That moment when you find you’ve bitten off a bit more than you can comfortably chew, and swallowing your latest victim becomes a full body commitment. Or alternatively, when you decide to save time in your busy schedule by multitasking … Continued
I’m beginning to lose count now, but just based on the number of exuviae I’ve collected, this is at least the tenth successful Southern Hawker emergence this season from our little wildlife pond. That said, for a while I thought … Continued
As far as I know, invertebrates don’t go in for existential philosophising, but I can’t help but feel that it must be a little strange to be in a relationship, albeit temporary, with your former skeleton. Though to be fair, … Continued
I was tired after running up and down the garden in the dark for an hour last night, photographing the emergence and eclosure of this female Southern Hawker, so I didn’t wake especially early. Luckily, when I did manage to haul … Continued
The tiny wildlife pond R dug out and installed for me as a Covid lockdown project – it’s maybe four feet by three, and about eighteen inches at its deepest point – has suddenly turned into a bit of a … Continued
I found it very satisfying to step out of my front door this morning, take two steps across the lawn, and find this pretty female Orange-vented Mason Bee (Osmia leaiana) nectaring on the thistle I’ve left there. I wish I … Continued
