Lincolnshire - The Yellow County

People born in the county of Lincolnshire were traditionally know as yellow bellies. Usually pronounced yeller bellies. The derivation of this has been lost in the mists of time though there are several theories. See the Wikipedia entry.

Round here the county has assumed a yellow tinge as it is the time when the many fields of oilseed rape are in full flower:







For some this is not a good time as the rape flower can bring on some peoples' hay fever. I don't get affected at this time but later when it has been cut and left to die down and dry. In  damp weather the fungi which grows on the cut stems brings me out in sneezing fits.

When I was manoeuvring to get a better view of the field I spotted this little beetle glinting in the sunlight.



A search brought up a page on the Nature Plus section of the Natural History Museum site where someone had asked about the same beetle. It would appear to be a carabid beetle of the genus Amara. Carabids are ground beetles which destroy many insects pests. One of the good guys.

Everything is progressing to plan in the Great Tit nest box with both parents bringing a constant supply of grubs for the ever hungry babies. I'm still not sure how many babies - definitely seven, maybe eight.. Will try to get some more video tomorrow.