To a Butterfly

31 Wednesday Mar 2021

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British butterflies, butterfly, butterflying, Large white butterfly, Small tortoiseshell, Small white butterfly

‘Stay near me – do not take thy flight!
A little longer stay in sight!’

These are the opening lines of William Wordsworth’s 1802 poem ‘To a Butterfly’, lines I can easily identify with, thoughts I also utter often – though not in Wordsworth’s exact words, of course.

Fortunately, the butterflies occasionally, and unknowingly, heed my pleas and stay long enough for me to take photographs, like these recent new sightings for 2021, the beautiful Large and Small whites, and Small tortoiseshell.

It’s bee-fly time again

30 Tuesday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in spring

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Bee-fly, British bee-flies, Dark-edged bee-fly

My, what long legs you have! My, what a long proboscis you have! But this is no big bad wolf – it’s a bee-fly, a Dark-edged bee-fly (Bombylius major) to be precise.

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There are several species of bee-fly in Britain but this is the only one I’ve seen – we don’t appear to get any others locally. Still, it’s fabulous to see these furry creatures flitting from flower to flower again. Yet another sign of spring!

The Soldierflies and Allies Recording Scheme has been running Bee-fly Watch for the last six years and wants your help to track the emergence and the spread of bee-flies in Britain. You can find out more on their website.

First Willow warbler

29 Monday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in birds, spring

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bird migration, birding, birdwatching, British birds, spring migration, Willow warbler

Bird migration never ceases to amaze me. To think that this little tiny bird has flown all the way from Africa, a journey of 5000 miles, maybe more, and that it may already have made the journey there and back several times. It was a genuine treat to see and listen to this global traveller, my first Willow warbler of the year, at Cosmeston on Friday.

Bud burst

28 Sunday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in leaves, spring, trees

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bud burst, buds, Hawthorn, Hawthorn leaves, leaf burst, the greening of spring, tree buds

Have you been watching the greening? The buds on the trees growing ever fatter? Swelling to the point where they burst with spring goodness?

This year I’ve been paying more attention to this incredible process. These are some images of Hawthorn from the last couple of weeks.

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Toad

27 Saturday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in amphibian

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Common toad, toad

Back in January I blogged about the gruesome sight that awaited me on exiting my flat one day: a frozen Toad (A gruesome sight, January 2021). Fortunately, my most recent sighting of a Toad was much more pleasant, for me and the Toad. I started to roll over a rotting log, thinking I might find some beetles, when I spotted a pair of warty legs poking out. I managed to get a few photos before the little creature realised I had removed its covering and began to move. I quickly, and carefully, put the log back – the beetles would have to wait for another day, though it occurs to me that the Toad might well have eaten them.

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Alfred’s cakes

26 Friday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in fungi, insects

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British fungi, British insects, Daldinia concentrica, King Alfred's Cakes, springtail, woodlouse

King Alfred’s been back in the kitchen but a Great British Bake Off winner he is not. His cakes, otherwise known as Daldinia concentrica, even when you can peek inside their blackened exteriors, never look palatable. With these I found in the woods this week though, Alfred has certainly produced some creative shapes.

And, even if inedible, they are sturdy enough to provide a home to tiny creatures, in this case a woodlouse and a springtail.

Gadwall up close

25 Thursday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in birds

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birding, birdwatching, British birds, Cardiff Bay birding, Cardiff Bay Wetland Reserve, Gadwall

As well as the Wheatear I wrote about yesterday, Monday’s walk around Cardiff Bay also turned up another treat, this time at the wetlands reserve.

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Gadwall can be quite shy birds, and I’ve certainly never seen one as close as this beautiful female, who was mixing quite happily with the Mallards by the boardwalk. Apparently, she had even been coming to feed on the bread some people had thrown in the water.

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Several other people were on the boardwalk, waiting in anticipation of seeing one of the Water rails that have been quite showy in recent days, but ignoring this stunning duck right under their noses.

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Not me – I took a ton of photos of her, many of which turned out a bit blurry because she was almost too close for my long lens. And that’s not something that happens very often in the world of bird photography!

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First Wheatear

24 Wednesday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in birds, spring

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bird migration, birding, birdwatching, British birds, Cardiff Bay birding, spring migration, Wheatear

Monday was warm and sunny, at last – sunny days have been few and far between so far this month – so I decided to walk a circuit of Cardiff Bay, hoping this might be the day I would see my first Wheatear of the year.

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I was already on the Barrage, bins out and scanning, when I got a message from a fellow birder that a Wheatear had just been reported. As I checked further along the Barrage, I could see someone, off their bike, camera with long lens in hand – that had to be where it was.

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It only took a few minutes to reach Tate, one of our star local birders, whose keen eyes had found this stunning male Wheatear. We’re lucky that these birds sometimes stop off for an insect break on the Barrage rocks before continuing their migration flight to their breeding grounds further north. Such a treat to see!

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Wheezing from the tree tops

23 Tuesday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in birds

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birding, birdwatching, British birds, Greenfinch

The British Trust for Ornithology describes it as a ‘nasal “dzwee”’; my description would be something like: stuttered twittering interspersed with long nasal wheezing. It’s an odd sound to make to attract a member of the opposite sex but it seems to work perfectly for the male Greenfinch. So, if you’re out walking and happen to hear a loud nasal wheezing from above, do look up. The Greenfinch is such a fabulous-looking bird and it has suffered a dramatic national decline in population since about 2005, so don’t miss any opportunity to see one.

210323 greenfinch

Blossom and bumbles

22 Monday Mar 2021

Posted by sconzani in flowers, insects, spring, trees

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British bumblebees, Buff-tailed bumblebee, Cherry blossom, Spring blossom

At this time of year the ornamental cherry tree outside my flat is awash with blossom, of a warm white shade flushed with the merest tinge of pink.

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It looks glorious, especially on sunny days, and, at a time when there are few flowers in bloom, it’s a magnet for newly emerging, hungry insects of the flying kind.

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Yesterday, as well as a few Honey bees, I spotted half a dozen, all Buff-tailed, bumblebees doddering from one flower to the next, before lurching haphazardly to the next branch, dislodging the delicate petals as they passed.

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