Meadow Brown ?? + Broad-bodied Chaser

Walking past a nettle patch on the edge of the cricket field I could see the usual Red Admirals and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies. Flitting among them was one lone large brown coloured flutter which led me a merry dance as I tried to photograph it for later identification. This was the best I could manage:



The best identification I could get from my Guide to Butterflies of Britain was the Meadow Brown. I hope it is as I don't remember seeing, let alone photographing, one before now.

A lovely surprise was a large flash of orange brown fluttering round my garden pond. A Broad-bodied Chaser Dragonfly. It's several years since I last saw one in the garden and those sightings were of males. This time it was a female which made several brief sorties over the pond. Only landing once to give a brief opportunity for a photo.



Unfortunately she wouldn't let me move round to get a better shot. At one time their distribution was listed as being Southern England and Wales but I think they have been spreading further North as average temperatures have risen. When I first saw this one she appeared to be flying up from water level. I do hope they start to breed in my pond as it would be great to have a local colony.

There are a few of the regular Blue Tailed Damselflies around the pond as they do breed there. I was fascinated watching one male chasing a Hoverfly. No matter how the Hoverfly twisted and turned the Damsel followed its flight exactly until it took refuge in some dense vegetation.

The Problem and the Solution

A couple of days ago I had noticed the odd wasp hanging around an air brick at the front of the property. Yesterday morning I could see a constant stream of the villains going in an out so there was obviously an active nest somewhere behind the brick.





As their activity was near the front door and any visitors had to pass within inches of the activity it was time to have it dealt with. A search on the net for a company brought up the web pages for EMS Pest Control.



Phoned about 8.30 a.m and Frank arrived soon after 12.30 p.m. to carry out the dastardly deed:





I watched from the safety of my bay window as there was soon a gathering of angry wasps returning and finding a strange substance on their route in.

 

Eventually the activity died down as more returning wasps carried the powder in to the nest. While we waited I had a very pleasant chat with Frank who told me that problem nest activity was starting later than usual this year.

We waited for some time watching to make sure there were no wasps exiting the nest as that would show that those entering had been killed. I will get that brick blocked in as it serves no purpose. It was part of the under floor draught system for an open fireplace but was sealed off indoors years ago when I changed from coal to a gas fire. The room floor is solid concrete so it serves no ventilation purpose.

Tuesday Twister - Guess What

Congratulations and virtual gold stars go to Frank, TexWisGirl and Adrian who identified the Hedgehog in last week's twisted photo.

      

For the new twister - What's That?



If you want to have a guess please put it in the comments.
No prizes, just for fun.
Just a virtual gold star for correct identification.

Any guesses in the comments, along with the answer, will be revealed next Tuesday.

Sheltering From the Rain

A few House Sparrows using the shed overhang to shelter from the rain:

Room for one in the basement.

Has the rain stopped yet?

Taken with the 70D with ISO set at 12800 as it was so dull.

Once again processed using the Pix Shape app on the iPad2.

Inquisitive Youngster

Came in to make a cuppa and noticed this juvenile Robin having a good look round inside the entrance of my shed:







Photos transferred to the iPad and produced using the app Pix Shape.

Pony Meets Racing Wheelchair

On our afternoon amble round the block there were two things of interest to watch. One was a young lady I occasionally see in her racing wheelchair going North and a pony and trap going South. Before long the two met up and then things got interesting. The pony decided it wasn't amused and wanted to turn round. Not an easy manoeuvre in traffic.





The wheelchair user had stopped and asked the trap driver whether she should wait but he asked her to continue. Eventually the trap driver dismounted and led the pony while the wheelchair and other traffic passed by:





Then he was able to safely continue on his journey:





Penny doesn't bother about horses and ponies and is content to watch and wait while I take a few photos.

Friday at the Flicks - Juvenile Robins

These clips were recorded near the beginning of this month when a couple of juvenile Robins were making regular visits to the bird table: