Busy ......... break ...........

It's been a busy week, it's been a crappy mothing year, and I need to do stuff around the house. Time for a bit of a blogging sabbatical ........ not sure how long (maybe a few days, a couple of weeks, or just hours if something exicting happens) but I will be back, though maybe less often ........

Before I go, here's a few shots from an excellent day spent around Ketton Quarry last Sunday. I turned up early to check for Hornet Moths (no sign at all), and shortly after John Hague turned up. After a bit of mooching about and chatting to another naturalist on site, we tracked down the Yellow Bird's-nest colony (a quite frankly underwhelming plant) and I showed John some parts of the reserve that he'd never been to including the 'Bat Cave', the glade in the middle of the wood and the quarry boundary road area. Lot's of good stuff seen, including a few new plants for me (Yellow Bird's-nest, Southern Marsh Orchid, Perforate St John's Wort, Hairy St John's Wort and Common Restharrow), a new cranefly (Epiphragma ocellare), some smart pink-phase Meadow Grasshoppers, Centrosus cornutus, and loads of Common Lizards. Also a few other bits still to check when I get some time.

Yellow Bird's-nest

Knapweed Broomrape

Perforate St John'sWort

Broad-bodied Chaser

Pink-phase Meadow Grasshopper nymphs

 

Common Lizards

Centrotus cornutus

Crown Vetch

Ephiphragma ocellare