_BEHrNyMd0w/s1600/DSC_0256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCwwGQE3Oo9-T1Yh2Pk5Dna9YMcb_FGPd4reUmXCUVqkK7bkES11afbdDMNjpSpna5WA_XQV8NAieTg7AdMy25G_VPwGBqY65yWAdgMwmAAriOQNfsZgXWfBxavBvERBS_BEHrNyMd0w/s1600/DSC_0256.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another <i>Cladonia </i>lichen, this time <i>coniocraea </i>amidst a mat of <i>Hypnum </i>mosses</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KtJKv6hkZtI5zer4QqhTQeNesxBPKR5_ySIgCQ96W37acE-XlK0wKnsRQs6Sbkxa2iA0eNs028Zfkt4G2k0B3W18CDfecoe38jklkuWgo5jgAXUPrsSKXye9FiO-fqRf7sWDt30TSuw/s1600/DSC_0258.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KtJKv6hkZtI5zer4QqhTQeNesxBPKR5_ySIgCQ96W37acE-XlK0wKnsRQs6Sbkxa2iA0eNs028Zfkt4G2k0B3W18CDfecoe38jklkuWgo5jgAXUPrsSKXye9FiO-fqRf7sWDt30TSuw/s1600/DSC_0258.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Drips and drops - decomposition is rife within the carr. This seemed a better picture than the remains of the frog.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXOrKNaBxaLm85qLyeSzkDIqTwgKcCpl7VtzwktGot54ilqARdSvuSX-fVB2fGWf5ghUFJylnHyWNkFhu8qZDN9oUgCB9EsJvxfUGl8AOWAItxzCot3w34-unJpXcK1PEHEl5X8OHH3Vw/s1600/DSC_0264.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXOrKNaBxaLm85qLyeSzkDIqTwgKcCpl7VtzwktGot54ilqARdSvuSX-fVB2fGWf5ghUFJylnHyWNkFhu8qZDN9oUgCB9EsJvxfUGl8AOWAItxzCot3w34-unJpXcK1PEHEl5X8OHH3Vw/s1600/DSC_0264.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Peltigera </i>lichens and the moss <i>Kindbergia praelonga </i>grow over one another on the ground.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-48072690970838338742014-01-18T14:17:00.002+00:002014-01-18T14:17:55.835+00:00Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain...You could be forgiven for thinking the Atlantic had tired of sweeping the shores and decided to reclaim the land by air-drop. It's been pretty soggy here for the past month or so. Not, I'll grant you, as bad as Somerset, Dorset or further east still, but still relentlessly soggy. The skies have been grey and weepy, the ground growing increasingly squelchy, and the river Bovey has been up and down like a back-bencher in a lively parliamentary debate. We're fortunate to live a couple of house-heights above the river, so flooding is the least of our worries, but there are a few buildings in town which tread a delicate line along the river's edge and are a salutary lesson not to buy property in a flood-plain (as if the lesson were needed)!<br />
<br />
We're quite high up the catchment and the rivers here are short and inclined to spate conditions, so flooding never lasts that long on any one occasion, but it can repeat over and over again if the weather gets it just so. Just before Christmas (doesn't that seem a long time ago?!) I had an hour of free time just before it got dark, and the Bovey was overtopping the banks - so I managed to shoot out and take some pictures. The river is bottle-necked where the west-bound road crosses just below the town centre. Once there was a ford there beside the old mill, now there's a neat little hump-backed bridge, and a flood-bank to protect the houses on the west side of the river. As it's quite an old bridge, there's a two-arch span, and this constrains the water perfectly, so it ponds back and spills over the adjacent playing field. By the time I got there the water was about welly-top depth across the end of the park - the brand new, newly-gravelled cyclepath only indicated by a forlorn sign asking cyclists to respect the pedestrians on the track. The gravel had been neatly swept off the path and deposited in a sweeping system of deposit bars to gladden the heart of a fluvial morphologist. To cap it all, there was a Cormorant fishing on the field.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG5MAJmIYBO7cc7KJkd4UIAiuCYHzFY8R05nJG1kl_9vcVEQoOOLozvnCq5qJbKknrWK39BeDJ7WHM08yAihXan-tCRHrKnBGp9O3Lyn3C9e1vFgeKVm5uZMPK7p9IWZoIp-ihVst9dUQ/s1600/DSC_0016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG5MAJmIYBO7cc7KJkd4UIAiuCYHzFY8R05nJG1kl_9vcVEQoOOLozvnCq5qJbKknrWK39BeDJ7WHM08yAihXan-tCRHrKnBGp9O3Lyn3C9e1vFgeKVm5uZMPK7p9IWZoIp-ihVst9dUQ/s1600/DSC_0016.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Living here would make me nervous. But I wouldn't live here anyway!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3B2eMMhkXxQ2BlmwDk7OcWX2tLmxPzcRzdzQ4puGCx9wW6-mndRm514gUg4HkEYOghHU1tr0DecyrccyK8UiluKfcNct4ahL7gkMPvB5dhmpeA9ps-en4bMpDUCG6S7-pU4WaLNAbGqg/s1600/DSC_0023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3B2eMMhkXxQ2BlmwDk7OcWX2tLmxPzcRzdzQ4puGCx9wW6-mndRm514gUg4HkEYOghHU1tr0DecyrccyK8UiluKfcNct4ahL7gkMPvB5dhmpeA9ps-en4bMpDUCG6S7-pU4WaLNAbGqg/s1600/DSC_0023.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The old mill - now home to the Devon Guild of Craftsmen - lives on the edge. You wonder how often it flooded in times past...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdgdxQF1k9v4uIozjKdmBDNXAGqPiImPkZBhFYMGSVhHVjz0cz-HMXcbTKWMci0xMeBfZn2R-iJU6ypTrQf_3B3u2t3sSnNKNUm_zi8G5SAWYXA3CSq8owq6Wvp7Jw4lc3fd0SBWQS4dA/s1600/DSC_0024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdgdxQF1k9v4uIozjKdmBDNXAGqPiImPkZBhFYMGSVhHVjz0cz-HMXcbTKWMci0xMeBfZn2R-iJU6ypTrQf_3B3u2t3sSnNKNUm_zi8G5SAWYXA3CSq8owq6Wvp7Jw4lc3fd0SBWQS4dA/s1600/DSC_0024.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The road-bridge through town</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZq5fCOKUzJNbbzRhmGQjZcmp98Meb_NJUglIN5_ObtnmenWuYC1SL3g3OzVfGsl18fh-i36xrEx0-0OtXfsgb4jEBZCFzUmexVr96WHqe8wVtT35240ndB8r3lUdHl8kv8KpfOxMSik/s1600/DSC_0007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZq5fCOKUzJNbbzRhmGQjZcmp98Meb_NJUglIN5_ObtnmenWuYC1SL3g3OzVfGsl18fh-i36xrEx0-0OtXfsgb4jEBZCFzUmexVr96WHqe8wVtT35240ndB8r3lUdHl8kv8KpfOxMSik/s1600/DSC_0007.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No conflicts today...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxT_C6_TAWgOKLDHXVsFxt64fajWPI6bhRTopqQF6Hf0rn-vmPIyFSI77YlKpWane9C_8CT3DfX9p2Z6TYO3HFYiFK1B1JfmburhgYCAaHdBcSCZfU_N8FqUKx0wxLQ1HGg0Lq0rANDg/s1600/DSC_0014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxT_C6_TAWgOKLDHXVsFxt64fajWPI6bhRTopqQF6Hf0rn-vmPIyFSI77YlKpWane9C_8CT3DfX9p2Z6TYO3HFYiFK1B1JfmburhgYCAaHdBcSCZfU_N8FqUKx0wxLQ1HGg0Lq0rANDg/s1600/DSC_0014.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking across the cycle path</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU-zXZeY7p4EnPnyx7sZ7YjxCc7pjrPGe-OWjWMigQVoiKkOP5XTsiA27K2vbNR5FpM1-MbOA2YzaydYbeGRKRLWR4KQDQ__6ODalqxpSozJyZ0YE_K49k6WIqN4hUVeq0BsBR4w0Zung/s1600/DSC_0035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU-zXZeY7p4EnPnyx7sZ7YjxCc7pjrPGe-OWjWMigQVoiKkOP5XTsiA27K2vbNR5FpM1-MbOA2YzaydYbeGRKRLWR4KQDQ__6ODalqxpSozJyZ0YE_K49k6WIqN4hUVeq0BsBR4w0Zung/s1600/DSC_0035.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking south, towards the bridge</td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
Further upstream the field rises slightly, and then there is another narrow point where the A382 crosses the river - this time in a single-span bridge, but with a carefully-constructed underpass for cyclists and walkers to avoid the road-crossing. Not today, though.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2SMd9cY8hF5nh3-PK45is9z9c5vZkTO6vRUgjeBHwD44hpQC0hAkpiI51e3R5FyaREpA-fLdsqrfEHFz4iZNZ2i71zK5vVeEzGgIauTGQo-fjcRiUJ-8Je_odtw8zsVIF65nriCkBb0/s1600/DSC_0041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2SMd9cY8hF5nh3-PK45is9z9c5vZkTO6vRUgjeBHwD44hpQC0hAkpiI51e3R5FyaREpA-fLdsqrfEHFz4iZNZ2i71zK5vVeEzGgIauTGQo-fjcRiUJ-8Je_odtw8zsVIF65nriCkBb0/s1600/DSC_0041.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Low and narrow, yes. I think I'd prefer to take my chances crossing the road.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
By the time I reached my intended goal, the light was appalling, so most of the photos were on delayed timer and at half a second or more exposure time. The weir was a spectacular sight: the difference in water height between top and bottom of weir is usually a good 1.5m; today, more like half a metre. The water surged over the top of the path, submerging the entire woodland floor across the bend where the weir sits - normally a well-trodden sandy patch where dogs frolic and children play chase. In the gathering gloom it was a distinctly suspect proposition to venture in and take photographs, so I contented myself with some atmospheric pictures of 'the end of the path as we know it'. Given the exposure times, the tripod would no doubt have been so shaken around by the water that the photos would be even worse in any case!<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxH2CHgoKLJabTShueveca7cpOi4Zjnx90yK9XA8t3G1wikGkwOvVYnHZoBdm_2eIv48pccsuir_RCQ4gkIaOSSoc4ljvScAHwAS61aES6lxgfMKGxaZag2u5YZgINC6VkxcWg6OwXUzE/s1600/DSC_0044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxH2CHgoKLJabTShueveca7cpOi4Zjnx90yK9XA8t3G1wikGkwOvVYnHZoBdm_2eIv48pccsuir_RCQ4gkIaOSSoc4ljvScAHwAS61aES6lxgfMKGxaZag2u5YZgINC6VkxcWg6OwXUzE/s1600/DSC_0044.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The weir: normally a well-trodden relaxing spot</td></tr>
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<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4lBCxV3ivUCIglQw_oKjOMNLlcGy5cNDZbFO7XiUZn3Ghcx-b9JEMwAxdc3vHwfgAr1F4pT2oIHIByvuqU1FGWZwLJI6h_mZ7KzmA8T3tiEk7HYXKOiShD2-gWvXFb6gNRoy7qSbZuQ/s1600/DSC_0051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4lBCxV3ivUCIglQw_oKjOMNLlcGy5cNDZbFO7XiUZn3Ghcx-b9JEMwAxdc3vHwfgAr1F4pT2oIHIByvuqU1FGWZwLJI6h_mZ7KzmA8T3tiEk7HYXKOiShD2-gWvXFb6gNRoy7qSbZuQ/s1600/DSC_0051.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The weir itself is hiding under that bank of water just above and right of centre</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJfO5W15QX_btwPcngp_OCRm_h0bkGQU0_dpMs5w-GI2gssfZHWZVZdn7eHDiIvZ6wveFPZLiBO4SRrlpBslqyvQu4VrAjo9ROt4ICqfIyQ6e9ITkIA8VV3NXkWhecX9rUJIdQVgpxBLA/s1600/DSC_0055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJfO5W15QX_btwPcngp_OCRm_h0bkGQU0_dpMs5w-GI2gssfZHWZVZdn7eHDiIvZ6wveFPZLiBO4SRrlpBslqyvQu4VrAjo9ROt4ICqfIyQ6e9ITkIA8VV3NXkWhecX9rUJIdQVgpxBLA/s1600/DSC_0055.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The end of the line...</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-21984107783367724632013-11-28T21:00:00.000+00:002013-11-28T21:00:08.769+00:00Redpoll redux<a href="http://devon-occasional.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/toast-to-redpolls.html" target="_blank">Way back in the mists of 2011</a>, we ringed a shed-load of Lesser Redpolls up on the edge of the moors. Somewhere around 250 of them over the course of the autumn. OK, it's hardly the stuff to make an observatory staff quake in their boots, but for our first full season at the site, it was something pretty special. Within that mix were a couple of local retraps - all from round about the moor's edge and none of them from more than 10km away - and that seemed to be about that... Then, the following spring, we received news that one of our birds had been caught in someone's house in northern France - always an exciting moment when one of 'your' birds is traced to another country, and this autumn we've discovered that another of 'our' class of 2011 has been recaptured twice by a local ringer on the south-west side of the moor, this time a bird on a breeding territory. So we know that some of the birds we ringed that autumn most likely came from the local area, whilst some presumably originated elsewhere in Europe...<br />
<br />
Since that autumn, we've caught rather fewer Lesser Redpolls: in fact fewer than 10 each season. None of those we caught in 2011 have been recaptured on site either, though there are generally a few Lesser Redpoll around throughout the year.<br />
<br />
Then, a couple of weekends back, we caught half a dozen Lesser Redpolls on one day... and this:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJuY1yaLnVoYvne8ko6nxStVsrW-O9v7aXb6nZoujWcXlhznBPdMQFuU2N12LKBjxQv8r20BFJ0TngEdWTYZcGcJqWcGnB9MlM8iav-rHNaiJdLu-Os2BUlhX-7L3SrsV1ls7VVACTxgY/s1600/DSC_9894-dbwps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJuY1yaLnVoYvne8ko6nxStVsrW-O9v7aXb6nZoujWcXlhznBPdMQFuU2N12LKBjxQv8r20BFJ0TngEdWTYZcGcJqWcGnB9MlM8iav-rHNaiJdLu-Os2BUlhX-7L3SrsV1ls7VVACTxgY/s400/DSC_9894-dbwps.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's big...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDOwEqr9RTL6bhpZhgDclQys_vajxR1RjOWStnNZGBp76q38PqX2P89XbCr-0Re465K_eZuulXpPUVcwL7_9FiPQPy1vUa9EcgQgzRkKfgdTxaB7yn9Zku6_xfBT84neIQ7Turn_r7h2A/s1600/DSC_9895-dbwps1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDOwEqr9RTL6bhpZhgDclQys_vajxR1RjOWStnNZGBp76q38PqX2P89XbCr-0Re465K_eZuulXpPUVcwL7_9FiPQPy1vUa9EcgQgzRkKfgdTxaB7yn9Zku6_xfBT84neIQ7Turn_r7h2A/s400/DSC_9895-dbwps1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...it's got a socking great pale rump...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXvz6Syoa7uamJscq1firr0PnNXhcwVNHixOE2pM0eYZXRMEtmaWcgkCfBfZMr7HBQgMNt8FLzOzyMSRmRyWSihteK3M5yj4zeBucOcGaQ42-v0sCEohe3X3wA9EKn_lzwUXeVOVeZNw/s1600/DSC_9895-detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXvz6Syoa7uamJscq1firr0PnNXhcwVNHixOE2pM0eYZXRMEtmaWcgkCfBfZMr7HBQgMNt8FLzOzyMSRmRyWSihteK3M5yj4zeBucOcGaQ42-v0sCEohe3X3wA9EKn_lzwUXeVOVeZNw/s400/DSC_9895-detail.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...(just like the linked blog above, you can see some wear on the tail and primary tips which help age it as a bird of the year)...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzye31E7yMEC21jDRbXoblUTG9YsPAfwTeyCCnjrrWP0p4-Aq9ODEiSoAoxwWirNYXo-Vw-lolEgRMjLVRDNTVOdDuPyDf9lD3oudil5IDjnFF3vBhkBOt-LieNXSGIFJyrEm7lhYklc/s1600/DSC_9896-dbwps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzye31E7yMEC21jDRbXoblUTG9YsPAfwTeyCCnjrrWP0p4-Aq9ODEiSoAoxwWirNYXo-Vw-lolEgRMjLVRDNTVOdDuPyDf9lD3oudil5IDjnFF3vBhkBOt-LieNXSGIFJyrEm7lhYklc/s400/DSC_9896-dbwps.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...no brown on the flanks...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf2H-cOjPb0PgfI5ErJWmVmrbZRHNZpMSSa4rvDan1z_vxIyuB6GOMjZ2oDZJ43cQvnWjxxCIhvY6ANzV4oE5F1N1vKtUBd_TJf2h_ICMjr28Yr8AA7lAFI3o4Ca2Jn82wI2HSrk-9OGk/s1600/RedpoIMG_6961.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf2H-cOjPb0PgfI5ErJWmVmrbZRHNZpMSSa4rvDan1z_vxIyuB6GOMjZ2oDZJ43cQvnWjxxCIhvY6ANzV4oE5F1N1vKtUBd_TJf2h_ICMjr28Yr8AA7lAFI3o4Ca2Jn82wI2HSrk-9OGk/s400/RedpoIMG_6961.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">....it's grey (this photo © Judith Read)...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCbolNsqGtRihy7eAEcbr3U2qqJ_9RCj94Z8z3oIem7JZdnyA0PB2kVtV3ppONDV02dNWCwKjiITaxKPDLTRaIJQT4FG3AQISNTNccVlgNTf8Z_DEZnmw201LkWlxiU0V9aSFcr-pJx0/s1600/RedpoIMG_6964.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCbolNsqGtRihy7eAEcbr3U2qqJ_9RCj94Z8z3oIem7JZdnyA0PB2kVtV3ppONDV02dNWCwKjiITaxKPDLTRaIJQT4FG3AQISNTNccVlgNTf8Z_DEZnmw201LkWlxiU0V9aSFcr-pJx0/s400/RedpoIMG_6964.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...it's still got no brown on the flanks (this photo © Judith Read)...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9HGuf17a8Zx1XyNrU4r1aCinnw7akWqvn9jtwdsuEjcqbTUe4pqckCrQjS1TZCY61L-EqLFqIfYdCLphNAEp_lSn_rtxoNXdcYRtbhRXK5uWlPXu8UB5jlhIsL9Q9rgsqxwXdM1kfobA/s1600/RedpoIMG_6965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9HGuf17a8Zx1XyNrU4r1aCinnw7akWqvn9jtwdsuEjcqbTUe4pqckCrQjS1TZCY61L-EqLFqIfYdCLphNAEp_lSn_rtxoNXdcYRtbhRXK5uWlPXu8UB5jlhIsL9Q9rgsqxwXdM1kfobA/s400/RedpoIMG_6965.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and it's got white wing-bars (this photo also © Judith Read). Note also the two visible retained juvenile greater coverts. Award yourself an extra mark if you didn't have to look the feather tract up.</td></tr>
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'It' is, of course (roll eyes and sigh, go on) a Common Redpoll, <i>Carduelis flammea </i>- one of those northern birds so controversially (?) split out during some taxonomic reorganisation back in the late 90s-early 2000s. You can see most everything you ought to want to to identify this one as a Common: white wing-bars, pale rump, cold brown and grey tones overall. You can't hear it, because I haven't got the kit to record it, but rest assured it even sounded a little deeper-voiced when it called.<br />
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The description's in the post to the county recorder...jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-27341654855572799132013-10-06T21:34:00.000+01:002013-10-06T21:34:07.398+01:00In France...It wasn't quite the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM_lXwJpZCg" target="_blank">Frank Zappa experience</a> (not work-friendly lyrics, I warn you): an altogether sedate and pleasant week in Brittany with wife and child - a combination of sunshine (mainly) and warm weather - just what we needed.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0WUvTpzEEJPkFcIi7CpS8a9bKwyIgOJQrtK9UA_0MmbNr1SICOWM3MuQB5bscewS28n4NNfNuMS-UW99JOb-BE7EtldH89MkpRdVeEexSpkxFB28bSUr4jOgZak_wZC4ZXTLHaObrn4/s1600/DSC_9640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0WUvTpzEEJPkFcIi7CpS8a9bKwyIgOJQrtK9UA_0MmbNr1SICOWM3MuQB5bscewS28n4NNfNuMS-UW99JOb-BE7EtldH89MkpRdVeEexSpkxFB28bSUr4jOgZak_wZC4ZXTLHaObrn4/s640/DSC_9640.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach and the cliffs at Kerloc'h.</td></tr>
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<br />
The trip started well, when about 40 minutes out of Plymouth on ferry, a Minke Whale surfaced a couple of times - the closest to Devon I've ever seen one. The remainder of the crossing was rather anticlimactic though, with just a few dozen Gannets and a handful of Great Skuas to see. Having left a grey and murky England, it was a pleasure to arrive in France in bright sunshine and the journey south to <a href="https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zY-ZVneBOCJA.k8GSiYykcBo0" target="_blank">Camaret-sur-Mer</a> was accomplished with the minimum of fuss. We found our house, we unpacked, we stretched out our legs and chilled out, starting as we intended to go on.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHSLwLYPpUsFuTw5VK94nLD2QnsqERnexZ494n9zsgI-AuQkmSnlEQaUFSMQs2ITqqxmlpV3Gn8Y7IYAjo5W5KvPvJ5sQh9SoJ2Gz5dnTthC2X343DX-gCafuk-0ahF8ZJE7MU2g_Yc_c/s1600/DSC_9697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHSLwLYPpUsFuTw5VK94nLD2QnsqERnexZ494n9zsgI-AuQkmSnlEQaUFSMQs2ITqqxmlpV3Gn8Y7IYAjo5W5KvPvJ5sQh9SoJ2Gz5dnTthC2X343DX-gCafuk-0ahF8ZJE7MU2g_Yc_c/s640/DSC_9697.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's nothing better than a snack found in a pile of rotting Goose Barnacles, provided you're a Turnstone...</td></tr>
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<br />
Our days quickly developed a routine: a morning's gentle walk with Bina, giving plenty of time to do such important things as pick up gravel to drop on the plants at the edge of the path, sniff flowers, try to catch grasshoppers and watch butterflies, then a break for an hour or two back at the house whilst she slept, usually followed by an afternoon on one of the local beaches, combining some sandcastle-building, football, rockpooling, sand art and splashing in the surf, as well as a short swim for Na. Not exactly high-powered, but with sufficient interest for us all to enjoy the day properly.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrB9oxs-COXxZhMJY0GslPqOHzhOmZL9QuS9FfNSQ7sJtJnVTeSZoFQIBrn5WXUEFmJyGQBLQQB0TPfojV_dYgVYJs63z6_MCgHQNtkdSYjQMHytHGCYyWk0wcuJs5DGPOmJGtf-O581M/s1600/DSC_9499.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrB9oxs-COXxZhMJY0GslPqOHzhOmZL9QuS9FfNSQ7sJtJnVTeSZoFQIBrn5WXUEFmJyGQBLQQB0TPfojV_dYgVYJs63z6_MCgHQNtkdSYjQMHytHGCYyWk0wcuJs5DGPOmJGtf-O581M/s640/DSC_9499.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach at Kerloc'h, at low tide. The most sticky sand I've yet come across on a beach - superb for making sandcastles!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRAYtCm7T4r8I3yt0wovhG9_Cl-Ho1qn6f43XjfNok3TsxKUhlOrMSnB61wL-mORPNXuy9gwJj1aH0Y4O0Kj6hsW8h5f9NunBFU6NQtSiPzPcKCX_6LE63hHVcR0HhSiFu4c7dtufOpk/s1600/DSC_9639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRAYtCm7T4r8I3yt0wovhG9_Cl-Ho1qn6f43XjfNok3TsxKUhlOrMSnB61wL-mORPNXuy9gwJj1aH0Y4O0Kj6hsW8h5f9NunBFU6NQtSiPzPcKCX_6LE63hHVcR0HhSiFu4c7dtufOpk/s640/DSC_9639.jpg" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A rather phallic slab of rock at Kerloc'h, which abuts the start of the cliffs proper.</td></tr>
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The coastal area immediately to the west of Camaret is a nice combination of coastal heath with some interesting calcareous flushes, odd scraps of scrub and some rabbit-mown fixed-dune grassland. The general impression is of scenery combining western Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, though the flora and fauna have a flavour of the exotic: not only are Choughs all over the shop, and immensely tame to boot, but Grey Bush-crickets are ten-a-penny, even in suburban gardens, Dartford Warblers wheeze their indignation from clumps of gorse, and there are Vestal Moths lurking in the heath, Swallowtail caterpillars munching Fennel, Crested Tits purring in the cypresses...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihE6eILMqgX9fxrFYZuIEwsJho2a1kwUEGhKE_8i7M9ibeE9puCyj70B7p6sT3CfXPq4JA2IyD0h4x6bYa-5vqlduocUfdbOJlxbA8jI-1cNIQqGGwpAXFFeWfyALOujJdDgCYAAAQPaU/s1600/Platycleis_a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihE6eILMqgX9fxrFYZuIEwsJho2a1kwUEGhKE_8i7M9ibeE9puCyj70B7p6sT3CfXPq4JA2IyD0h4x6bYa-5vqlduocUfdbOJlxbA8jI-1cNIQqGGwpAXFFeWfyALOujJdDgCYAAAQPaU/s640/Platycleis_a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grey Bush-cricket</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2C_vGvGdc8A6-NFjNUIBAp9qaGiN0vbWBR0t0r8Csvki50chRENHLyCvxN9q3Ey3TPi9se44zB8IXatIjZDEo-_f7Iyxm3xXSnltSRpUPrjKT8YTszP9PqhzL4_nFmUEHHLOYBpX8MWY/s1600/DSC_9813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2C_vGvGdc8A6-NFjNUIBAp9qaGiN0vbWBR0t0r8Csvki50chRENHLyCvxN9q3Ey3TPi9se44zB8IXatIjZDEo-_f7Iyxm3xXSnltSRpUPrjKT8YTszP9PqhzL4_nFmUEHHLOYBpX8MWY/s640/DSC_9813.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swallowtail caterpillar</td></tr>
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The flushes are dominated by Black Bog-rush <i>Schoenus nigricans</i>, with a scatter of things like Yellow-wort <i>Blackstonia perforata</i>, Devil's-bit Scabious <i>Succisa pratensis </i>(I wonder if there are also Marsh Fritillaries in season? Didn't find any larval webs, though) and Carline Thistle <i>Carlina vulgaris</i>, gradually merging back into heather-dominated heath full of Ling <i>Calluna vulgaris</i>, Bell Heather <i>Erica ciliaris</i> and Cornish Heath <i>E. vagans</i>, and three (apparently) species of gorse: Common <i>Ulex europaeus</i>, Western <i>U. gallii</i> and Dwarf <i>U. minor</i>.<br />
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The fixed-dune grassland also holds some nice flora: Rock Stonecrop <i>Sedum forsterianum</i> is widespread and no doubt there are some nice winter and spring annuals to be found, in season. Even found a couple of thalli of what looked suspiciously like Scrambled-egg lichen <i>Fulgensia fulgens</i>. This area is a Chough playground par excellence. A dozen or so birds seem to spend the bulk of their time around here, frequently bounding over with their sneezy-wheezy calls - so distinctive that Bina quickly learned to imitate them!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kHNLpM8SX__WUabAZFd4A-LFWi9zsY75EOyfOa8UbImvGpbCzjZpcG6wIcsME1fhJkgQzm8O6jLCNWrj0ScuSqJPCrWQD08m41iFYHKL93bxXCnFnJkWo9AXEPuPm8KYBqw6DZGjnaA/s1600/Chough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kHNLpM8SX__WUabAZFd4A-LFWi9zsY75EOyfOa8UbImvGpbCzjZpcG6wIcsME1fhJkgQzm8O6jLCNWrj0ScuSqJPCrWQD08m41iFYHKL93bxXCnFnJkWo9AXEPuPm8KYBqw6DZGjnaA/s640/Chough.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Choughs, swooping and looping around me.</td></tr>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwMBfRQyqPL8lLl8W7nuvMYsbjQ_TjNd5DYhv5o9nQ0L1Gn9ySKgiPG6uFmIuokKAH0eIkRZ0nN5vPQ3Dt0lw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHNZfDjyFZoWiLmWP0p4EWzH_jj39PQqnQvj6Glptrf4n2Z8fqQV8q6UFdh8Wcd4OywpiwuasIHHpYTgqJdNDJodQD4aQYMv91NGt0Et4dZiiAzLaeWcRG7cLQ_TQX_xoBm6lYo-aXNXM/s1600/Sedum_f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHNZfDjyFZoWiLmWP0p4EWzH_jj39PQqnQvj6Glptrf4n2Z8fqQV8q6UFdh8Wcd4OywpiwuasIHHpYTgqJdNDJodQD4aQYMv91NGt0Et4dZiiAzLaeWcRG7cLQ_TQX_xoBm6lYo-aXNXM/s640/Sedum_f.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit of <i>Sedum forsterianum</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSD3NW83ZwFO-SqdL1IA3KHNEPIbHy07UfGDPwiBvifarOfiBpg6BzaiKelSUxn8IgaTfnT51bXfjOY_lJmsjPx8SGdvb6avhOzCkOVeSCjGnCuY7_r7wxs6VvgHDTl5x5TnUG_qktuiE/s1600/Fulgensia_fulgens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSD3NW83ZwFO-SqdL1IA3KHNEPIbHy07UfGDPwiBvifarOfiBpg6BzaiKelSUxn8IgaTfnT51bXfjOY_lJmsjPx8SGdvb6avhOzCkOVeSCjGnCuY7_r7wxs6VvgHDTl5x5TnUG_qktuiE/s640/Fulgensia_fulgens.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Fulgensia fulgens</i>, I think.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pojY8-qPtv7wGShnNmHGSTWeZ3Sp1DSM-FzV6poz9bx_wDZzMpcgefhwObrf9sqIRWX1GvEIik_THJeojDC61lkCxOk9G_o2jqzV7BcMGPe-ndMjy8QQTcuazOJKQcByFF3HAlPxFcs/s1600/DSC_9500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pojY8-qPtv7wGShnNmHGSTWeZ3Sp1DSM-FzV6poz9bx_wDZzMpcgefhwObrf9sqIRWX1GvEIik_THJeojDC61lkCxOk9G_o2jqzV7BcMGPe-ndMjy8QQTcuazOJKQcByFF3HAlPxFcs/s640/DSC_9500.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking west to the end of Pointe Toulinguet, across nice maritime grassland and coastal heath.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5K9ivXdkgmySwY97d26N7wjvnsz778KD2iYgkJXwUZmI_Ev64jYzpRA8aNYyBQInMs2NKcCe18V-oFoKBnRHa2EMqFH2CTSgh6bNp8ekqpLaMZH_3XdumGEUlpVOgLsINc_C53yVDKlk/s1600/DSC_9516.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5K9ivXdkgmySwY97d26N7wjvnsz778KD2iYgkJXwUZmI_Ev64jYzpRA8aNYyBQInMs2NKcCe18V-oFoKBnRHa2EMqFH2CTSgh6bNp8ekqpLaMZH_3XdumGEUlpVOgLsINc_C53yVDKlk/s640/DSC_9516.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fixed-dune grassland near Pointe Toulinguet.</td></tr>
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The coastal heath stretches round south and east to Kerloc'h and beyond, and north to Pointe d'Spagnol. Inland is a very Cornish-looking landscape of mixed farmland and low-canopy scrubby woodland, which looks nice for birds, but is rather difficult to work effectively. Nevertheless, we found a welcome daily trickle of Chiffchaffs and Firecrests amongst the resident Robins, Blue Tits and Great Tits, along with the odd Willow Warbler, Whitethroat and Blackcap - quite home-from-home in a way!<br />
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The two small lakes we visited were rather unexciting - the more interesting-looking Etang de Kerloc'h couldn't be approached closely, and the lake at Le Fret seemed to be covered in Coot, but I'm sure both have more interest at a better time of year. Etang de Kerloc'h in particular seemed nice: lots of swampy reedbed and a nice heathland transition area on one shore. Water Rail calling in the depths of the swamp were nice, but better were the distant calls of a <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/130424" target="_blank">Black Woodpecker</a>: first of all the landing call, which sounds somewhat akin to the squeak you can get out of blowing grass-blade between your hands, then those 'krr-krr-krr' flight calls. Always a pleasure!<br />
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Finally, the beaches... most of them were lovely, gentle sand or sand+shingle beaches, generally with water warm enough to swim with pleasure, but the stand-out beach has to be just east of Pointe de Penn Hir: not only wide, gentle and mainly sandy, the western end has a superb selection of rock-pools, tailor-made for entertaining a toddler (and her father!) for as long as is possible. The pools range from several square metres to just a couple of hand's-widths, ankle- to knee-deep and with variously sandy, stony or weedy appearance. Some are clearly ephemeral, changing size - or even existence - tide by tide, some are more reliably configured, and there are even a few perfect aquariums where small hollows have been scooped out of the rocks to be left with their own microcosms as each tide departs.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitFEgGBFvEypcnHLfzvcY6NuKFHtvQrB-QF5pVn5VwT9DF7L_j6dbUW_tA9ZF0N9jOToExV1-cuyZGOwxAs8eFspMTR05tJGViBnsy1a4RSf-dkKmtwjrTo87p3VTn39CD0E1fZr6hPsg/s1600/DSC_9677.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitFEgGBFvEypcnHLfzvcY6NuKFHtvQrB-QF5pVn5VwT9DF7L_j6dbUW_tA9ZF0N9jOToExV1-cuyZGOwxAs8eFspMTR05tJGViBnsy1a4RSf-dkKmtwjrTo87p3VTn39CD0E1fZr6hPsg/s640/DSC_9677.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach at Pointe de Penn Hir.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4YPdAqFTJVJeBsE5h79Tpc4i_xPHc4ToBM2TdvNRqFmsWigCz4EXnEuAibyTIsxc8XZyhPnUgJM3wIaRI1VOW-sFJMo7kRj9dIsQFqQPWC6wzhPxgeqg21sLQR5GPifPbjpwXcw10H0/s1600/DSC_9685.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4YPdAqFTJVJeBsE5h79Tpc4i_xPHc4ToBM2TdvNRqFmsWigCz4EXnEuAibyTIsxc8XZyhPnUgJM3wIaRI1VOW-sFJMo7kRj9dIsQFqQPWC6wzhPxgeqg21sLQR5GPifPbjpwXcw10H0/s640/DSC_9685.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking seaward from Pointe de Penn Hir</td></tr>
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Within each there seems to be a cohort of prawns, translucent creatures with chocolate bands, stalked eyeballs and immensely long antennae, picking their way fastidiously through the sand and the seaweed with tiny pincer-like claws. They move rather deliberately across the pool until they meet something they're not keen on, at which point they curl their tails under their abdomens and pulse backwards away from the threat with little darting jerks.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKXAcULH6vSGAsshgQVHZFl388fcUanN4P87EiigJQ3uUAN_xiFA8sqaMV9TaHv5gvjtUpJgsfNQS4PsOYCHH7eEkz5QPProgjkKnnqXs7lD0X4Ru1F-3K0_xn8Nu3GzcX4PM-Y17ObwA/s1600/DSC_9652.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKXAcULH6vSGAsshgQVHZFl388fcUanN4P87EiigJQ3uUAN_xiFA8sqaMV9TaHv5gvjtUpJgsfNQS4PsOYCHH7eEkz5QPProgjkKnnqXs7lD0X4Ru1F-3K0_xn8Nu3GzcX4PM-Y17ObwA/s640/DSC_9652.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the omnipresent cohort of prawns, delicately sifting the detritus of the last tide for tasty snacks.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9DSatTwrUnaXPf82Dt8MwoL3lvhdzOQaND72a8aVLHegba1cAjaf7rNb1fT-v60rzyXqWHonk4H2mOPyOabojGgKjDB3HD9yxvH0IF5a5adM3N2nx2cO57jtFbII98Nzm_557AtxpZg/s1600/DSC_9656.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9DSatTwrUnaXPf82Dt8MwoL3lvhdzOQaND72a8aVLHegba1cAjaf7rNb1fT-v60rzyXqWHonk4H2mOPyOabojGgKjDB3HD9yxvH0IF5a5adM3N2nx2cO57jtFbII98Nzm_557AtxpZg/s640/DSC_9656.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A large and colourful starfish is always a good start to the rockpooling session, and persuades one's daughter that her father is not quite insane yet.</td></tr>
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The other very mobile feature of the pools is the fish: approach a rocky or sandy pool and almost certainly you will see a flurry of movement as various blennies dart away to the shelter of rocky overhangs. Wait patiently (or for the younger, capture one and temporarily house it in a bucket of seawater) and you can see that there are a couple of species (at least) involved: one rather dark brown with an array of pale-blue spots down the body, the other mainly transparent, but with a freckling of salt-and-pepper dots down it. Unsurprisingly, the darker species tend to be found in the rockier areas and the paler ones on the sandy parts of the pools. There are also occasional shoals of small sprat-like silvery fish engaged in what look like complex courtship rituals over the sandbanks of some of the largest pools. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75ZJwDaLflWylP55ngslkasWJJP-3ZkthWncpWCASp8gRoWXcYinJteGMkt9uMx1efRgdnParE5YmOaiQskiFGhHqUA0Fh5zSHpgzPvw8JjYd7JBpCadsMR-9IComp3v10uQM9B7kWL8/s1600/DSC_9662.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75ZJwDaLflWylP55ngslkasWJJP-3ZkthWncpWCASp8gRoWXcYinJteGMkt9uMx1efRgdnParE5YmOaiQskiFGhHqUA0Fh5zSHpgzPvw8JjYd7JBpCadsMR-9IComp3v10uQM9B7kWL8/s640/DSC_9662.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A blenny of one or another species. This is the darker of the two abundant ones, which seem to prefer the rockier areas.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6ueNI_378HlrNE5x-qOH8aNA_VELHVqwmRGbdO42ugeTU54AzVEotCpm1f1v81C8Bp7kV3A_LhqlQWdkqPbEE5OPzktcAtmcWv5z960ZNzuGSIjcby82T8mB5V3jrebpwwdjgwyv-R4/s1600/DSC_9716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6ueNI_378HlrNE5x-qOH8aNA_VELHVqwmRGbdO42ugeTU54AzVEotCpm1f1v81C8Bp7kV3A_LhqlQWdkqPbEE5OPzktcAtmcWv5z960ZNzuGSIjcby82T8mB5V3jrebpwwdjgwyv-R4/s640/DSC_9716.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now you see me...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSm-MUhCASNYU3OmpSF34zVmr0CAZgw-V9OIMItn2mMbXmbxblgFO6Dlb0oNQBWC0Q6P16N8nikrTga4Pia68tri8C5mGFp07kCfEnr1M2reXXhMr0dqFZyQ6m-nIKKrlQ0urnz2JFw20/s1600/DSC_9817.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSm-MUhCASNYU3OmpSF34zVmr0CAZgw-V9OIMItn2mMbXmbxblgFO6Dlb0oNQBWC0Q6P16N8nikrTga4Pia68tri8C5mGFp07kCfEnr1M2reXXhMr0dqFZyQ6m-nIKKrlQ0urnz2JFw20/s640/DSC_9817.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...now you don't. Almost. The paler species of blenny, showing how well it's adapted for a life on a sandy substrate!</td></tr>
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Surrounding all this activity are the more sedate denizens of the shore: a black rippling carpet of mussels, crusted with barnacles and garnished with multicoloured periwinkles and stripy top shells all sat tight, awaiting the return of the sea, dotted here and there with the tenacious cones of limpets. Here and there lie jelly-like red blobs of Beadlet Anemones, turned in on themselves where they've been abandoned by the water, or tentatively waving a tentacle or two if still submerged - and in the more permanent rocky pools the beautiful, yet somehow faintly threatening-looking, tangles of Snakelocks Anemones gently swirl their tentacles around. We did find a couple of anemones which appeared somewhat different: one a large bright orange species with an electric-blue fringe around the base of the body (it never opened up to show us its tentacles); the other a translucent species with banded tentacles - maybe more detail if I ever get them identified.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyZloXFF1HCMpqcPSMKRYn2_26t3JaC04fItKEmZSrKRF5NxXsF28f_v-FzGNKnvYteTmz6KU1ZK3v683bqBsY4Z7WIUiY8BbMGj0ehX9zCFhVJ_psmzsR_wket0G6sSQWWKqRDfTG5U/s1600/DSC_9726.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyZloXFF1HCMpqcPSMKRYn2_26t3JaC04fItKEmZSrKRF5NxXsF28f_v-FzGNKnvYteTmz6KU1ZK3v683bqBsY4Z7WIUiY8BbMGj0ehX9zCFhVJ_psmzsR_wket0G6sSQWWKqRDfTG5U/s640/DSC_9726.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some rather - interesting - looking sponges (I think). Linnaeus would have loved them!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnlUfIB4mkkq3k2iTp7EMCwKqMg8DkPqbwfWFomex2k3aObWoshj8y5krzWkBRMx8tTeeiQMGZzv2ONkrDitiXmhEbmFIZ6e2-QNZjrLUOTi2CZQ0l-Bo4xV1BzQxy_Xxn4CSw31HrCE/s1600/DSC_9753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnlUfIB4mkkq3k2iTp7EMCwKqMg8DkPqbwfWFomex2k3aObWoshj8y5krzWkBRMx8tTeeiQMGZzv2ONkrDitiXmhEbmFIZ6e2-QNZjrLUOTi2CZQ0l-Bo4xV1BzQxy_Xxn4CSw31HrCE/s640/DSC_9753.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More sponges, looking somewhat like a bunch of yellow pigs trying to pretend they're not there...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2RC1VMfY6HCOGtJpV8Q6tzdftd8DC5mP_04DBMde7OgspQIw7_9txVjI8yzrAoeqVWnxyhRLV_Be82ILm6MntxbCw6beWkqXXF85dHEqOm_IjwwnFhnG1Oly6mo4iV76BVZP_Cd7z-Mc/s1600/DSC_9670.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2RC1VMfY6HCOGtJpV8Q6tzdftd8DC5mP_04DBMde7OgspQIw7_9txVjI8yzrAoeqVWnxyhRLV_Be82ILm6MntxbCw6beWkqXXF85dHEqOm_IjwwnFhnG1Oly6mo4iV76BVZP_Cd7z-Mc/s640/DSC_9670.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anemones, apparently, but not as I know 'em. Very fine but not a species I am familiar with.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-zvv9NwRs8a-46K2Q95zLbOTxcSaDaS3Emy0I5GaVwjl4C_DQ7u8O3c-ZsQxVaamxeIsT3Djn2h8O26exnmXc-rlF4-Q91XO5QpSV_1Ekhlcb60tXfOy9_C-LjsaYCn3cNKpCQ2CDcQ/s1600/DSC_9674.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-zvv9NwRs8a-46K2Q95zLbOTxcSaDaS3Emy0I5GaVwjl4C_DQ7u8O3c-ZsQxVaamxeIsT3Djn2h8O26exnmXc-rlF4-Q91XO5QpSV_1Ekhlcb60tXfOy9_C-LjsaYCn3cNKpCQ2CDcQ/s640/DSC_9674.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Occasional clumps of eggs on the rocks - but whose are they, and are the pinker ones closer to laying, or to hatching?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21JfLKONArNeCAb8usmPoexHHekSHWcZy21SA1dOpGSLL-7cEj-Fa0EBTFnpDoc3hyphenhyphenJadPNzpvlQDvt5MuSLx_Wn_hfTFh2iGmXhJFjdMMwVGZLs-tGYGdRFIojl0PMN53xq_9jBSedY/s1600/DSC_9675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21JfLKONArNeCAb8usmPoexHHekSHWcZy21SA1dOpGSLL-7cEj-Fa0EBTFnpDoc3hyphenhyphenJadPNzpvlQDvt5MuSLx_Wn_hfTFh2iGmXhJFjdMMwVGZLs-tGYGdRFIojl0PMN53xq_9jBSedY/s640/DSC_9675.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my favourites - the lurid Snakelocks Anemone</td></tr>
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<br />
The highlights of the trip, in no particular order, were probably the rockpools and rockpooling, the Choughs, and the pair of hornets which were wrestling on the edge of the road in Morgat, which we watched for a good 10 minutes - both apparently furiously intent on dispatching the other, but neither of them able to get the upper hand...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPFg_h6u4UH-TrIUvTlGyi_PZFDf6cfIHB752hiIc1NB0y8kfmEGijlMxHiG7FT_UXzx9pWA7x0dA_ZgthjyFpd0dPRLjmYXuKgJBUiCbGM3nin49sxFjVgJwpsV1xLGvaU9vzlRUcrLk/s1600/DSC_9737.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPFg_h6u4UH-TrIUvTlGyi_PZFDf6cfIHB752hiIc1NB0y8kfmEGijlMxHiG7FT_UXzx9pWA7x0dA_ZgthjyFpd0dPRLjmYXuKgJBUiCbGM3nin49sxFjVgJwpsV1xLGvaU9vzlRUcrLk/s640/DSC_9737.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hornets. Wrestling.</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-82365830392607492202013-08-28T14:12:00.001+01:002013-08-28T14:12:12.202+01:00Mind that forkful...Summer holidays mean family visits. My mother-in-law's a teacher, so long summer breaks mean she and her husband are able to come over and visit in what should be the nicest part of the year. The last couple of summers an old friend of Na's has also been visiting England to help her children learn English - and they've just been over. Typically, after a lovely hot summer the weather's been playing up a little whilst they visited and a couple of weekends back it was particularly foul: heavy overcast and steady rain: more like October than August... Naturally enough, having five small children in a small house together on a rainy day means that adults are constantly looking for something to occupy them and when Bina wandered into the kitchen ans started pulling pasta out of the cupboard and rattling it around, music came to mind (sort of)!<br />
<br />
Various jars, packets and boxes were brought out which made a variety of sounds when shaken and all was going nicely when my nephew pointed out that there was 'a moth in that jar'. Sure enough, in a jar of red Camargue rice, a small moth was wriggling energetically across the grains. I'd not long put the rice into the jar (the plastic packets that the rice comes in aren't particularly baby-proof, but good jars are) and the previous occupant of the jar had been some very nice banana chutney made by our friends on the Isle of Man - so I knew the moth had to have come in the rice.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUUU2d-mROtO_AluC0DLgXGm4mTtzcyHg5QApai7z1HOX3vpzH_MAEXwA5uHFl4rV7fR03OJFMFTK6mUJqQ_qvrbvIVQeionD0e3cKvNtSx95W9XPAOxVziaN7w5wgzeS6fFoPQFs6Rtw/s1600/Sitotroga-cerealella-DSC_93.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUUU2d-mROtO_AluC0DLgXGm4mTtzcyHg5QApai7z1HOX3vpzH_MAEXwA5uHFl4rV7fR03OJFMFTK6mUJqQ_qvrbvIVQeionD0e3cKvNtSx95W9XPAOxVziaN7w5wgzeS6fFoPQFs6Rtw/s400/Sitotroga-cerealella-DSC_93.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The moth itself, before its trip through the post</td></tr>
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I gently encouraged it out of the jar and into a small box, where Basti and I took a good look at it. Seemed innocuous enough and also depressingly anonymous: fairly plain brown above and below, though with rather pointed wings. So, I enlisted the aid of the experts - why have 'em if you can't?! First of all, I took some photos and sent them on to the county moth recorder, who's been kind enough to identify some of my photos in the past. He wrote back saying that he'd in turn enlisted the aid of a national micro-moth expert who happens to live locally, who thought that the moth might possibly be <i>Sitotroga cerealella</i>, a.k.a. the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitotroga_cerealella" target="_blank">Angoumois Grain Moth</a>: but that this would be a first record for Devon and he couldn't tell for sure from the photos - could I perhaps post the moth on to be scrutinised in more detail?<br />
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I duly did and the species was duly confirmed, though the unfortunate moth had to be dissected to clinch the identification. Going back to the jar a couple of days later, I was interested to see that a few more had hatched out: in fact, no fewer than 63 dead moths were lurking in the jar, along with five apparently healthy larvae (carefully transferred to a small container of rice and posted on to the micro-moth expert, who particularly wanted to see them) and nine very lively weevils: their identity yet to be confirmed, though they might just be Rice Weevils <i>Sitophilus oryzae</i>! All in all a productive packet of rice, though not perhaps what I'd anticipated when I bought the stuff. All goes to show though - if I'd been quicker about cooking it, we'd never have known what was stowing away amongst it. All makes you think - and perhaps a good job we're not squeamish too!<br />
<br />
Though the species is a <a href="http://www.dtcsolutions.net/files/Stored%20Product%20Pests.pdf" target="_blank">grain pest</a> (link takes you to a pdf), it's confined to warmer regions and so perhaps unlikely to become established here in the UK - perhaps fortunately: we have more than enough non-native problem species as it is!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9E9HuJug467P_JZLkoEM0og6aOxNsuiHaEdSnJQwPRFIPv4YmAsYGDrPFO5RpmTZHQBq-uMaY1KdzBJll4BHLr1VVSnGXiYt7vefdBnuKEnDiSKvRzBwC6aH6iQuxsETJAnarcmeEUCE/s1600/Sitotroga+cerealella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9E9HuJug467P_JZLkoEM0og6aOxNsuiHaEdSnJQwPRFIPv4YmAsYGDrPFO5RpmTZHQBq-uMaY1KdzBJll4BHLr1VVSnGXiYt7vefdBnuKEnDiSKvRzBwC6aH6iQuxsETJAnarcmeEUCE/s400/Sitotroga+cerealella.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Male genitalia of <i>Sitotroga cerealella</i> (© R. Heckford, 2013) </td></tr>
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With many grateful thanks to Barry Henwood and Bob Heckford for taking on the identification of this specimen.
jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-79708140955719563882013-07-24T11:11:00.001+01:002013-07-24T11:11:54.948+01:00Sounds of summerIt's been seven years since we had a nice spell of weather like this. It feels almost like living that idyllic early scene in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puckoon" target="_blank">Puckoon</a>, in "...an unexpected burst of hot weather. Saffron coloured in the bleach early sky, the sun blistered down, cracking walls and curling the brims of the old men's winter-damp hats...", though I (hopefully) bear little resemblance to Dan Milligan. And there's no nobbly brown dog in the vicinity. What there are, though, are grasshoppers. Stacks of 'em.<br />
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A good patch of long grass, paper-dry rustling already with the breeze, suddenly comes alive when the sun begins to crank up the heat in mid-morning. The plants suddenly seem to sizzle and whisper with the songs of various species, all clinging cryptically to stems and leaves or huddled against fragments of plants on the ground. Every footstep is accompanied by an explosion of tiny forms, bursting into action and springing wildly in every which direction.<br />
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A short, 'Schritt. ... Schritt. ... Schritt' heralds Field Grasshoppers, <i>Chorthippus brunneus</i>, a dust-brown and faded yellow-green with a blushing abdomen tip and two neat little angles on top of its thorax (the pronotum, if you prefer), rather like the mathematical operators greater than and less than: > <<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtoiweyEs294c3yKIc3lW-A1_fNEqq0uJvGWpkXmPu_Q_cokt7sRz4pODcuLC1A3Vwgw-pxeZibHOR-ZO1Ml2ety1HytajaF5k_V8iyTVVYq_PCppctPgVsCze2wVNrtS90ldRXvxAvE/s1600/Chorthippus_brunneus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtoiweyEs294c3yKIc3lW-A1_fNEqq0uJvGWpkXmPu_Q_cokt7sRz4pODcuLC1A3Vwgw-pxeZibHOR-ZO1Ml2ety1HytajaF5k_V8iyTVVYq_PCppctPgVsCze2wVNrtS90ldRXvxAvE/s640/Chorthippus_brunneus.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female Field Grasshopper. Note that the pale angles on the pronotum don't meet the hind edge of the pronotum either, and that the antennae are not clubbed, unlike some otherwise similar species.</td></tr>
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A slightly drier, softer 'zee-zee-zee-zee-zee' gives away Meadow Grasshoppers, <i>Chorthippus parallelus</i>, which tend to be brighter green, striped dandy-ish beasts with - slightly belying the scientific name - gently incurved marks on the pronotum: )(<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgks5ZQVhNjh_svphzSv_MhZ-nsTEl3Ql7UIzGLDPeY53oc16XGcJfUJHmlrl_-EScBmQPyexKPH8FzDm_IfA9oZejefslYc1xWl2SKXpzHPMNAULXwxOFMeBM9T2Pz-UCJZFNf2UZRu-c/s1600/Chorthippus_parallelus_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgks5ZQVhNjh_svphzSv_MhZ-nsTEl3Ql7UIzGLDPeY53oc16XGcJfUJHmlrl_-EScBmQPyexKPH8FzDm_IfA9oZejefslYc1xWl2SKXpzHPMNAULXwxOFMeBM9T2Pz-UCJZFNf2UZRu-c/s640/Chorthippus_parallelus_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meadow Grasshopper. Posing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO7snxzMzCwn05kCTZUA2TmSGvbqYT0O-SybzEwAzC0tDe0utqKGPSHRpleb42wpBZ45uYV4IBBzeW-e6_hBLRYHUk9qO-TBAlilrIVZII4drqaNcDQGMUhjAthB7ZfNaNM5RBSM2AW5I/s1600/Chorthippus_parallelus_DSC_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO7snxzMzCwn05kCTZUA2TmSGvbqYT0O-SybzEwAzC0tDe0utqKGPSHRpleb42wpBZ45uYV4IBBzeW-e6_hBLRYHUk9qO-TBAlilrIVZII4drqaNcDQGMUhjAthB7ZfNaNM5RBSM2AW5I/s640/Chorthippus_parallelus_DSC_.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meadow Grasshopper. The pale lines on the pronotum are not only gently curved, but stretch from end to end of the pronotum.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZi5Ao1kAnMOu4gQNkRvjLu9q_AIDcNQS_6Ih1b9ak5Efsdj4GhJxjJHlALf1yg-xwLWxZNgV0iAA84AKmFfI46KwK9FjAjty01tdVAo1y52qiZR9gE1KvitkkXFNKtrXsLwDRjWv3bU/s1600/Chorthippus_parallelus_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZi5Ao1kAnMOu4gQNkRvjLu9q_AIDcNQS_6Ih1b9ak5Efsdj4GhJxjJHlALf1yg-xwLWxZNgV0iAA84AKmFfI46KwK9FjAjty01tdVAo1y52qiZR9gE1KvitkkXFNKtrXsLwDRjWv3bU/s640/Chorthippus_parallelus_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bright green Meadow Grasshopper. Note also the short wings: generally this species has rather stumpy wings, but when populations grow too dense, a whole load of longer-winged individuals emerge and head off for pastures new.</td></tr>
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The crickets are less conspicuous and also quieter, with a rather ventriloqual quality. A sibilant 'srrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr' from rank grass suggests that a Conehead (<i>Conocephalus</i>) of one or other species is lurking, but without seeing it I'm not sure of the identification. The likelihood is that it's Short-winged (<i>C. dorsalis</i>), but you never know...! Finally, a surreptitious movement gives away a Dark Bush-cricket Pholidoptera griseoaptera, looking a little like a dark spider scuttling across the ground. Their staccato 'Tschr. ... Tschr. ...Tschr.' will soon be ringing from the depths of almost any patch of slightly scrubby vegetation .<br />
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Soon it'll be the season for the outrageously loud Great Green Bush-crickets <i>Tettigonius viridis</i>, which can be clearly heard from a passing car, even at a fairly high speed, their penetrating 'TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-TCHR-' assaulting your ears as you pass a patch of brambles.jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-43063605315690827712013-07-14T21:04:00.000+01:002013-07-14T21:04:19.063+01:00Hot in the shade, hotter on the moorsI joined a couple of friends on Dartmoor yesterday to help them mop up the last few of their nest records for the summer. As they've found some 200 nests over the course of the season on about five square kilometres of moorland you'd be forgiven for thinking there was little left to find there, but that's never quite the case.<br />
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We started out by watching a Tree Pipit which was behaving as if there might be a nest nearby, but eventually decided that it was just guarding fledged young from a nest that had already been recorded, so we moved on up the slope to the area my friends wanted to concentrate on.<br />
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We weren't hugely successful in the grand scheme of things: finding only a new Whinchat nest with a full clutch of five eggs and a second brood of Stonechats with seven pulli (this pair had lost their first clutch), but we also checked on a number of nests that had been found previously: a brood of Skylarks had apparently fledged successfully, a female Linnet sitting on a now-complete clutch and another pair of Whichats which had - for the third time this season - had their eggs predated (probably by a fox, as the nest had been pulled out and left on the ground nearby).<br />
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Despite it being a rather quiet day in terms of nests, the site was alive with wildlife, a sign of how useful this recent spell of decent weather has been. The air resounded with a constant 'tchirrp' of Meadow Pipits warning their young to stay out of sight, mingled with the melodious bubbling song of Skylarks above us. A male Reed Bunting rattled out his song from a patch of low Western Gorse whilst Linnets chirruped to and fro over him. Everywhere were Blackbirds shuttling between the open moorland and the adjacent scrub where their second broods sat waiting for more and more food.<br />
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It wasn't just birds, though they were perhaps the most obvious part of the day. Butterflies were out early with the rapidly warming air: Small Heaths and Meadow Browns bouncing erratically up and down over tufts of grass, whirring up into spiralling chases when another of their species approached too close, though whether fighting or attempting to impress a potential mate is impossible for me to tell. Field Grasshoppers sizzled staccato bursts from the tussocks and a Goldenring or two drifted casually through the cloud of flies and midges, snacking at will. As we walked through the grass, moths shot away from us (I could only pick out Emerald and Brown Silver-lines as we went, but there were many others too), Common Lizards rustled off, a tell-tale sliver of brown wriggling between the stems, and a brief glint of rich orange drifting through the air resolved into a fine fresh Dark Green Fritillary... Let's see how long this weather lasts!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQm8ylg0hzqqxmFZrpvPeePsne2lVx4c39BYny3CnSPd9bVii5DCAIrATrhiNGyxlKdednyFkuQ6683mY3NxXVRAo130u5tJHnVPO7ZULHp-H8qxuYJ-G-VdcHEtwraTzbRkNQ2oD8YE/s1600/Argynnis-aglaja-Dark-Green-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQm8ylg0hzqqxmFZrpvPeePsne2lVx4c39BYny3CnSPd9bVii5DCAIrATrhiNGyxlKdednyFkuQ6683mY3NxXVRAo130u5tJHnVPO7ZULHp-H8qxuYJ-G-VdcHEtwraTzbRkNQ2oD8YE/s640/Argynnis-aglaja-Dark-Green-.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dark Green Fritillary (<i>Argynnis aglaja</i>) - a flake of orange gliding across the open moors, or down on the coastal heaths and dunes, often proves to be this species.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-YxJpo1k23VhCEoJ9omuLW6suUD0rL8AXEBxNj_yfmMqJr_E20WMWmDHU-ufCHXqZxuykhDGk2YdOk5I6r9vs6AGMtSKmizGcfpXrPz-NfR4Wj_6YkaL9Lv7itjr_MlOAjVlnJJ40EHQ/s1600/cordulegaster-boltonii-30-A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-YxJpo1k23VhCEoJ9omuLW6suUD0rL8AXEBxNj_yfmMqJr_E20WMWmDHU-ufCHXqZxuykhDGk2YdOk5I6r9vs6AGMtSKmizGcfpXrPz-NfR4Wj_6YkaL9Lv7itjr_MlOAjVlnJJ40EHQ/s640/cordulegaster-boltonii-30-A.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goldenring (<i>Cordulegaster boltonii</i>) - this one resting up and digesting between flies.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGF5IHqtehRf-jhJfl-tRw3_sxROvSn09GAxZmr_3zStZ3b3g6kzEYTH4oAEiJMP5cRE0ABZdNaAnrdtuvRa0fxzyUBqeI7ou7b7oh7ZwJxpHDzEoImrug86c8TI-FMSTNo5OS_4jL4xA/s1600/Maniola-jurtina-Meadow-Brow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGF5IHqtehRf-jhJfl-tRw3_sxROvSn09GAxZmr_3zStZ3b3g6kzEYTH4oAEiJMP5cRE0ABZdNaAnrdtuvRa0fxzyUBqeI7ou7b7oh7ZwJxpHDzEoImrug86c8TI-FMSTNo5OS_4jL4xA/s640/Maniola-jurtina-Meadow-Brow.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meadow Brown (<i>Maniola jurtina</i>) taking a drink to refuel between those energetic spiralling aeriel encounters.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqZTrZtukqfnCD5eVspRGZjwHnCfPvYNDIy2cu9ARNZGy_U8TRtxio53c1EK6RMrLyJhtad07DE018IibXF-fyec8lrC0gRZhaXkal6iwDaXMF9jKsR0_0Z0QSo0Zm-qFLPEmidyp_vM/s1600/Zootoca-vivipara-Viviparous.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqZTrZtukqfnCD5eVspRGZjwHnCfPvYNDIy2cu9ARNZGy_U8TRtxio53c1EK6RMrLyJhtad07DE018IibXF-fyec8lrC0gRZhaXkal6iwDaXMF9jKsR0_0Z0QSo0Zm-qFLPEmidyp_vM/s640/Zootoca-vivipara-Viviparous.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Lizard (<i>Zootoca vivipara</i>), sunning itself</td></tr>
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-63705395023322501042013-06-30T10:30:00.000+01:002013-06-30T10:30:08.924+01:00Flamin' JuneA rather random collection of sightings this month. I've been out to do some bird surveys (for work, even: makes a pleasant change!) so some blisteringly early starts on occasion. Amazing how much quicker the drive to North Devon is at 4 a.m. though... Unsurprisingly, nothing out of the ordinary on any of the sites I've looked at - the pick of the bunch being a handful of Spotted Flycatchers and a single Pied Flycatcher which was gone by the second visit to the site. Still, last visit was heaving with fledglings, which was very nice: the trees packed out on occasion by groups of Blue, Great and Coal Tits wheezing and squeaking through the leaves in hot pursuit of their frazzled parents, Robins and Wrens shrilling insistently from the undergrowth throughout. At one point I obviously passed too close to a family of Wrens for the adult's liking: a short 'tchrr' from a bramble was followed by a starburst of tiny, dumpy, almost tailless brown bodies rocketing into the surrounding plants.<br />
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Despite the number of babies around, it's clearly not been a brilliant breeding season. Our boxes at the Willow Tit site on the fringe of the moor were not well used this year: four broods of Blue Tits and two of Marsh Tits in the 27 boxes. Of these, one brood of four Blue Tits died before fledging and one of the Marsh Tit boxes produced just one youngster from a clutch of three eggs. Perhaps a young pair breeding for the first time? On a brighter note though, the (a) pair of Treecreepers used the same gap behind a Marsh Tit nest tat was used last year, and seem to have fledged a full brood of five - last year the chicks all drowned in a torrential downpour (otherwise known as June 2012).<br />
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This June's been slightly better, though we had more sunshine in May, and nearly as much in April... The general invertebrate interest in the garden has continued to improve, with the exception of butterflies which are having a very poor year here. We've started to note an increased variety of micro-moths - nothing particularly rare, I don't think, but a bit more of the 'small is beautiful' line again. The pond has obviously settled in nicely, with Large Red Damselflies emerging from the nymphs we saw last year, the newts now breeding successfully (a tiny eft the other day was proof of that) and a bit of interest from the odd hoverfly, backswimmers and a smart male Azure Damselfly. I've turned the old kitchen sink into a tiny pond to go in the back garden as well, so we'll see what takes an interest there - it's currently only about 1/3 full though, as I'm leaving it to the rain to fill it. Maybe not the best move!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkD_dqCn9OeKrroz75rRX4i_T1C0JlOfKgLR81zxNdPD7bqLj1_NkIbY-FBK-qiYu_Dl8YkEawpAYnKQ-_R46AsDd3EbUwXRv5JlTQlm5rLVtSSWnod84MzkYUo2xGGp32zauquBO9_c/s1000/Anthophila-fabriciana-DSC_8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkD_dqCn9OeKrroz75rRX4i_T1C0JlOfKgLR81zxNdPD7bqLj1_NkIbY-FBK-qiYu_Dl8YkEawpAYnKQ-_R46AsDd3EbUwXRv5JlTQlm5rLVtSSWnod84MzkYUo2xGGp32zauquBO9_c/s400/Anthophila-fabriciana-DSC_8.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Anthophila fabriciana</i> - the Nettle-tap - which is abundant around the nettles in the neighbouring scrub. We've only seen it a couple of times in the garden, but then I'm not out there looking often enough.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0YbQpCR8U-6lY3LCL0HKRq7p63VL1bKq_eX9R6FZX-slG-GynSygaSDeQk_nqRM5slDjyA22T6r993zeb5YiWAIqL628NmLhmHYGzZEbBC5Q5Yp-bAhvcq-4sLnF8BQGsmd78RZwdTI/s1000/Caloptila-cuculipenella-pos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0YbQpCR8U-6lY3LCL0HKRq7p63VL1bKq_eX9R6FZX-slG-GynSygaSDeQk_nqRM5slDjyA22T6r993zeb5YiWAIqL628NmLhmHYGzZEbBC5Q5Yp-bAhvcq-4sLnF8BQGsmd78RZwdTI/s400/Caloptila-cuculipenella-pos.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think this is <i>Caloptilia cuculipenella</i>. It seems to fit the description in the book and is (was) hanging around near the ash trees on the edge of the garden. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikJC0iXCYmFZsHKXGOhw_rZjr3WfkzFLM30gx99-kcHZhCBayR8OjJzqIcqZmqj2ggvI_S1wmzXLjolmc1iWSD7qN3m1uIpGl1IIMjHFYeC6jmyVknC0abpdOlKk4NuYbKJ5s1x2m2Xo8/s1000/Coenagrion-puella-DSC_8658.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikJC0iXCYmFZsHKXGOhw_rZjr3WfkzFLM30gx99-kcHZhCBayR8OjJzqIcqZmqj2ggvI_S1wmzXLjolmc1iWSD7qN3m1uIpGl1IIMjHFYeC6jmyVknC0abpdOlKk4NuYbKJ5s1x2m2Xo8/s400/Coenagrion-puella-DSC_8658.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easy: nice male Azure Damselfly, <i>Coenagrion puella.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg52_El074AvKOOZekWWEh_5N1U9mfKJa8vKnVR2FtymR0t-2siJduFvQ7xTlQrXGknsDbLb5WHfY4BDQEfD3fFkc-ZJ5_tjuE4X2MPVxOWF1errjKktnNhb_8IJcJK_sqwfM-6hBuIX6c/s1000/Helophilus-pendulus-DSC_855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg52_El074AvKOOZekWWEh_5N1U9mfKJa8vKnVR2FtymR0t-2siJduFvQ7xTlQrXGknsDbLb5WHfY4BDQEfD3fFkc-ZJ5_tjuE4X2MPVxOWF1errjKktnNhb_8IJcJK_sqwfM-6hBuIX6c/s400/Helophilus-pendulus-DSC_855.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And a bright and breezy hoverfly: <i>Helophilus pendulus</i>, which has taken a liking to the front pond.</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-10389375581930004632013-05-23T20:09:00.003+01:002013-07-12T20:48:45.575+01:00Small is beautifulHaving a small person in the house now means that some things have changed radically. Our time outdoors is constrained by sleep patterns (to some degree) and time spent with the camera is now precious. That said, the recent spell of (whisper it) fine weather here has given me an opportunity to get out into the garden and appreciate what's lurking in the vegetation there.<br />
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Some background... when we moved in, the back garden was effectively a wasteland only recently reclaimed from a seething mass of bramble, with a small patch of dog-fouled perennial rye grass at the bottom. We began by digging out bramble roots and pulling up ash seedlings which sprout like weeds in this area, but aren't really suited to a tiny garden, and mulled over the possibilities inherent in the grass patch. I hesitate to call it a lawn... Both being of a somewhat wildlife-friendly bent, we decided that chucking a bit of species-rich hay around might be quite fun, so we asked a friend of ours for a couple of bags of hay next time he cut his patch - and duly got about 15 sacks of clippings (thanks David!!). We raked over the rye-grass until there were some sizable bare patches amongst it, strewed the clippings, and jumped up and down on them for a while, just to make sure.<br />
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The next spring, we began to see the fruits of our labours - well, the flowers. Germander Speedwell, Ribwort Plantain, Meadow Buttercup, Sweet Vernal-grass all came up with some vigour, and a handful of Yellow-rattle plants emerged too, to our pleasure. In the autumn we repeated the grass-strewing over the bare patches, and were rewarded with Centaury, Common Knapweed and Bird's-foot Trefoil joining the party.<br />
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This year I've noticed that we seem to have an abundance of invertebrates, when compared with my memories of previous years. OK, last year was nothing to shout about for most wildlife (except bryophytes and molluscs, perhaps) but this spring hasn't exactly been brilliant weather either. However, looking over the back garden now during a sunny spell and the air is full of a myriad shining wings - mainly small hoverflies and other flies. This intrigued me, so I thought I'd take the camera out and have a look... and what's pictured below might not yet be identified - and indeed may not be identifiable - but it gives a flavour of what's going on in the garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNNZ4apnqv4g6zqkgI3mh87_VJkbgK1pnDZPxmYhFW0FdNtJJ7v3tR5j3GHbyPQACc3hZTkZfEZvhwmuyT61_kOK3qdk2vd95lGx_EPmVMKB6vAD2hyX_guqe6ewvYxtubXUwzh-Ab10/s1600/DSC_8111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNNZ4apnqv4g6zqkgI3mh87_VJkbgK1pnDZPxmYhFW0FdNtJJ7v3tR5j3GHbyPQACc3hZTkZfEZvhwmuyT61_kOK3qdk2vd95lGx_EPmVMKB6vAD2hyX_guqe6ewvYxtubXUwzh-Ab10/s640/DSC_8111.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of a number of slender hoverflies which cruises the garden - this one a rather black/bottle-green animal.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlpdBNonWXAB4HMIPy9IXbcFyA-i_8IYX0pNgw4lrWxzfiFc-aWiF3YImKvJhVFPzOiHEbxaSkBgfEHvJGaJaOoAEm0Hau8duvpqmUfOJ3DIT2KVyjH1cYBpgii2ykSPGDrBwO-IsUyo/s1600/DSC_8126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlpdBNonWXAB4HMIPy9IXbcFyA-i_8IYX0pNgw4lrWxzfiFc-aWiF3YImKvJhVFPzOiHEbxaSkBgfEHvJGaJaOoAEm0Hau8duvpqmUfOJ3DIT2KVyjH1cYBpgii2ykSPGDrBwO-IsUyo/s640/DSC_8126.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A small, yet perfectly-formed longhorn beetle of some description, working its way over the raspberries (the raspberry canes have proved to be a fertile hunting ground for photos this year - nearly as good as the hazel-honeysuckle tangle nearby). <b>Edit</b>: thanks to Tim Worfolk, below, a name: <i>Pogonocherus hispidus</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvADfu-wv5uxS0OGNWpie0CST-5XiS7FL3nbZBJJdjpptfX0Hh_yItwsEOHffJhjGgD2uGfkDkyb7Vw9atl6LiiBPV1G6c0QnxZ9twICRs5eMjXoZzUiAgryQ4ZUTraxwweV6MFGM_Q8/s1600/DSC_8135.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvADfu-wv5uxS0OGNWpie0CST-5XiS7FL3nbZBJJdjpptfX0Hh_yItwsEOHffJhjGgD2uGfkDkyb7Vw9atl6LiiBPV1G6c0QnxZ9twICRs5eMjXoZzUiAgryQ4ZUTraxwweV6MFGM_Q8/s640/DSC_8135.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the flesh-flies, as far as I can tell. <b>Edit</b>: TW suggests perhaps <i>Graphomyia </i>sp (Muscid)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibA9cA3Wde4qfxWqSa1PFv_6UVmTduyIG8G2XpE1XEdYWbxGOi4_XtHXt2M5hFIrMLIdsAeNfAUPD0JTU_HBpN_9hvIgv1mBJNctNXPv_FcKi6qZhTBX6v2GpFpbwdsRetIg6Fem6HEps/s1600/DSC_8140.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibA9cA3Wde4qfxWqSa1PFv_6UVmTduyIG8G2XpE1XEdYWbxGOi4_XtHXt2M5hFIrMLIdsAeNfAUPD0JTU_HBpN_9hvIgv1mBJNctNXPv_FcKi6qZhTBX6v2GpFpbwdsRetIg6Fem6HEps/s640/DSC_8140.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaf-mining flies (<i>Liriomyza </i>sp.) doing their stuff on the comfrey. Perhaps not identifiable to species, but they bear a passing resemblance to <i>L. pusilla</i> - and as the name suggests, they're <i>small</i>! About 2mm long, snout to tail-tip.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUx01cjdnlx3kXcBe6q5re97ZwW0RUmJoiklsMhhARNJLzGcuRPO4K4hQU8Kv_do_PLkt5PfFc0P5hebCzFStwuX72LsRLI84ZGAHra-E1hpZUvHxD3v9x8MfClWcFEbMCdrV-LvPjDg/s1600/DSC_8158.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUx01cjdnlx3kXcBe6q5re97ZwW0RUmJoiklsMhhARNJLzGcuRPO4K4hQU8Kv_do_PLkt5PfFc0P5hebCzFStwuX72LsRLI84ZGAHra-E1hpZUvHxD3v9x8MfClWcFEbMCdrV-LvPjDg/s640/DSC_8158.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A more conventional hoverfly, brilliant in black and yellow. <b>Edit</b>: <i>Eupiodes c.f. luniger</i> is suggested</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMWa0hAxRjkgfU_AhmuPKn0daf4yFtKMKlnVPUKQ9Q83m0PdSmDKOb8ThpNdPrn23pi0MKEkQ2PlM65lU4hdqVLJThVllyx1LxFn_IkPdscsRYMdyEl2Ugs3IJPTwuuD8NZ-eaGfkCX8/s1600/DSC_8164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMWa0hAxRjkgfU_AhmuPKn0daf4yFtKMKlnVPUKQ9Q83m0PdSmDKOb8ThpNdPrn23pi0MKEkQ2PlM65lU4hdqVLJThVllyx1LxFn_IkPdscsRYMdyEl2Ugs3IJPTwuuD8NZ-eaGfkCX8/s640/DSC_8164.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A tiny teardrop-shaped spider which feasts on aphids. Go to it...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpObSS5HDy3g1_vEZ0Sv5tNYluM2tVNBIrgmYNpccOv3IqL8tolA3qYTEvdD_vwk9NxXYU6Bou-yrbJW6YVXedC1qzcBShP785g9MEM_9F9U_77Pt5u3Wn_g2NJR-iydG3e7N_L_F_3tA/s1600/DSC_8177.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpObSS5HDy3g1_vEZ0Sv5tNYluM2tVNBIrgmYNpccOv3IqL8tolA3qYTEvdD_vwk9NxXYU6Bou-yrbJW6YVXedC1qzcBShP785g9MEM_9F9U_77Pt5u3Wn_g2NJR-iydG3e7N_L_F_3tA/s640/DSC_8177.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yet another fly - there is a startling diversity in the garden... Edit: this one appears to be perhaps <i>Beris c.f. chalybata, </i>a Stratiomyid fly.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicmWnhE0tz_beLuMnVefG1bIlsMlwk9_2RfLPjhf-aPKvNSb70K0NEKQ7mZFP50LYYyrYw8AKACnYq1smp-txqnyBuYfeoFCL_W1LkJynJ0-TU3UbK7iyMP3yZ8qCGL8qa8IjR07eJg5w/s1600/DSC_8180.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicmWnhE0tz_beLuMnVefG1bIlsMlwk9_2RfLPjhf-aPKvNSb70K0NEKQ7mZFP50LYYyrYw8AKACnYq1smp-txqnyBuYfeoFCL_W1LkJynJ0-TU3UbK7iyMP3yZ8qCGL8qa8IjR07eJg5w/s640/DSC_8180.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A solitary bee, one of the <i>Andrena </i>species. This one seems to have a particular liking for our dandelions.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pdD_MwvPaMGosVkDYLlBX0L9VI8KRjL8k8LACXnW_85fotSzfRAK1P2fv3EasE_N0giER810yrYAK3chJ-aCfKiXLQiYQmzIEycIAe7zfnkfZUOIKuDrPDNbf3u2qWeT_8SDVvf0nF0/s1600/DSC_8191.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pdD_MwvPaMGosVkDYLlBX0L9VI8KRjL8k8LACXnW_85fotSzfRAK1P2fv3EasE_N0giER810yrYAK3chJ-aCfKiXLQiYQmzIEycIAe7zfnkfZUOIKuDrPDNbf3u2qWeT_8SDVvf0nF0/s640/DSC_8191.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apropos of which, dandelion clocks too are worth a closer look. Their geometry is pleasing when the clocks are whole...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJGXNRjgVIoi54Lk4TyNuOX5uESI4YheunU0T-jkmgv4SCZgIQk1ew4wUXapSw-LPR59N3FLmA1vjSYm4H0q2YU-BcWCak95QLK1PltiXgdWFdyv6qipZL3F3yfqo5WWBFq6590qxs0Yg/s1600/DSC_8178.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJGXNRjgVIoi54Lk4TyNuOX5uESI4YheunU0T-jkmgv4SCZgIQk1ew4wUXapSw-LPR59N3FLmA1vjSYm4H0q2YU-BcWCak95QLK1PltiXgdWFdyv6qipZL3F3yfqo5WWBFq6590qxs0Yg/s640/DSC_8178.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and there is also beauty to be found in the detail of the seeds when they are exposed.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLi0bG_fGEvavm3LducO8NsbDArh50c4jkPtU1UQ5cAXggCe-ZXCavfZSv13MORorPBplrAvciTxZRKoQkO5Cu6x9MPx4OMsv8B5b07GTywzW7KRd-6nTidn1QCGBxmseh191dO1_psgk/s1600/DSC_8186.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLi0bG_fGEvavm3LducO8NsbDArh50c4jkPtU1UQ5cAXggCe-ZXCavfZSv13MORorPBplrAvciTxZRKoQkO5Cu6x9MPx4OMsv8B5b07GTywzW7KRd-6nTidn1QCGBxmseh191dO1_psgk/s640/DSC_8186.jpg" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even plain old Ribwort Plantain takes on a new dimension at this scale: I hadn't realised that the anthers seem to be swollen bags of pollen. These release their pollen on the wind, but if you see them on a still day when the rain is falling gently, you can see little puffs of pollen clouding up, for all the world like miniature cannon-smoke drifting across the grass...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdI3yOaM4nUoXMdgIfOdCte9XVKANt7-ZLRa70S0phRP9JCJu5tOXv0FBaPyLZQe1btli9vmwtmzSM47QB3rXh6CClq7O_sj8vAVe2CeWZ8dQw_NcRwQLEnJg6_5CIEeFIXbKr_DKYFw/s1600/DSC_8193.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdI3yOaM4nUoXMdgIfOdCte9XVKANt7-ZLRa70S0phRP9JCJu5tOXv0FBaPyLZQe1btli9vmwtmzSM47QB3rXh6CClq7O_sj8vAVe2CeWZ8dQw_NcRwQLEnJg6_5CIEeFIXbKr_DKYFw/s640/DSC_8193.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another small fly which enjoys hanging out around the honeysuckle growing through the hazel. Notable particularly for its antennae... <b>Edit</b>: Dolichopodid fly: <i>Syntormon</i> sp.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgut845bS6ML41Oj2uqfDLW2R31OquLhwybEmzsDHGl0i6LZEEVeGlnu4mvgpHEkuzg3wDpR7GTfWF91KRHACON6HYdacLiknmIAkBEz7UkD-EdVzrllny_0dTE1Jj4MJLaRvmp_xWRpps/s1600/DSC_8205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgut845bS6ML41Oj2uqfDLW2R31OquLhwybEmzsDHGl0i6LZEEVeGlnu4mvgpHEkuzg3wDpR7GTfWF91KRHACON6HYdacLiknmIAkBEz7UkD-EdVzrllny_0dTE1Jj4MJLaRvmp_xWRpps/s640/DSC_8205.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A scorpion-fly, I think. <b>Edit</b>: an Empid of some species - anyone feel like raising the bar?!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzv2_3duJa-cfeckkAUVAs24iVAZm5nd7qEch0_b7Rn6sxtRBdkRmkHuwJ4KimToaLs1T20_fsTRldVDiGoeNHjFa_uXZuhbviaUuBK5kss4gmwjI2gV77cWmU1_ETXtSNdO-lQWnmz7E/s1600/DSC_8212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzv2_3duJa-cfeckkAUVAs24iVAZm5nd7qEch0_b7Rn6sxtRBdkRmkHuwJ4KimToaLs1T20_fsTRldVDiGoeNHjFa_uXZuhbviaUuBK5kss4gmwjI2gV77cWmU1_ETXtSNdO-lQWnmz7E/s640/DSC_8212.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Micropterix calthella</i> - a tiny micro-moth, about 4-5mm long, which has decided our raspberry canes make a great place to lure in some of the opposite sex. They spend a lot of time wandering up and down their few cms of stalk, waving their antennae around, looking left and right and occasionally scrapping over the right to use a particularly choice spot.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3_vGLNyzRj8R3_3bTLCGIU8Orq6gVWsIqWpVziZjwD9v-2WMqTl7u_wYnc4uiFXbEa6uFGe0MFs-Jz6o2pARF5eenugkm9YY_AqTF0d7TGdzcE1w9ag_8cdFc4pvHOFqjhOC1XX7ucSs/s1600/DSC_8217.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3_vGLNyzRj8R3_3bTLCGIU8Orq6gVWsIqWpVziZjwD9v-2WMqTl7u_wYnc4uiFXbEa6uFGe0MFs-Jz6o2pARF5eenugkm9YY_AqTF0d7TGdzcE1w9ag_8cdFc4pvHOFqjhOC1XX7ucSs/s640/DSC_8217.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another hoverfly, this one with powder-blue markings on the dorsal side of the abdomen, and a rich ochre stripe along the sides. <b>Edit</b>: <i>Platycheirus </i>sp. (female); thanks to 'Ophrys' on i-spot for that one.</td></tr>
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<b>Final edit: </b>Many thanks indeed to Tim Worfolk (<a href="http://2birdtheory.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">two bird theory</a> blog - visit: it's great!) and 'Ophrys' on <a href="http://www.ispot.org.uk/" target="_blank">I-Spot</a> for their help with identifications so far...jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-44626967436932487772013-05-08T21:19:00.000+01:002013-05-08T21:19:49.580+01:00Tasty. Tystie.Sunshine and light winds and a contented baby mean this is the ideal time to introduce my daughter to the delights of Peel, on the west coast of the Isle of Man. We haul up and over the island's central hills, pausing briefly for a couple of pairs of distant Hen Harriers, then drop steeply down to the narrow western coastal plain, swinging south past Kirk Michael, through green fields dotted with sheep and the occasional patch of grubby snow left-over from the March snows, then wind down through the higgledy-piggledy multifarious houses of Peel to the harbour. Lunch is a bacon and egg roll with coffee (or a kipper roll with tea for the ladies), eyed up by a troop of ever-hopeful House Sparrows and a couple of cocksure swaggering Jackdaws, all of whom descend with delight upon the crumbs and fragments thrown around by S.<br />
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After this, there's only one thing to be done: head around the harbour walls and find our way to Davison's ice-cream parlour, who pride themselves on selling the best Manx ice-cream there is. I've not been able to contradict them yet... We wander back over to the beach where S discovers the pleasure of being able to sit on the sand and play without being wrapped up to the shape of a football, we devour our ice-creams (blackcurrant & liquorice with ginger for me: a surprisingly good combination) and we are watched with unblinking fascination by some of the locals, just in case we drop anything... A couple of Sandwich Terns on the edge of the tide parade up and down, heads tilted back and tails cocked, trying to impress a female who looks as if she'd actually rather just digest that last fish, thank you so very much.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIe9zaG-dfJAFBCfNEi40306uLd0k7AmQBkGtGw5_nrZ2yewyO1_NffDFMI-AFQLm_b2-ORUJN4dNb3FqxfkYBwo8g_MWqN3LcUaVghkedlwqYBTsHCHSRgknkD8wlyGoxUn9cR55Kuk/s1600/DSC_7816.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIe9zaG-dfJAFBCfNEi40306uLd0k7AmQBkGtGw5_nrZ2yewyO1_NffDFMI-AFQLm_b2-ORUJN4dNb3FqxfkYBwo8g_MWqN3LcUaVghkedlwqYBTsHCHSRgknkD8wlyGoxUn9cR55Kuk/s400/DSC_7816.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Herring Gull. This young bird was the first in - bold enough to settle a few metres away from us, but not enough to come and get the fragment of cone I threw it...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4MKtQ7HPxaqNMm2fUzq9wwhyphenhyphenZsmg8TRJLtR3AQtM7SWAwLw3q-HHO3kSZ2D5XbgWYADahUy-IwWwcypmYWgYB3S35yrUa3yfOntwLjqUKpviHw6KPFGhc0iNOvK5MtSR2OkQ1Wzi9ye8/s1600/DSC_7817.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4MKtQ7HPxaqNMm2fUzq9wwhyphenhyphenZsmg8TRJLtR3AQtM7SWAwLw3q-HHO3kSZ2D5XbgWYADahUy-IwWwcypmYWgYB3S35yrUa3yfOntwLjqUKpviHw6KPFGhc0iNOvK5MtSR2OkQ1Wzi9ye8/s400/DSC_7817.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and as soon as there was any sign of food, in came an adult. Immediate display of dominance and the younger bird sensibly retreated before any damage was done.</td></tr>
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Finally we walk back around the harbour and upriver a little to pay our respects to the inhabitants of the harbour walls: old (blocked) drainage holes have proved the ideal size for the Tysties which live round the coast, giving what must be a rat-proof and collapse-proof residence. Sure enough, two birds were present with heads jutting from the holes and occasionally reaching out and twittering in a most un-auk-like fashion. The spring's late this year and they aren't yet nesting, so our interest proves a little too much for their nerve and they flutter out onto the water below, scarlet legs akimbo and white wing-patches gleaming against their otherwise velvet-black plumage, where they float downriver on the current and pretend they were never interested in those holes anyway.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgME9UhBemMXOzSBMxl4HW8vjnFM6llKrPtoCDbo9VvdCxRym8_w2Tjthld9OkrDqOaFPv6hzFxowHqbRPNVAZHyeKn1jQop17jSEhe_rYYOYeQv1eDIWOhXA8PO2a5Bo_LannRj3z5eSw/s1600/DSC_7838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgME9UhBemMXOzSBMxl4HW8vjnFM6llKrPtoCDbo9VvdCxRym8_w2Tjthld9OkrDqOaFPv6hzFxowHqbRPNVAZHyeKn1jQop17jSEhe_rYYOYeQv1eDIWOhXA8PO2a5Bo_LannRj3z5eSw/s400/DSC_7838.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another black bird I'm admiring. Starting to think there's a pattern developing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYAfAC7TR9Zrqdk-sWqggx0ssB2Iulsp245oYUHZeWbgYA_zFI_-HBT77WxeuK3PTxJ9d5hRSOqjwmyvhZo9EcGTn5d010EPGlw0X5qBmsL-Cr7z2C8fXFe6_07XjkYOIhhyfm4gJQH9Y/s1600/DSC_7854.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYAfAC7TR9Zrqdk-sWqggx0ssB2Iulsp245oYUHZeWbgYA_zFI_-HBT77WxeuK3PTxJ9d5hRSOqjwmyvhZo9EcGTn5d010EPGlw0X5qBmsL-Cr7z2C8fXFe6_07XjkYOIhhyfm4gJQH9Y/s400/DSC_7854.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But those red legs lend a touch of the exotic.</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0Peel, Isle of Man54.225102137493479 -4.69802856445312554.150846137493481 -4.8593900644531249 54.299358137493478 -4.5366670644531251tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-24660430467920714872013-05-07T21:10:00.000+01:002013-05-07T21:10:43.283+01:00UnentailedA blowsy, blustery day with the sort of brisk northwest wind that billows round you and leaps out at you from gaps in the gorse to leave you breathlessly exhilarated. We walked along Maughold Head to have a look for Puffins, but no sign of any today - just Fulmars whirling along the cliff edge in effortless loops, Tysties trilling on the water below and a big bull Grey Seal porpoising through the chop towards Ramsey.<br />
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We followed the coast path to the Cormorant colony, where paired and single birds sat darkly ungainly on the bright green turf. They look rather uninterestingly black from a distance in the cloud-shadow, though white patches at thigh and chin catch the eye, but creep closer to them and as soon as the sun strikes through you are faced with a surprisingly attractive bird.
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycVtuPMVSZpa2_pDM2Ui08IOpQ559pFZ-OeZPYAS4LHSAwwUZzP2JG-XEmz_srBnViWT71H55fRTmylDKEeFF3tNgNU83SvVmtf8m5HlLveVMnGsOFTzMe0sgK51jsMUUHPW7WHRnP5M/s1600/DSC_7646.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycVtuPMVSZpa2_pDM2Ui08IOpQ559pFZ-OeZPYAS4LHSAwwUZzP2JG-XEmz_srBnViWT71H55fRTmylDKEeFF3tNgNU83SvVmtf8m5HlLveVMnGsOFTzMe0sgK51jsMUUHPW7WHRnP5M/s400/DSC_7646.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Despite their antics, with the sun in, Cormorants are - well, frankly, a little dull-looking...</td></tr>
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The black feathers prove glossy with hints of purple and green as the light catches them from different angles, white feathers grizzle the black on the back of their heads and their wings are a coppery bronze, each feather edged neatly with black. Closer still you can appreciate the ice-cold jade eyes, which regard you with wariness, a mild concern at your approach.
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsGWOtWV7u889XIjemVFpeNbmMRlTZBdWYIGVnnE2XNVIkV5F3eos5oA_OsWTH9Ozef1IWL987O70qhjhoEXX64kv6PJw8BVcHYniK_S-HgVFLW6dbyxRRrLuAvKMZkRFw6qGO19wSpC4/s1600/DSC_7659.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsGWOtWV7u889XIjemVFpeNbmMRlTZBdWYIGVnnE2XNVIkV5F3eos5oA_OsWTH9Ozef1IWL987O70qhjhoEXX64kv6PJw8BVcHYniK_S-HgVFLW6dbyxRRrLuAvKMZkRFw6qGO19wSpC4/s400/DSC_7659.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...but with the sun on them it's a different story.</td></tr>
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Lie down in the bracken debris and watch, and their stretched necks relax back into a curve, the tufty crest on their nape settles down a little and they return to the important business of preening, pair-bonding and rearranging any nest material which has been brought in. No eggs yet this year - late, but not surprising in view of the cold late spring - but birds were flying in now and then, trailing vegetation in their bills, so the breeding season's getting well under way at last.<br />
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We strolled back to the car with the wind at our backs, pushing past the clumps of coconut-scented gorse, with Choughs bouncing through the air above us, filling the sky with wheezy 'ciao's. It's nice to be back on the Isle of Man!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4TuhS33Ry9vEtmfYeAGc9N-tDYX_SsQQavF5R4ze0Jph0OKmIWXTo0r7zFIlVwS6J-iewZ-p-aC4DiqTWDHqaM-UmRbnTpP7M_xtXkXfCfLKzgM7DQYXRYLimLs6N1zP8IjN9rWLLXo/s1600/DSC_7641.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4TuhS33Ry9vEtmfYeAGc9N-tDYX_SsQQavF5R4ze0Jph0OKmIWXTo0r7zFIlVwS6J-iewZ-p-aC4DiqTWDHqaM-UmRbnTpP7M_xtXkXfCfLKzgM7DQYXRYLimLs6N1zP8IjN9rWLLXo/s400/DSC_7641.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moss rolls down ivy stems and across the drystone walls on Maughold Head.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpz43wrGinpVIIsoa5v2lwpFyUCQencViV6y6iXPxw5VuZUhoepFfPGE82JLZCfHdTe7aWXC7BrlrQ7h5AlAse6acRVirQ4pLzCxucwBbG0Zs4Uh9T-Yhd8S7C4V4oFqSdQZu4Vn74D4/s1600/DSC_7673.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpz43wrGinpVIIsoa5v2lwpFyUCQencViV6y6iXPxw5VuZUhoepFfPGE82JLZCfHdTe7aWXC7BrlrQ7h5AlAse6acRVirQ4pLzCxucwBbG0Zs4Uh9T-Yhd8S7C4V4oFqSdQZu4Vn74D4/s400/DSC_7673.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Barrule from Maughold Head</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0IOGXq6-Ow775gKVvWw7-I-GiL939rkyS3-2PjaIgLcnljSBt8nypmGDsnvRupvvHXWM1v6_B45-bqnZanj5wQviJJrsnaPJ-lBdleaiSjNwFwiBeNQ0mDWLXwVzH61u12VJO2ECiF8M/s1600/DSC_7675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0IOGXq6-Ow775gKVvWw7-I-GiL939rkyS3-2PjaIgLcnljSBt8nypmGDsnvRupvvHXWM1v6_B45-bqnZanj5wQviJJrsnaPJ-lBdleaiSjNwFwiBeNQ0mDWLXwVzH61u12VJO2ECiF8M/s400/DSC_7675.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking south along the east coast of the Isle of Man.</td></tr>
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jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0Europe54.295690662032165 -4.31762695312554.147253662032163 -4.640350453125 54.444127662032166 -3.994903453125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-85851540705445059352013-04-14T20:22:00.002+01:002013-04-14T20:22:51.431+01:00East Anglia againHere we are in EA once again, doing the visiting-and-sightseeing thing. Not the most auspicious start to the trip, as we'd got no more than 10 minutes down the road when S was copiously sick in the back seat: a cascade of porridge and raspberries descending across the car-seat, her (of course) fresh clean clothes and everything in between. Poor girl looked pretty shell-shocked after that, unsurprisingly, but soon fell asleep for the next stage of the journey, whilst we negotiated the rain, spray and wind past Bristol and along the M4. By the time we'd passed Swindon the weather was sufficiently dry and bright for the odd Red Kite to be out and about, easing their way through the gusts and the swirling mix of Rooks which rose to mob them with an elegant aplomb.<br />
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Our first port of call was Saffron Waldon, where we dropped in on friends who have recently had a baby and are coming to terms with the sleepless phase. Few opportunities for any serious out-and-abouting, added to which the weather was foul - blasting easterly wind and temperature around zero, even before wind-chill is taken into account. In fact, all we really noted was that the Rooks were undaunted by the weather and have begun sitting on their nests. And that Saffron Waldon is actually quite a pretty town...<br />
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We moved on to Norwich, where we descended on another couple of friends. No improvement in the weather, but nothing ventured & so on, so we headed out to Holkham to see what we could see on Sunday. The wind was so cold and so strong that S kept her head down the entire time we were out, sleep or wake, snuggled as far inside my coats as possible. Puddles and damp hollows in the pastures were rimed with ice created by the wind-chill. Birds were scattered sparsely around the site - a pair of Wigeon here and there on the pastures, a scatter of Lapwings disconsolate amongst the tussocks. In the occasional shelter of the pines, the sun was warm and spring-like, but move back into the wind and all such thoughts were put aside. We rounded the eastern end of the pines near Wells and turned west along the beach. The sand moved past us at a rate of knots, making a dun knee-high mist which obscured the ankles and shins of walkers and indeed almost totally obscured some of their dogs. The few birds on the beach were hunkered down tight against the surface, all to the seaward side of the blasting sand - a handful of Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls, a few Sanderling, a couple of Dunlin, Knot, Bar-tailed Godwit and a solitary Redshank. By the time we returned to the car we were breathless with the cold, ears ringing to the sound of pounding surf, howling wind and whispering sand. The only one who seemed entirely at ease was S, who'd woken not long before...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJ_EvtgSphG6hyphenhyphen3YTj-o6lI6Dv3rJE4expIw6a5G_E5BcA6ZaweS1y09Xwgd-p7t0R2r7RHIaHF880lDCu4eWOfeThc8EQToGM5QlNpP54KZVje5FdfGPQJdOSoVHPwgZZ6NqVrvcWwY/s1600/P1020923.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJ_EvtgSphG6hyphenhyphen3YTj-o6lI6Dv3rJE4expIw6a5G_E5BcA6ZaweS1y09Xwgd-p7t0R2r7RHIaHF880lDCu4eWOfeThc8EQToGM5QlNpP54KZVje5FdfGPQJdOSoVHPwgZZ6NqVrvcWwY/s400/P1020923.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holkham beach. We just don't have that extent of sand in Devon.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQaA4JREdJGlOfKsANqfe_OXCGEu0BabVQR7iNgNQ5YhIrJ1cDBIMpGtDY5di7q5fscGnBBzlnk3DggtU5HmZelAZx4_SGnYwBWJGmyKZdFA2kbySOwy_DcDs5JpEO0-rkL6Z6evF99Y/s1600/P1020926.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQaA4JREdJGlOfKsANqfe_OXCGEu0BabVQR7iNgNQ5YhIrJ1cDBIMpGtDY5di7q5fscGnBBzlnk3DggtU5HmZelAZx4_SGnYwBWJGmyKZdFA2kbySOwy_DcDs5JpEO0-rkL6Z6evF99Y/s400/P1020926.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was windy. Very windy. Jake (the dog) must have been grateful to have a tail to keep the wind out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUdsaLc3q0VE5Q4Zm2gJhb_uKLKRSWGf2WCAJ061MJRaMRZQCsY1W7r62vifqcV3aMrXGpIlJmYUlc9lAKLTCCSKYApGsFAzsZVYHkTW7Xf3AOHVmZuckW47kqauFvUIRIhDOqyoy8fw/s1600/P1020929.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUdsaLc3q0VE5Q4Zm2gJhb_uKLKRSWGf2WCAJ061MJRaMRZQCsY1W7r62vifqcV3aMrXGpIlJmYUlc9lAKLTCCSKYApGsFAzsZVYHkTW7Xf3AOHVmZuckW47kqauFvUIRIhDOqyoy8fw/s400/P1020929.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was windy. Very windy... All day.</td></tr>
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The afternoon's visit to Titchwell, just a little further west along the coast, was - if anything - even more windy. So much so that we took a quick walk along to the sea and back without stopping for much at all - a hunting Barn Owl in the lee of the woods, a pair of Pintail dabbling languidly in the shelter of a saltmarsh island, a female Red-crested Pochard (where did she come from, I wonder?)... and a vast flock of gulls (mainly Common) sheltering on the pools away from the sea. We soon headed back to the car and hit the road for Norwich.<br />
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On, then, early in the morning, to the wild and woolly hinterlands of Suffolk for a few days with Na's aunt and uncle. The weather finally began to perk up, S began to perk up as well, and Na came down with her tummy upset: timing! We managed to relax a little though, spending some time stacking wood and digging over the veg beds for the spring, unearthing vast quantities of bindweed root and taking the opportunity to wander round Minsmere and Walberswick. The wind abated a smidgen, but only a smidgen, and we were rewarded with a fine Short-eared Owl hunting the coastal marshes at Walberswick and another Barn Owl on the heaths, and a handful of Smew, an adult Little Gull and a trio of Whooper Swans at Minsmere. Hardly the stuff of epic, but nice enough for a southwest birding family.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh66OZhm8mqFCQNNq7DnOc7FKuMnW9vMPsqHFnY58cYNZJKOh5g0ORIz7DUv8I0_rsBAt52QOKalInQOOayO_RhyePMAEevs0dkGgonS689Ffh7AhDEzzNJfGTbZYRT_Xc01ElkUCSlRtk/s1600/DSC_7537.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh66OZhm8mqFCQNNq7DnOc7FKuMnW9vMPsqHFnY58cYNZJKOh5g0ORIz7DUv8I0_rsBAt52QOKalInQOOayO_RhyePMAEevs0dkGgonS689Ffh7AhDEzzNJfGTbZYRT_Xc01ElkUCSlRtk/s400/DSC_7537.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Lapwing eyes us suspiciously from the rabbit-nibbled grassland at Minsmere. Or maybe it's watching the rabbit in the background.</td></tr>
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And now here we are with some warmer weather - Swallows, Sand Martins and House Martins are trickling in through the local ponds and it seems as if spring might finally have sprung upon us. Here's to it!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPOpDShTFeKqHeOsBYEepP3F11UyWNjvanAhdrIePOEP0lRrIlYsBkT8nbcOeqP2jyh4xXOOyWdL2KJsBHq8jjx009hewF8mpg7U76adf9jCvKSxoLQ69EljkbjSi2CdPgh2NsiZWP0o/s1600/DSC_7554.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPOpDShTFeKqHeOsBYEepP3F11UyWNjvanAhdrIePOEP0lRrIlYsBkT8nbcOeqP2jyh4xXOOyWdL2KJsBHq8jjx009hewF8mpg7U76adf9jCvKSxoLQ69EljkbjSi2CdPgh2NsiZWP0o/s400/DSC_7554.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hazel catkins - and a couple of flowers to go with them.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Male Chaffinch. Not in song in East Anglia when we were there, but now they're hitting their stride here.</td></tr>
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<br /><br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-19768670124578037582013-03-01T16:32:00.000+00:002013-03-01T16:32:21.710+00:00Grey skiesSomewhat like the plants in our garden, words burst into tentative life on the blog - apologies for the protracted silence! Just a short selection of things going on and observations to start with...<br />
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It seems as if we've had a permanent veil over the sky since October. We haven't, because our solar panels have been registering a regular spike in output every week or so (!), but it does feel like an eternally grey winter. Nevertheless, there are some signs that spring's on the way. The plants in both woods and garden have pushed out some perhaps optimistic shoots: Elder, Pignut and Perennial Dog's-mercury in the woods, Snowdrop, crocus, daffodils and Rhubarb in the garden. The latter in particular seems to have been stalled by the past week's dip in temperature, so the ruby-red stalks and crinkly green leaves are still only half-way extended. We'll have a while to wait until we can have rhubarb crumble again!<br />
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The birds are hinting - and more than hinting - at a change in season too. Blackbirds have been tuning up for a few days now, with Robins, Dunnocks and both Song and Mistle Thrush going at it hammer and tongs in the morning. Cycling to Yarner recently added Chaffinch, Nuthatch and Green Woodpecker to the years' new songsters as well, so perhaps there will be blue skies again sometime soon. A pair of Blue Tits have been busily investigating the nestboxes we've provided on the extension (meant for sparrows, but we don't mind who uses them really), so hopefully we'll have a successful nest this year.<br />
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We were privileged last weekend to have a small flock of Waxwings at the end of the garden. A fabulous bird to have on the garden list when you live this far southwest. They spent a lot of their time sat in the oaks just across from our kitchen, making sallies into someone's back garden where they'd found a supply of red berries of some description; they would drop down, spend a few minutes stocking up and then sail back to the top of an oak, often with berry in bill, to sit and digest for a few minutes. They also spent some time picking at the buds at the top of the trees, though it was impossible to see what was of interest - any fragments were too small to be identified even through the telescope, so whether insects (most likely) or sap, or leafbud, will remain a mystery.<br />
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I'm also slightly intrigued that they seem to show so little interest in mistletoe when they're here in Britain. In Austria, where there is admittedly a far higher density of mistletoe than around here, I've seen flocks of Waxwings up to several hundred strong busily engaged in stripping mistletoe (causing apoplectic fury in the Mistle Thrushes), yet they seem wedded to red berries here - or apples.<br />
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Roll on summertime...!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGw-JYeleJ-ID_MzJWqizrQb4XYfMBg4x93qn7EF5uW-8kL93K1mUvtYYQe-ToTtXy4AzeVHLvIzFGn307O5l6NMyMLRnpPr6IKPqP3mNruAkI7IpbiDzPGev9ZPuLY6kCLbQwJSitxTA/s1600/Bombycilla-garrulus-Bohemia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGw-JYeleJ-ID_MzJWqizrQb4XYfMBg4x93qn7EF5uW-8kL93K1mUvtYYQe-ToTtXy4AzeVHLvIzFGn307O5l6NMyMLRnpPr6IKPqP3mNruAkI7IpbiDzPGev9ZPuLY6kCLbQwJSitxTA/s400/Bombycilla-garrulus-Bohemia.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bohemian Waxwings. Slightly fuzzy due to being photographed through the 'scope at 1/30th of a second and on high ISO. Told you it was dark & grey...</td></tr>
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<br />jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-4089887673469553942012-10-25T09:33:00.000+01:002012-10-25T09:33:11.308+01:00OctoberlingsI'm taking time out to be a full-time father (as if there was any other way to be a father anyway!) - my wife has returned to work, so we've taken advantage of the opportunity for me to take the last three months of her maternity leave - in effect unpaid leave to look after our daughter. It's fun! Rhythms are pretty baby-tuned now, so there are brief bursts of activity whilst she sleeps, punctuated by bursts of feeding and playing - but best of all we've been able to take the opportunity to go out and walk together most days.<br />
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Today was a kind of soft-focus day. We visited Yarner Woods NNR for a midday walk. It's mild muggy weather at the moment (a Saharan air-stream appears to be to blame) and the cloud base was around 180m, so we spent the entire walk in or just below the cloud, but at this time of year there's something very right about it: the leaves are turning, the spider-webs and grasses are pearled with water and everything seems rather hushed. As we walked round the woods, the only loud noises were a handful of Jays rasping their disgust at our intrusion; otherwise there was little to be heard apart from the random drip of water falling from saturated leaves and branches above us, and the sibilant calls of Goldcrests searching for insects.<br />
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As we walked down one track, there was a flurry of excitement:
Blackbirds and Robins hopping off the track, then a burr of wings in a
dozen different directions as a small flock of Redwings emerged from
beneath the Bilberries where they had been fossicking in the fallen oak
leaves. Semi-whispered 'tseet' calls between them - and then they were
gone, deep into the tangle of branches and leaves in the valley below
us. A Brambling flew over, only its wheezy call betraying its presence,
and then we were down at the hides, where a constant stream of Coal Tits
arrived and departed, rooting for overlooked seeds below the feeders,
occasioning great interest from Sabina, who seemed fascinated by the
abrupt appearance and equally rapid disappearance of each bird from our
limited field of vision. Nothing remarkable, nothing surprising, but comfortingly appropriate for the time of year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpjz32F10qvYo82ZHMaQ92vHGX6iAzrhil-xL7-9PjsQKPIp-pvkc_TV8WiSeCMWjBvqjIk_20Iz2qFIrRrl_Hc6z9VIyz-RT_h8CQS_SjmvOv2tNdRRtJKzcAhAySAgfrJ1jScW-YPM/s1600/regulus-regulus-P1030460.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpjz32F10qvYo82ZHMaQ92vHGX6iAzrhil-xL7-9PjsQKPIp-pvkc_TV8WiSeCMWjBvqjIk_20Iz2qFIrRrl_Hc6z9VIyz-RT_h8CQS_SjmvOv2tNdRRtJKzcAhAySAgfrJ1jScW-YPM/s400/regulus-regulus-P1030460.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417633899451071418.post-69121155581017468942012-09-24T19:58:00.002+01:002012-09-24T19:58:50.647+01:00Dune GentiansBack at the beginning of the month I went out to measure the water tables at Braunton Burrows - something I usually do monthly to help maintain a long-running measure of the site's hydrological status. And out on one of the dune slacks, there was a plant in flower which I've been hoping to see there for quite some time: Dune Gentian - <i>Gentianella uliginosa</i>. OK, it's not exactly the most conspicuous of plants: these were only about 10cm tall at best, and it's not the most thrillingly obvious of plants: in fact it looks rather similar to its close cousin the Autumn Gentian (or Felwort) <i>Gentinella amarella</i>, but this is the only site in England where they grow. There are a couple of dune systems in Wales where the species is more abundant, and this may be the source of this population - much like the late lamented population of Fen Orchid <i>Liparis loeselli</i> - but there seems to be nowhere else in England (and perhaps the UK) where you can see this plant.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_3oEWveaKSnW3sITj2asce_huakQZMmC7gzITYwqUtFe4Vl_T_UnaJz6rBPmalt857zgUwWu-TltxsNuDJlUt4RykwFDPf7btPEfGV1Enhu5ufhwdwfz_Tw3GZL97Ayvn1iqT7ghmEEw/s1600/DSC_6920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_3oEWveaKSnW3sITj2asce_huakQZMmC7gzITYwqUtFe4Vl_T_UnaJz6rBPmalt857zgUwWu-TltxsNuDJlUt4RykwFDPf7btPEfGV1Enhu5ufhwdwfz_Tw3GZL97Ayvn1iqT7ghmEEw/s400/DSC_6920.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Autumn Gentian - a relatively large and robust species with numerous flowers and unmerous pairs of leaves above the basal rosette. The calyx is also clearly pressed tight up to the corolla, with just the tips of the teeth diverging.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYvEbc4xEhGbaXrrWpxZNqB1gJP2vOl2snS6CvguEJbHUGlOY_7S8eXbt50hOJ3a1A0tw35T1Qd5FInI95T_zGw-gXRXBoZuP0Iou7-SHvJgQJAutRvNPMYfN0-IvU5GTZt38ibREm8o4/s1600/DSC_6915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYvEbc4xEhGbaXrrWpxZNqB1gJP2vOl2snS6CvguEJbHUGlOY_7S8eXbt50hOJ3a1A0tw35T1Qd5FInI95T_zGw-gXRXBoZuP0Iou7-SHvJgQJAutRvNPMYfN0-IvU5GTZt38ibREm8o4/s400/DSC_6915.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the one. Smaller than <i>amarella</i>, with fewer flowers, fewer pairs of leaves and with calyx teeth unequal and coming away from the corolla. </td></tr>
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Many grateful thanks to Dr Tim Rich at the Museum of Wales for confirming my identification too.jeremy barkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12369978536377748586noreply@blogger.com0