The Seals of Donna Nook

When you go to a nature reserve in quest of a certain species, you expect it to be difficult. You expect to have to cover a lot of ground while being super stealthy in order to catch a glimpse of something a long way away, and produce a blurry "record shot" of the creature involved.

Donna Nook is completely counter intuitive to that. In order to find a seal, you merely park, ascend a short track over the dune, and the bloody things are literally sleeping right under your nose in their hundreds, making no attempt to move away from the crowds.

The pups are entirely unprotected by their parents, who seem to spend their time further away doing big belly slides on the mud while occasionally chasing after each other in a desultory fashion. Apparently they understand the fence, and what its for, and any human jumping over is subject to immediate attack, which I would not fancy being on the end of.

Amongst these huge inert bodies, there were lots of small brown wading birds that I couldn't identify, but these birds were not the reason why it was the busiest nature reserve I've ever been to.

No everyone was here to see the seals, the easiest wildlife experience possible, these largely immobile sacks of blubber in many colours.

Wonderful things.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 08.12.19

RSPB Langford Songbirds

On my pleasant trip to RSPB Langford Lowfields, I only bothered to get my camera out to take "cheap" photos of the local songbirds visiting the feeders, while the cetti's warbler sang loudly out of sight.

So here we have the only 4 useable (maybe!) photos I took; a reed bunting, yellowhammers and a pair of goldfinches. I dread seeing how they look when I post them!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 29.03.19

Eclipse Fail

I did stay up for the total lunar eclipse last night, hoping that in the end the clouds would part an allow me a glimpse of the moon turning that potent crimson colour - everyone else says "blood red" and I  refuse to succumb to that cliche! - as it passes through the shadow of mother earth.

Of course the clouds never did part, so all I got for my troubles was very cold, very tired, and thus stressed for the visit of my landlord and a valuer to my flat. On a bright clear day good for photography, I  then had to stay home waiting for a plumber to show up to fix my kitchen tap.

The only wildlife I saw all day were these two.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 21.01.18

Little Slimies, Little Featheries

So, I've had a couple of good little close encounters over the extended weekend while spending as much time outside as I could  given my exhaustion and the occasionally horrendous weather.

The first was with a goldcrest, happy to approach me to less than a metre in a little ornamental bush in South Parade Park. These wonderful little birds are the most fearless  of wild songbirds, I've had  one feeding within 50 centimetres of my less than calming head before.

They are hard enough to photograph as it is, flitting like hummingbirds as they do - sometimes the resemblance is really striking as they will indeed hover momentarily - and me armed only with my mobile phone. But I did manage to get one passable shot.

Yesterday, walking down the cycle path of murder and violence - a third arrest happened today, for attempted murder - I noticed that the temporary pond next to the route had a population of smooth newts back in situ. Last year they spawned, but I thought the pond had dried up before they could develop.

It seems the newts have decided to try again. Good luck to them. A young family were pointing at them; I was glad to tell them what they were looking at.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 03.04.18

Another Sparrowhawk and a Painted Sky

I always like the chance to walk between our two campus buildings, past the garden I dug badly, past the wildflower meadow that didn't flower, and along the unmowed verges.

There's usually something to see, even it if may only be a confiding dunnock or a cocky robin. Kestrels and buzzards are a common sight, linnets nest in summer...soon bumbles will appear.

Today's distraction happened very high overhead. Alerted by a Kehaar cry of "YARK" I looked up to see a gull having a right old go at a passing sparrowhawk - a herring gull judging by the size difference.

The sparrowhawk screamed, and made its way off to the north, while the gull mooched off in the opposite direction, well satisfied with its work. Flap flap glide. Flap flap glide.

So flies the sparrowhawk.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.02.18

A Monstrous Beastie

Well, it's actually been a reasonable day today by the standards of recent weather, and I've had a fair old potter about. I always like to spy out the local clumps of buddleia, as I'm sure all amateur nature lovers do, because there is so much insect life you can potentially find feeding of it.

Hit the jackpot today!

I'd been initially disappointed, scanning through the purple clumps of flowers growing on the plants sticking through the fencing at Derry's, but then a big yellow behind caught my eye.

I've seen this colour before, once you do you really don't mistake it for anything else. It belongs to the hornet mimic hoverfly, our largest hoverfly species and a truly magnificent insect. The yellow-white abdomen glows, the eyes are huge, and the wings are like those of a pterodactyl.

They were once rare, but are another species creeping north with global warming. All the others I've seen have been very skittish, but this one let me take a shot or two, and I'm very grateful for it!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 31.07.17

Back on the Cricket Field!

So today was my first match of the 2017 season, an intra club practice match which despite the designation of our team as "The Warriors" as if we were a bunch of IPL guys being paid 100 grand a match - IF ONLY - was actually taken very seriously with everyone endeavouring to play their best.

I ended up opening the bowling for these "Warriors" as we fielded first, and despite having bowled really well in recent nets, struggled initially. The first ball of every over was down the leg side, and slow wicket or not, I was really down on pace and not finishing my action properly. So it felt anyway.

Still, I was mainly accurate and I never got hit for 4 once, which is a miracle as far as I'm concerned.

But hey, you are nature lovers, you are more interested in what there was to see around the ground. Well, we had various buzzards flying over, lots of orange tips flitting about, as well as a few small or green veined whites. When we came in from our 40 overs in the field, I headed out for a walk round the ground, seeing what I could find, among the beds of flowering nettle, red dead nettle and ground ivy.

There was plenty, only none of it wanted to be photographed. There were tree bumblebees, various hoverflies and other small buzzing insects, and a few small tortoiseshells that would only be seen by me when they rose up from the patches of dark earth where they were trying to absorb a little heat on a chill day.

I even had time to do some sketching while waiting to bat, this is an ambition of mine this year, to sketch every ground I play on. Which will probably baffle a fair few cricketers, but I try to be a renaissance man ha ha.

So, finished my sketch, and just had to time to get my pads on to go out and score 17 not out, nerves jangling as they always do when I bat!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 22.04.17

Colour in the Owl Land

Running in the owl land is still an irritation. The Sustrans 64 bridge over the relief road is now around 7-8 months over schedule, and the run through Balderton and then up the rather grim Staple Lane past the end of the works, and the less-attractive-than-it-sounds Bantycock open cast gypsum mine, is a pain.

But at the moment, when you finally make your way round to the 64 where the road heads off to Staunton-in-the-Vale and clamber over the bank into the Hawton Works field, it is worth it.

I had written before how it was more wild and overgrown out there than I had ever known it, well now, it is waist deep in ragwort at one end, and neck deep in lady's bedstraw at the other. Lower down beneath the surface of this yellow sea are blue thistles and pink field bindweed.

The birds are loving it, looks like there are meadow pipits and / or skylarks making merry among the undergrowthy, flashing up now and again to reveal flashes of white along their tail feathers. As I made my way along, a female pheasant ran away from me in that usual scatterbrained manner of theirs, not realising that the greater threat probably came from two buzzards above.

I've never seen it so colourful in there. Enjoyed it greatly.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 27.07.16

The ragwort end

Small skipper on clover

This butterfly gave me some really good unusual views

Forgotten!

Whatever it is, there's loads of it

Field bindweed

Pink and yellow

Thistle in a hula hoop

Ladies bedstraw

Red tailed bumble drops in on the action

Spot the buzzard

Again need help. Purple loosestrife?

Cricket in the Land of the Sterile

Today I found myself in the lofty company of the Sunday 1st team, a team where rubbishy mortals on cricket's 3rd team compost heap get to meet with the Olympian heroes of the 1st team, cricketers who are all the things I wish I was; young, talented, and possessing the ability not to panic when the bowling goes over ten miles per hour in pace.

We had a few such players today, and they were left with the job of, you know, scoring runs, while I took myself off to explore the ground.

It was the Goosedale Ground at Hucknall, where we were playing Notts and Arnold Amateurs, a title which creates charming images of WG Grace smoking a pipe while batting while Robert Peel warmed up for bowling by knocking back a few more G and Ts. However, the ground itself was a big municipal sports multiplex; great for playing cricket, terrible for nature spotting for the bottom of the order of the batsmen like me.

So after I had a look round and found absolutely nothing alive at all apart from a few flowers, I wondered if a hearty diet of pesticide for the greenery had made the ground sterile; inimical to the insect life that sits at the base of micro ecosystems like a cricket ground.

Even with the sun out, I only saw one bee fly past, and a kestrel hovering over the edge of the complex was the only bird I saw, apart from a carrion crow on the lookout for leftover teas from the pavilion.

Very good tea by the way, well done Notts and Arnold Amateurs! Perfectly timed to coincide with Andy Murray's victory.

My batting was not required, a mercy for all concerned although I do try hard, and instead I spent 20 overs umpiring with a team-mate in a beard and flat cap who had chosen to disguise himself as DH Lawrence for some reason. I had to adjudicate on a run out, which I gave not out in an assertive manner - "Errrrr, na-eerrrr-aaaa" while shaking my head while wishing there was a replay facility somewhere.

HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW??? IT HAPPENS TOO BLOODY FAST!!!

We made 151 for 3 in our 40 overs thanks to our first team stars - the highest score I've ever been involved in - and we still lost in a little over 20 overs as our opponents turned out to be pretty hefty smiters of a cricket ball, despite my hitherto unexplored ability to bowl head high full tosses by accident. For once, I wasn't the worst bowler and even took a wicket, when I had their biggest hitter caught at long on.

Wish I was quicker though, when a keeper stands up to my bowling, it makes my heart sink. Oh well, a 43 year old coming back to the game after 20 years out was never going to be Wasim Akram.

It was actually a fun day, despite the loss. When a skipper lets you bowl, always makes you feel better about things.

And the sun came out too!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 10.07.16