11th May 2017.


Thursday 11th May.

Cuckoo calling today and on 7th May.

Butterflies- Peacock and Brimstone.

First damselflies of the year. Banded Agrion (backwater) and Blue-Tailed Damselfly (pond in wood).

Disappearance of apples from the feeding raft on the pond raised false hopes that Water Voles had arrived. Several pounds of apples later a Moorhen was revealed as the culprit and the feeding was so good that it brought friend along!




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
 Many of the posts which would previously have been put on blogspot are now going on to 'Marsh People' WhatsApp. However, these posts are necessarily brief therefore it is proposed to continue posting longer items on this media. One of the features of the winter 2024 has been extensive flooding on numerous occasions, in many instances hindering work during the winter months.
Read more

Pollarding and building a 'veteran' pollard.

Image
Pollarding Willows is a good way to manage them because it prevents branches breaking off and brings about the formation of a thick trunk which is often rotten internally and is excellent for biodiversity. It maintains the vitality of the tree. The problem can be what to do with the branches and wood that has been cut off the trunk? In the past, it has been usual to have a large fire and burn everything up but now it is recognised that this is not only very destructive to any invertebrates living on or in the wood, but it is also damaging to the soils of the Marsh not to speak of the smoke and carbon dioxide liberated into the atmosphere. A solution therefore that is being followed is to build square eco-piles by piling up the larger wood around the outside and in filling the centre with all the branch wood. The theory is that this will provide a much better habitat for wildlife than a straightforward pile all stack of wood. Another idea that is being explored is to create ...
Read more

Yellow Rattle and Ragged Robin. May 22nd 2020.

Image
It is a great year for both of these plants on the Marsh. The Yellow Rattle is found concentrated in areas where there are grasses and sedges which it can semi-parasitise. It is nowhere near as common in the Blunt Flowered Rush community because this does not lay itself open to becoming parasitised by this plant as it has an altogether different root and stem structure. Ragged Robin is scattered over the wetter areas and is more prolific this year than it has been for a long time.
Read more