May 2009 Archives

Insects   first this time....

Cockchafers : the Maybug. Blundering through my open garden door on a warm evening.
I get one or two most years. They are a spectacular and rather endearing insect , and quite harmless.
The fat C-shaped grubs feed on plant roots,and the adults mostly on pollen .



Moths are now becoming obvious , and trying to get into the house on these warm evenings.
So far only the small ones which are a pain to identify.

Now, a butterfly warning . My spies tell me to expect an extraordinary influx of Painted Lady butterflies in the the next couple of days: apparently there's been an explosion of them in Spain and Morocco, and they are already in the south and west.


pic Jim Asher

I look forward to that. The larvae feed on thistles,and we are not short of those ,
so they should like it here.
They are always an Irruptive species , but apparently this is the biggest explosion for a century.



Plants : we have reached a sort of brief pause of new openings, now it's summer , so not a lot
to report compared with previous weeks.

Horsetails : the horsetail is incredibly ancient , one of the first plants to colonise the land :
They go back about 350 million years. The plant contains silica , and was formerly gathered and used as an abrasive.
There are several species in the area, but I can't identify them more precisely until they get a bit bigger.
Seems to be a good year for them , for they are everywhere.



Germander Speedwell: another tiny treasure. Rapidly disappearing under the long grass

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There were some Shining Cranesbill along the edge of the Sports field, but someone has murdered them all with a strimmer.




Birds : no rarities or new arrivals : but I thought it worth mentioning one of our
local species which is doing very well for a change , the Goldfinch.

Surely one of the most charming of our common birds (  Indeed , a flock is known as a
 " Charm " of Goldfinches)
Very beautiful , and with a wonderful tinny little song : they were once favourites as caged singing birds.
Though they are now nesting , they are still to be seen in small flocks.
The Setaside policy over recent years has given them masses of seedheads to feed on, and they have become very common here.
Time will tell whether that continues now that Setaside has been abandoned .




 DJS photography

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Still no Kingfishers.

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Mammals : talking of Painted Ladies ,  the mating preliminaries of Homo Sapiens were on display at the  Old Bridge this afternoon.
A large flock of sub-adults, quite colourful.
The Males demonstrating their Fitness by removing most of their plumage and hurling themselves into the river , whilst the females either emitted loud cries, or evinced total boredom by playing with their long-distance gossip boxes ( this species has recently undergone a genetic change , and all younger specimens come with this mutation permanently attached ).

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The May , which I talked about last time , is coming out very
patchily : last year we had it all out at once.
This small isolated tree looks burdened with blossom :


The scent is also becoming glorious , though last week when we had an easterly wind , the olfactory contribution from Naburn Sewage Works combined with the blossom to produce a distict whiff of Sanilav.

The Grasses and Reeds on the Ings , although they look much as they did before from a distance, are now about three feet high in places, and still growing like mad , especially with the rain this week.

Some more plants now flowering :
Buttercups : Everywhere.



Silverweed : a very low growing but highly attractive plant , with its glaucous foliage.
The flowers are like a slightly more complex Buttercup.



Sorrel : unobtrusive member of the Dock Family.
Edible, but not to be confused with the salad variety , which I grow and eat a lot of
at this time of year.Struggling somewhat amongst the nettles :



Dames' Violet : a rather dramatic relative of the Milkmayds. The name should be
" Damas Violet ",  referring to Damascus.
Just two clumps growing along the riverside, though there's lots more opposite Naburn .
This plant is a metre or more tall , and smells wonderful:



The Narrow-Leaved Plantain: such a common plant , everywhere,
that you could be forgiven for ignoring it.



Wild Strawberry :



The Other Cowparsley-like plant now starting to flower is the Hogweed:
the common variety , not the giant version. We had a specimen of that last year,
which blew down in a gale.
No sign of it this year.



And the Red Campion :




These will be flowering increasingly over the next month.

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Amongst all the burgeoning growth , we have a nuisance that shouldn't be there:
The Himalalyan Balsam : this invasive plant has taken over a lot of the wetter parts of our area
over the last 20 years, being an escaped ornamental which is now getting out of hand , in a similar way to the rhododendron in other habitats , and the much more publicised
Japanese Knotweed ( that's all over the Bishop's Palace, by the way ) .
This is what it looks like now :


It's incredibly fast growing , and dominates anything slower by overtopping and shading it out.
It spreads by having an explosive seed-pod , which sprays seed all around when ripe in September, hence the dense clumps of it .The pink flowers ,which appear in about July, are attractive, if a bit vulgar smelling , and much loved by bees.

So if you fancy a little excercise when out and about , pull out as many as you can reach
and you will be doing all the other plants a favour. It comes out very easily , but watch yourself on the nettles around it... gloves recommended .


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Nothing much of note amongst the more mobile wildlife , though the Reed Buntings
are setting up territories and singing amongst the taller plants on the Ings.
These nice little birds also come into the garden sometimes, especially in the winter.
We have a small population here , perhaps a dozen pairs.
Pic Martin Parr.



And of course the Swifts have been with us for ten days now .
The sound of them screaming around ones head is one of the delights of Summer.
 All the hirundines are now about, though in noticeably smaller numbers than in some years.

The Swifts particularly , which only ever alight to nest , are almost like pelagic fish ,
constantly " swimming " through the air in pursuit of food.
Try lying on your back on a warm evening and watching them and the Martens , as if you were looking into the sea , and perhaps you will see what I mean.

One absence : there are no Kingfishers. We had a pair breeding in the bank by the old bridge
last year : apart from one brief sighting a month or more ago, I've not seen one this year,
and others tell me the same story.

One presence , if only fleeting : a Cuckoo , a week ago , seen and heard by Pendragon.
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One final plant that I wish we had is the Yellow Flag Iris : this was taken at Appleton Roebuck, where there is a splendid display in the old moated site on the east of the village.



I believe we used to have them ; and I confess I've been planting a few seeds in likely
places . Only time will tell whether I've been wasting my time .





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Plants now flowering :~

Cowslips : in the Old Churchyard. Not a common plant here , because it prefers calcareous soil.
Presumably the limestone rubble in the churchyard does the trick.



Herb Robert : traditionally associated with the Faery realm, as are all plants
bearing the name " Robert " or " Robin ". A pretty plant with a very pungent smell.
The greatest pest in my garden.



Herb Bennett: the Blessed Herb , supposedly able to ward off the Devil.
Growing appropriately enough in one or two little patches along the Palace fence.

 

Crosswort:
One or two patches along the riverside track. Smells of honey.




Hawthorn : the full glory of the May in flower is nearly with us : another week or so ,
but many of the Hawthorn flowers now opening. The scent is wonderful, well worth a walk to enjoy when the wind drops.



The tradition of " Maying " , wherby one went out before dawn to collect the flowering branches and bring them into the house ( and incorporating a great deal of indecent horseplay)was always done on May 1st... but of course it hasn't fitted with the actual date of flowering since the Calendar changes in the 18th century. " Give us back our thirteen days " cried the Mob.
Well , the 13th would be as good a date as any , though since Climate Change is upon us,
perhaps the tenth would be nearer the mark.

Common Vetch: a member of the Pea family ,climbing all over the verges on the cycle track.




Bistort : out on the Ings , growing in clumps.Leaves formerly used in Lenten puddings ,
known as Easter Ledge.... our ancestors would eat anything green at that time of year , since they were vitamin starved....or just plain starved .
 


Also out on the Ings , the Common Sedge is now flowering. The wetland plants like Sedges and Reeds are increasing hugely out there , since it was left to flourish on its own.



And of course the Cow Parsley. Everwhere. Edible leaves, but not recommended.





BIRDS  :

Bullfinch : not numerous here , but we have a few pairs. The male is spectacular.
Feed on fruit and buds , though I saw one this week on the ground trying to eat
Dandelion seeds.


Pic Sue Tranter

Kestrel: I'm really not sure whether any actually nest in the parish, but a female can generally
be seen hunting over the Ings. She always seems to return across the river , so maybe that's where she's nesting.
One of our two top avian predators , the other being the Sparrowhawk , of which more on another occasion.
I saw both today.



Pic Guardian

Insects:

Mayflies are now emerging from the river : difficult to see them when it's windy, but on
still sunny days they rise in some numbers , for their brief mating flight.
The adult's life is so brief ; but of course the larval form has spent a whole year
feeding underwater.
The one I've had a close look at is very like this ; but there are 51 species in Britain,
and identifying them more precisely is beyond me at present.


Animals:

I saw a Roebuck on the Ings Thursday evening : watched him for ten minutes, then
he was off , but where he went is a little baffling, since there was nowhere to go without
crossing either the road , the river , or over the cycletrack embankment into the farm.
Pendragon recalls one some years ago trying to swim the river , and being unable to find
a way out up the bank.
It drowned.

The Toad spawn reported some weeks ago has done well :
Toadpoles now in large numbers in the Ings drain. Let's hope they all grow up.
Apparently they are protected to some extent from predators by possessing the same chemicals in their skin as the adults, which makes them more or less inedible.
Sometime ago I put some frogspawn in one section of the drain , and today Harblow showed me out that that area was also full of tadpoles.
So both our amphibians appear to be doing OK so far.

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More butterflies emerging.
Not many of these , but if you keep your eyes open
they are around when the sun shines.
 
The Orange Tip : the males are quite distinctive :



The Green-Veined White :


Pictures Peter Eeles

Both these are emerging as their food plants, amongst them Cuckoo Flower
and Garlic Mustard , are also at their best.

Pendragon tells me of a large swarm of bees which have escaped her toils,and taken up residence in a large Ash tree not far from the allotments.
That should be good news for all the flowers in that area.


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Bluebells are now coming out in abundance, not just in the woodland sites
but along many headgerows. Most of these are of course the Spanish Bluebell,
which have replaced the Native species in most of Britain.




Other plants appearing :

A small Whitebeam in flower along the riveside track:



The Hedge Mustard.
Growing with its feet wet near the drain across the Ings.



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Birds this week :
Martens back in greater numbers ; but I haven't seen a Swift yet. Won't be long.

Another summer visitor , the Whitethroat, one of our commonest warblers.
They hide in bushes: quite hard to see , but they swear at everything , which gives them away.



And the same day , flying over ,
The Curlew.


Pics RSPB
More evident further south in the Ings and fields around Acaster Malbis: I saw two today standing on the track on the way to Stub Wood.
Despite feeding largely on estuaries , they nest inland, mostly on higher ground.
Not doing all that well , in decline along with so many other birds that nest in farmland.

And just to finish a nice peaceful trip, a Yellow Wagtail. Not a common bird around here.

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