Blooming Early

My dwarf iris bulbs (Katharine Hodgkin):



These were supposed to be blooming in February.

All that Shimmers is not Silver

Especially when it's a silvery wingless insect. Lepisma saccharina, commonly known as silverfish after the way their bodies glisten a silvery colour in the right lighting and the way they wriggle like a fish when moving.

I found this dead one .....

Body length 10mm

.... and put it under the microscope.

Head end:


Tail end:


The body is covered in tiny scales which reflect the light:






They are very fast movers on the flat. Too fast for most predators and as they like to stay in dark, damp places they are often too fast to be spotted by us.

Happy New Year For 2016

Text created with Art Text 2. Sound is the Mac OSX System Voice 'Bells' which spoke the text written in a notepad while being recording with Audacity.  Firework and its sound were found on the 'net.

Wordless Wednesday

Hive on a Pole

As yesterday was reasonably mild, and more importantly dry, we went walkabout through the back of the local graveyard to see whether Stan's horses were out in their paddock. There was no sign of them this time but we were being closely watched by a couple as we took one of the muddy rights of way:





There used be be quite a collection of conventional bee hives but they seem to have been replaced by a different design:



There were a couple of these last year. Now all the hives are of this design.  I wonder whether the idea of putting the hive on a post is to give protection from any creatures which might try to raid them.

I had a look round the 'net and read about one keeper who put his hives on steel poles which had a saucer of oil half way up HERE. That was to stop ants and other insects invading the hives. When I photographed the above hive I was puzzled by the glass jars scattered round the base. I wonder whether they are baited insect traps. Apparently in some areas of Africa bee keepers use a similar design to protect their hives from honey badgers.

Robin Visits the Bird Table

UK Floods, Boxing Day 2015

For many, especially those in the north of England, it has not been a happy Christmas. Some areas are flooded for the third time this month. This snapshot from the Environment Agency gives an idea of what things are like in England and Wales. (Scotland has a separate warning system):



There are three levels of flood warnings.
amber - flood alert (be prepared for possible flooding)
red with black icon - flood warning (flooding expected, immediate action required)
red with red icon - severe flood warning (severe flooding, danger to life)

Several areas have had a month's rain in a day. With the ground already saturated from previous rainfall it is flowing straight in to the rivers, some of which are at their highest ever recorded levels.

Fortunately for me where I live is marked with the arrow I added to the map.