Trips, Tours and Outings Archives - Page 17 of 30

I love exploring different wild locations and I find that just as every season brings different natural delights, so these pockets of wilderness have a varying character throughout the year. The local wood is at its most vibrant in April when the bluebells are in full bloom, and the meadow next door takes on its own carpet of colour a few weeks later when the cowslips, cuckoo flower and green winged orchids are at their finest. By contrast, the small patch of marsh just down the road is at its best now in my opinion. There are all sorts of lovely species which call it home throughout the year, but the summer months see a series of colours adorn the anthills and a wonderful buzz in the air. Essentially it is little more than a small field, albeit rather boggy at one end. The abundance of species in this small area is quite astounding though, and considering it’s right next to a train line it is a surprisingly peaceful spot. There is little I enjoy more than a quiet wander through the wildflowers taking in the small wonders around me. I thought that I would share some of the miniature miracles I have found there with you.

I had already found my favourite flower there, the Bee Orchid, blooming as beautifully as ever among the meadow grasses and somehow always tricky to spot despite its lovely colouring. The next thing which drew my attention was a smaller flower still, the delicate bloom of Fairy Flax, plentiful yet unobtrusive among the brighter buttercups.

It wasn’t long before I spotted another type of orchid, the Greater Twayblade. This flower spike had an ant exploring each flower. There was still dew underfoot so I’m not sure whether it was drinking moisture or looking for nectar.

I have already mentioned that I like looking for the small things and finding beauty in the minute details. There are few flowers smaller than those of Cleavers (also know to many as Goose Grass or Sticky Weed). The tiny hooks on the seed capsules that allow it to be dispersed by wildlife and humans alike are barely shorter than the petals on these tiny blossoms.

There were other splashes of colour too including patches of Speedwell and sprawling Forget-Me-Nots which seemed to favour the anthills.

Most of the meadow was a wonderful shade of yellow which shone in the sunshine. Buttercups were the main contributor and this one had a visitor in the shape of a Marmalade Hoverfly.

There was a wonderful carpet of Yellow Rattle too which added to the golden glow. There were Common Blue butterflies flitting around but never stopping to settle. A male Orange Tip flew past at high speed but it was a Small White that finally gave me a photo opportunity.

While I was crouched to take photos of the butterfly I spotted a Thick Legged Flower Beetle and was just preparing to take a picture when it decided it wasn’t in the mood and flew off. Sadly for me this sort of thing happens all too often but my disappointment was very short lived as I immediately spotted this pair that were in a bit of a predicament!

Hopefully they managed to sort themselves out eventually but I didn’t get the chance to stick around long enough to find out!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my brief tour of a favourite spot, perhaps you will notice some of the smaller details next time you’re out and marvel at the miniature miracles of nature which we normally walk right past.

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This week I thought I’d share with you a few photos from various wild walks I’ve been on recently. In the spirit of the “30 Days Wild” campaign run by the Wildlife Trusts which starts today, I like to try and get outdoors as much as possible and often for me that means taking myself off for a walk on the wild side. The only problem is that sometimes I don’t get very far very fast because something has caught my attention and then I spot something else a couple of feet away and so the cycle continues.

I don’t always carry my camera with me, I do occasionally feel like a break – it seems that every creature on the planet knows when this happens though and inevitably, they all come out and dance in front of me at the first opportunity, knowing full well I can’t capture any images of the experience! I might complain when this happens but, in truth, frustrated as I might be having tried for so long to photograph whatever it is and failed, I am usually just thrilled by the chance to have such a lovely encounter and not to be focusing on my camera settings etc.

Among my most recent rambles I’ve visited a local meadow, circled some beautiful lakes with friends and wandered alongside a rich hedgerow on my family farm in Worcestershire.

To start at the beginning, the local meadow brought me joy in many forms:

Green Winged Orchids flowering alongside Cuckoo Flower and Cowslips in a riot of colour. I just can’t get enough of these stunning flowers, particularly their paler forms.

The first dragonflies of the year emerging from the pond, in this case a Four Spotted Chaser.

A Turtle Dove calling from the top of the hedgerow, always a delight even if my picture of it isn’t great!

The evening by the lakes was a breezy one and not too warm either. I wasn’t sure that I’d take a single photo when I set out with some friends but a little later the wind died down and some lovely flowers presented themselves:

An alien to our shores but commonly seen, the Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum).

A delicate beauty, Common Fumitory (Fumaria officinalis).

A little further round still, I came across a mass of small spiders in the grass on the lake shore. I had seen them before but not really looked closely at them and they were quite lovely. I identified them on returning home as the Long Jawed Orb Weaver (Tetragnatha extensa).

Lastly, I spent a relaxing weekend with my parents while my husband was away and we took a trip to the family farm. On a walk round a few of the fields I couldn’t help but notice all sorts on intriguing critters in the hedgerow. Taking a break from photographing my Dad’s gorgeous yellow Labrador I snapped a few images of some of these natural curiosities:

The first thing which caught my attention was the fluttering of a day-flying micro moth, the Nettle-tap (Anthophila fabriciana).

On stopping to investigate the moth, I noticed a Black and Red Leafhopper (Cercopsis vulnerata).

Nearby, a solitary bee took a rest on a bramble leaf. I’m not terribly good at identifying bees so I’m waiting on a little help with this one.

On the way back, a blade of grass wobbled under the weight of a Click Beetle (Athous haemorrhoidalis).

So there you have it, a few photos from a wonderful few days and the promise of a glorious summer ahead as soon as this torrential rain stops! I’m sure I will fit some more wild walks in over the coming months and I’ll try to share my photos from them with you.

Miniature Miracles of Nature

Wild Walks