Living Creatures

Saturday, May 13th 2023

When the weather is cold, wet, windy and no sun the invertebrates stay hidden away.  When the sun comes out, the wind drops, the temperature rises, so too do the invertebrates!  Unfortunately this usually means that they do not sit still long enough for photos!  Never satisfied!!  One insect that is defying this is St Mark's Fly.  They are around in their hundreds.  Their name reflects the day that they should be seen, 25th April, St Mark's Day.

The larvae live in the soil feeding on roots, grasses and rotting vegetation, whilst the adults feed on nectar and are considered to be important pollinators for fruit trees and other plants.

The path through the Gorse across the moor is an ideal place to be bombarded by these flies!!

They do tend to land anywhere including on Jan's hand and recording sheet, which she was trialling. (Please pick up a sheet in the Field Centre and let us know what you find. Thank you)

Further along the moor path is the Stone Circle and the Bluebells are just beginning to open.

Having headed towards the Scrapes and looked at the wild Crab Apple for several weeks hoping that it would flower, it finally has and a beautiful spectacle it makes.

The reeds are beginning to show new green leaves and further down the boardwalk the Bogbean is in flower.  The lower flowers are going over before those at the tip are open.

The ponds are now full of tadpoples.  It is too early to say if they are Common Frog or Common Toad or both.  We did not have the usual toad migration across the reserve with only a few toads being recorded.  This one was spotted near the Field Centre during the week.

Volunteers have been busy this week with the usual assortment of tasks.  Thank you very much for all your work.  A special mention should go to Hayley, Jules and Nicola who got caught in the torrential rain on Thursday.  I understand that some coats are still dripping!

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