Category Archives: nature

Roul-roul in Eden

04 Wednesday Jan 2017

Posted by in birds, nature

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Say hello to Mrs Roul-roul, also known as the Crested partridge, the Red-crowned wood partridge, the Green wood quail, the Green wood partridge and, scientifically, Rollulus rouloul. She’s cousin to the pheasant family and her kin hail originally from the lowland rainforests of South-east Asia but this particular little beauty spends her days in the Rainforest Biome at the Eden Project in Cornwall. Sadly, her man friend was not as willing to have his photo taken.

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Scarlet elfcups

03 Tuesday Jan 2017

Posted by in fungi, nature

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It’s elfcup fruiting time! There’s a spot in one of my local woodlands where these vibrant Scarlet elfcups (Sarcoscypha austriaca) grow in profusion so I made sure to head that way on yesterday’s wander, and I was not disappointed. In their hundreds, these little beauties are pushing up through the dense moss that covers the rotting branches and logs on the forest floor.

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I blogged about these gorgeous fungi last year and noted then that there are two species of red elfcups, the Scarlet (Sarcoscypha austriaca) and the Ruby (Sarcoscypha coccinea). They can only be differentiated, one from the other, through microscopic examination, but I know that the elfcups in my favoured spot are the Scarlet variety as a friend very kindly checked them for me. My mission now is to find the Ruby.

‘Dedicated Naturalist’: The songs of birds

02 Monday Jan 2017

Posted by in 'Dedicated Naturalist' Project, birds, nature

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A snippet from my volunteer work on the ‘Dedicated Naturalist’ Project, helping to decipher and digitise, record and publicise the life’s work of naturalist extraordinaire, Dr Mary Gillham.

Mary’s notes from a walk through the Cwrt yr Ala basin, near Dinas Powys, on 7 September 1975 are so very descriptive that I fancy I can almost hear the birds she heard:

Robin ‘ticking’ at our disturbance. Another squealing like a young bird – the squeal is a late summer call. One ‘playing dipper’ on stone in stream below Cwrt yr Ala lakes.

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Wrens singing. House martins chirping. Swallows twittering. Long-tailed tits churring, blue tits scolding, woodpigeon cooing, jay screeching, magpie chattering, chaffinch chinking, bullfinch sibilant piping, pheasant barking. Chiffchaff and willow warbler, though with very different songs, have similar calls today, difficult to distinguish. Generally, as one would expect from the song, the chiffchaff has a more clipped, emphatic, less musical call, the willow warbler a softer one.

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Goldcrests alarm note, blackbirds ditto. Mistle thrushes on wires saying nothing, song thrush on road ditto. Jackdaws and crows croaking, ravens flew past with scarcely a honk. Goldfinch. Grey wagtails – 3 on lower lake and spillway, one on stream below – have a more delicate call than the pied wagtails. Moorhen cronking on lake.

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For the full story about the Mary Gillham Archive Project, check out our website, and follow our progress on Facebook and on Twitter.

Dawn, 2017!

01 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by in nature, seasons

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The sun rises over the Serengeti Plains, Tanzania, August 2014

‘Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature – the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.’

Rachel Carson (1907-1964) was an American marine biologist and conservationist. This quote is taken from her seminal work Silent Spring, 1962.

Fungi Friday: Alder bracket

30 Friday Dec 2016

Posted by in fungi, nature, trees

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Though fungi frequently defy the rules we humans assign to them, the Alder bracket (Inonotus radiatus) does, amazingly, almost always (note the qualifier) grow on alder trees. Sadly, its presence usually means the tree is on its last legs and the fungus itself contributes to the tree’s death by assisting white rot to form within the tree.

Yet, Alder bracket can be rather beautiful, especially when young, as it produces quite striking orangey-red globules of liquid which sparkle in the sunshine. As it matures, it develops from pale-coloured well-rounded velvet-textured fruiting bodies into the more regular shelf-like shape you would expect from a bracket fungus, and the pores on its underside become more apparent.

As it reaches old age, the bracket become rougher and tougher, the spots which once produced those gorgeous droplets develop into ugly pits, and its delicate apricot-coloured upper surface dulls to a brown so dark it looks black.

A Tale of Two Tits

29 Thursday Dec 2016

Posted by in birds, nature

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This post has been on my list of things to do since the summer….

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I love all Britain’s tits: they’re almost all tiny and very sweet, often cheeky, always entertaining, occasionally rather tame, and frequently friendly. Though less colourful than its cousins the Great and Blue, I think the Coal tit (Periparus ater) is a very handsome bird. It tends to be more timid than its cousins as well, but will feed from garden peanut feeders and often joins its fellow tits in large flocks that move together through gardens, parks and areas of woodland looking for the seeds and insects they like to eat.

I was very lucky earlier this year to be alerted by my fellow members of the Glamorgan Bird Club to the presence of a pair of Marsh tits (Poecile palustris) in the woodland of a local country park. These birds look very similar to Coal tits (and, apparently, also to Willow tits, which I have not yet seen) but can easily be told apart by a look at the tops of their heads. The Coal tit (above left) has a white cap on top of its head, whereas the Marsh tit (above right) does not.

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I was particularly delighted to see the Marsh tits as, sadly, their population has undergone a dramatic decline of at least 50% in the past 25 years so they are now considered globally threatened and have been added to the Red List of endangered creatures. Although they can be found throughout England and Wales, they are more often seen in the southern parts of both countries. They will feed from garden bird feeders so, if you live in the south and have the space for a feeder, do please help out these little birds with regular supplies of seeds and nuts.

World wildlife Wednesday: Cambodian butterflies

28 Wednesday Dec 2016

Posted by in insects, nature

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As today is the winter solstice I thought it would be nice to celebrate  world wildlife Wednesday in sunnier warmer climes. So, let’s head to Cambodia where, although this is the cool dry season – their equivalent of winter – temperatures are still averaging in the very pleasant mid-20-degree-Celsius range. And let’s pay a visit to the Banteay Srey Butterfly Centre, about 25 kilometres north of Siem Reap.

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Not only does it have a large netted garden full of tropical flowers with hundreds of butterflies fluttering around, it also has a butterfly breeding programme. Egg-covered leaves are collected from the garden each day and stored in plastic tubs in a small propagation area. Once hatched the caterpillars, ranging in colour from the camouflaging pale greens to the bright red and black stripes of warning, are fed on their favourite plants until its time for their pupation. The butterflies, when they emerge, are equally varied, some vibrant reds and oranges, others plain black and white but intricately patterned, some large, others small and delicate. All are native to Cambodia.

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The friendly centre guides provide a short guided tour, sharing their knowledge of the different species and explaining the life cycle and peculiarities of each species. By training Cambodian people who reside near forested areas to farm butterflies, and employing locals as staff, the butterfly centre benefits local impoverished communities, encourages the preservation of native forests, and helps to conserve the native butterflies – a win, win situation!

Thank you

26 Monday Dec 2016

Posted by in nature

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One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was to post a blog here every single day for a year and I’m very proud to say I’ve now achieved that aim! As you can perhaps appreciate, it’s taken rather a lot of time and effort but I’ve enjoyed the challenge and the constant learning, I’ve loved being able to share the wonderful things I’ve seen and the pleasure I’ve gained from the natural world, and, most of all, I’ve been amazed and delighted by all the lovely comments I’ve had.

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So, this post is to say ‘Thank you’ to you, all my fabulous followers and readers. It’s been an absolute pleasure getting to know some of you a little better and I really appreciate the time you take to read my scribbles and look at my photographs.

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I plan to continue my daily posts in 2017 though, as the year already looks like being busier than 2016, there will be times when I can only post a photo with little text. (Do I hear sighs of relief from some quarters?) I hope you’ll come along for the ride, and I wish you all good health and much happiness for the year to come!

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