Happened to spot one of the few ladybirds I have seen this Summer.
It was much smaller than the common seven spot
Once I enlarged the shot (as seen above) I could count eleven spots.
The problem identifying it is there are a couple about the same size with 11 spots.
The Adonis and the Eleven Spot ladybirds.
The only way to tell which is which is by the markings on its 'face'.
Unfortunately I didn't get that in shot.
The 11 spot is much rarer and more likely to be found around sand dunes at the coast.
On the subject of seeing ladybirds - I found out where my resident ones have been hiding from me. As I was cutting the grass yesterday I saw quite a few crawling in the lawn. I spent nearly as long trying to move them out of the way as I did actually mowing the grass. Now I have to watch out for young frogs (I saw four leap out of the way) and ladybirds.
Tuesday morning Penny and I drove the 13 minute journey to the village of Legbourne, Lincolnshire. There is a delightful walk alongside a stream I haven't visited for many years. The short walk totals about 0.5km there and back but well worth the visit for the serenity and change of view.
First a video of the last part of our journey. Mill Lane, Legbourne.
Always a pleasure driving our village country lanes - as long a nothing large is coming in the opposite direction. All clear on that anyway.
As usual the video is in HD but may have to be forced to show it as that.
Lots of photos. All can be clicked on to show larger.
Our starting point
Walk across the footbridge
Along the path by the side of the stream of crystal clear water.
Not very deep as we have had little rain recently.
Me enjoying the peaceful views as we strolled gently towards our destination.
Penny enjoying new odours in the vegetation.
Last time I walked this path there was an old ramshackle wooden structure.
Now there is a very inviting dwelling or summerhouse surrounded by a terrace.
Sitting by the tree:
Our destination now in sight in the village of Little Cawthorpe.
A place where a road fords the stream, known locally as The Splash.
Both sides of the ford have signs reminding drivers to try their wet brakes.
Next to the footbridge is a notice which tells of an ancient stone brought down from Scotland to Lincolnshire by a glacier in the last Ice Age.
I guess this is the stone in question:
From the footbridge one can see where the stream flows through a garden.
Not just water wheels here:
After a look round, time to return the way we came.
A closer look at the garden ape
Back to the car after an enjoyable breath of fresh air
Surprisingly I heard only one bird and saw only a couple of skinny Wood Pigeons during this walk. I saw not a single butterfly or any other insect.
For identifying last week's WidsMob Montage modified photo very close were -
Adrian, Wilma and Ragged Robin who suggested it was a eReader / Kindle
and close with 'iPad' was The Weaver
Impossible to see exactly in the montage the make but it was a photo of
my Kobo eReader which I mentioned a couple of weeks ago.
For this week have a go at identifying what this montage is hiding
As always, please leave any guesses in the comments.
They, along with the original photo, will be revealed next Monday.
The four legged boss woke me soon after 5 a.m. this morning. As I blearily opened the back door for her we could both tell it was chucking it down with rain. She poked a nose out, nearly changed her mind but finally decided, yes, it was urgent. Race down the garden like a bat out of Hell. Disappear under the remaining trees for a while. Then back again like a run-away express train. Pause in the kitchen for a quick rub down. Back to bed. Unlike the two legged one who decided it wasn't worth going back to bed as it was less than an hour to his usual getting up time.
For once we had a decent amount of rain. Just over an inch in three hours. It certainly freshened up the general atmosphere and got rid of the stifling heat of the past days for which we were both grateful.
On our mid afternoon walk down the lane I finally found a butterfly, and one which rested for a while. Apart from 'cabbage whites' I have seen very few flutters this Summer and this was the first one to land and rest since last Spring.
A Speckled Wood:
Over the past ten days or so I have kept my eyes peeled when we walk between the tall hedges at the end of the lane. A favourite place this time of year to spot dragonflies. I have seen a few but so far none have landed. All have been too busy zooming about chasing food.
We are fortunate in not having much of a litter problem in this part of the village. Usually a discarded drinks bottle or can, an occasional crisp packet, so this was a more unusual find:
In the middle of April this year I planted a couple of Virginia Creepers to climb over the large stump left when the Leylandii was cut down. You might just be able to make out the dead looking stems in this blurry cropped photo taken just after they were planted. The arrows point to the top of each plant.
I wondered how long it would take for them to get established, maybe years.
I needn't have worried. Here they are this month.
I kept them well watered as they started to grow and the ground they are in is rich in a deep layer of decaying needles dropped over decades by the Leylandii. They are positioned so the base of the plants are sheltered from cold northerly or east winds. At this rate of growth by Autumn next year I should be able to watch a lovely display as the leaves turn from green to red.
Well done to Adrian, Bettina, Wilma, The Weaver and Ragged Robin.
All identified last week's WidsMob Montage modified photo
of
a watering can.
What will you make of this one?
If you think you know what it is or just want to hazard a guess -
please leave your suggestion in the comments.
They will be revealed, along with the original photo, next Monday.
As usual I have to keep my eyes skinned when mowing the lawn.
In spite of the lack of rain here the grass hasn't stopped growing.
I was just setting up the mower when I spotted a movement nearby.
A common froglet, not much more than an inch in length
By the size it could well be one of this year's batch.
It's only recently I have been getting back in the habit of setting aside a little time each day to read. Me being me, I prefer to use an electronic device to store and read books. I have an iPad which works well but find long reading sessions tend to deplete the battery relatively quickly. Also viewing the screen can be difficult outdoors in bright light. Years ago I bought a Sony ereader which uses E ink. A black and white system which resembles ink on paper. Unfortunately that also seemed to have short lived batteries. Things have improved since then and my latest Kobo E ink reader holds its charge well and lasts for ages between charges. E ink displays only use power when the page content changes and use a minimal amount (if any) to keep showing a fixed display. They do work slower than other methods of display in that page changes may take a second rather than being instant. It is high contrast and easy to read in bright light.
That leads me to my latest find. An internet site called obooko which lists a whole host of free ebooks. Many free sites only list classics which are out of copyright but these are more modern.
When I first investigated their site I was expecting to see lots of advertising to cover costs or other marketing strategies but no. One has to register with them to be able to download books but all they ask is first name, a password, email address and country of residence. They promise not to inundate with mail (so far true to their word) or to pass on or sell personal details to anyone. The books are copyright but obooko have been given permission to distribute them. Many are available for download in a choice of three different formats: pdf, epub and a Kindle format.
There are many categories of reading in fiction including crime, humour, sci-fi, romance, historical and poetry. Also available are a selection of non fiction titles on a variety of subjects. Well worth a look for ebook fans and it costs nothing but a little time. If you don't like any particular books you have chosen just delete them from your reader or computer. If you don't have an ebook reader then there are apps / programs available on the internet to enable them to be read on your tablet, computer or laptop.
At the moment I am reading One Clown Short by Linda C. Wright from the Funny and Humorous section. A strange story set in a weird company, staffed by weird characters, which supplies items to circuses. So far I have found it difficult to put down.
Bit of a rush job trying to beat the electrical storms.
Close strikes tend to knock out electric power these days.
Either that or broadband disappears for some time.
Last week's WidsMob modified photo
was correctly identified by Adrian, Wilma, Ragged Robin, Betina, Allison M and Jinxxxygirl as
a toy rabbit. Hard luck Maree, wrong animal.
I had a bit of a problem photographing it. The rabbit had arrived that morning as a belated birthday present for Penny. She had not seen it before but a soon as she spotted it on the little table she came across and gently tried to remove and claim it as her own.
It is getting difficult finding suitable new things to use but here goes for this week's effort
As always, if you think you know what was photographed then leave your guess in the comments.
They will be revealed, along with the original photo, next Monday.
The Hibiscus bush is at about its best at the moment, or was before last night's thunder storm soaked all the flowers. It has been a bit of a relief as it produced very few flowers last year and looked dead in the Spring.
Lots of bees visiting but so far no butterflies.
A bit of slow motion video.
As usual it may need 'forcing' to show in HD
