Showing posts with label Brimstone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brimstone. Show all posts

Monday, February 22, 2021

20/02/2021 Last weeks walk

 Maximum temperature here today 16⁰C, minimum 10⁰C.  Dry but very grey skies.  21km/h South-Westerly winds with gusts up to 74 km/h. 

I have not been out walking since last week when these photos were taken.  The very high winds have been a problem and my eyes, despite wraparound glasses,  just water all the time and I cannot focus on where I am going let alone focus on the camera.

At home the Viburnum tinus is in flower.

and the first crocuses.

Out walking it was a little misty to begin with but it soon cleared.

The lambs were playing...

as above...

As above...

Looking over the local town.

Seen outside somebodies house.

The little stream is still flowing very fast.

Muddy puddles everywhere....

and the cattle are still standing in mud.

A pleasant surprise was seeing about 8 Brimstone butterflies at various places along the walk, only one settled long enough for me to get a photo. (Gonepteryx rhamni).

Many hundreds of Cranes (Grus grus) were flying overhead, but I was only carrying the Nikon Coolpix so photos were not easy to get.  Even more so because most of my walk was through the woods and the trees were in the way!  Good to see them returning to the North.

Some of the track where I was walking.

Seen in somebodies smallholding. With thanks to Richard we believe them to be Emperor Geese (Anser canagicus), presumably, these have been domesticated. 

Flowers were in abundance, Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) above with a bug.

Gorse (Ulex europaeus).

Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna)

Persian Speedwell (Veronica persica)

Sun Spurge (Euphorbia helioscopia).

Unknown fungus.

And a sunset that surprised me at the end of the day.


Take care everybody, keep well and stay safe.

My local list of wildflowers. (90 Species 23/08/2020).

See also my


Monday, August 3, 2020

03/08/2020 A few photos mostly from the garden

Maximum temperature here today 23⁰C, minimum 13⁰C, by the weekend we will be back up to 38C again, the garden is struggling! A light shower that did not register in the rain gauge.  15km/h North-Westerly winds with gusts up to 44 km/h.

The first cosmos of 2020  (Cosmos bipinnatus) of this year.

A slightly bedraggled Common swallowtail butterfly (Papilio machon)...

As above

The Clouded Yellow brimstone (Colias croceus)....

As above.

Small Pincertail dragonfly (Onychogomphus forcipatus).

Garden Spider (Eriovixia laglaizei) I watched it for some time.  It had caught a hummingbird hawk-moth which it duly wrapped up well in its web.  It then cut the surrounding attachments leaving it at the top, and it the carried it up into its larder in the top of the greenhouse - fascinating....

As above.

As above.

Gatekeeper butterfly (Pyronia tithonus).

 Common swallowtail butterfly (Papilio machon)....

As above.

Small white butterfly (Pieris rapae).

Thirsty bees taking a drink.

Bumble bee (Bombus....)

Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria).

Genus Lithobiusa member of Stone Centipedes Order Lithobiomorpha

Latticed Heath Moth (Chiasmia clathrate).

As above

Common Wall Lizard (Podarcis Muralis).

A poppy seed head,

Pumpkin flower pollinators.



My local list of wildflowers. (89 Species 20/07/2020).

See also my



Sunday, March 1, 2020

01/03/2020 March has arrived with strong winds......

Maximum temperature in the Charente today 10C, minimum 7C. Rain on and off all day not measured as yet.  164mm so far this year.  36km/h South-westerly wind with gusts up to 101 km/h.  Not easy to stand up outside!!

Thank goodness I walked yesterday, I still managed to catch a light shower of rain, it was also fairly windy especially at the top of the hill.  Only 5.5 kms,  I had planned on going further but the wind put me off.  My eyes, despite wearing glasses when out still cry!

Just leaving the house I saw this old tractor heading towards me.

Looking across at the Resistance memorial.

Somebodies beehives just off the track where I walk.

Grapes still not pruned, think these are a bit late.

Cattle relaxing.

A brimstone butterfly in the woods. (Gonepteryx rhamn).

Lots of moss around.

Streams where normally there is just grass.

A track through the woods.

This is generally only a field - no water.

Lots of molehills in the foreground, they must be finding the soil a bit wet!

Peacock butterfly (Aglais io).

The 'perfume' was quite strong just here, a farmer from the next hamlet spreading compost from the cattle pens on the land ready for planting.

Heading back to the house this beetle was scurrying down the road. A leaf beetle maybe!

Pigeonnier in the garden of one of the houses in our hamlet.

Our neighbour's woodpile, they are not going to get cold!



See also my