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Tag Archives: Red valerian

Wildflowers at Barry Docks

21 Tuesday Nov 2017

Posted by sconzani in autumn, flowers, nature, wildflowers

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Barry Docks, British wildflowers, Common toadflax, Daisy, Hemp agrimony, Hoary mustard, Ragwort, Red valerian, scabious, Wild parsnip, wildflowers, Yellow-wort

I caught the train to Barry Docks last Friday, hoping to get a good look at an uncommon bird (a Great northern diver) that had been making itself at home there for the previous week or so.

171121 Barry Docks

Unfortunately, the bird spent most of the two hours I was there happily swimming and diving several hundred yards away on the other side of the dock, but it was a gloriously sunny day and I did find lots of lovely wildflowers still in bloom around the edge of the docks so I was happy.

171121 Hoary mustard
171121 Scabious sp
171121 Wild parsnip
171121 Daisy
171121 Ragwort sp
171121 Hemp agrimony
171121 Bindweed sp
171121 Sow-thistle sp
171121 Cow parsley
171121 Common toadflax
171121 Yellow-wort
171121 Red valerian

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Humming-bird hawk-moth

25 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature, seaside, wildflowers

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

British moths, Humming-bird hawk-moth, Macroglossum stellatarum, moth, moth like hummingbird, Red valerian

Remember how I wrote yesterday about some days being magical: first I was mobbed by Red admirals, next I discovered the Ivy bee colony and marvelled at its mating antics, and then, la pièce de résistance, I saw my very first Humming-bird hawk-moth.

170925 Humming-bird Hawk-moth (4)

And, by golly, it was difficult to photograph. I took around 70 pictures but most are a blur because, like the bird it’s named after, this moth just does not keep still. Macroglossum stellatarum is its formal name, and it came to Britain originally from Africa and southern Europe. The adult moths can be seen flying any time from April to late November, at which time they start looking for a crevice in a building, a hole in a wall, or a handy crack in a tree to while away the winter months.

170925 Humming-bird Hawk-moth (2)
170925 Humming-bird Hawk-moth (1)

That super-long tongue allows them to specialise in feeding from tube-shaped flowers like the Echiums, though this one was enjoying the nectar of Red valerian plants growing along the high-tide line at a local beach, humming (its wings) as it hovered from one flower to the next. Incredibly, studies have shown that Humming-bird hawk-moths often return to the same flowers at the same time every day. So, it’s a moth that looks like a bird but has the memory of an elephant – simply amazing!

170925 Humming-bird Hawk-moth (3)

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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