Dragonflies

September - a quieter month

The usual reminder - to see the videos in all their glory, visit www.liddells.co.uk and click on Blog

2nd - 3rd September

John started making a new and wider gate and gateway for the North-east Strip. Should hay need to be moved into this area in future years, the new gate will accommodate a trailer, making the task a little easier.

Clare spent some time by the Big Pond and watched a female Common Darter ovipositing. The male Darter is clutching her while she does so. Then Clare noticed that there were five male Common Hawkers vying for the airspace over the pond and one was continually returning to a particular patch of Water Forget-me-nots; she heard a rustling and realised there was a female Common Hawker also ovipositing. Taking a video risked disturbing her, however Clare managed a photo. There were also scores of Emerald Damselflies around.

Clare noticed that the Water Figwort Scrophularia auriculata, is in flower. The flowers are pollinated by the Common wasp, although there have been far fewer wasps around this year. Clare was intrigued by the ‘Scrophulus’ part of the plant’s name. ‘Scrofulous’ is defined as meaning either, in a literal sense, relating to scrofula (tuberculosis (or TB like bacteria) of the lymph nodes, particularly of the neck); or, figuratively, morally contaminated and corrupt. Clare then discovered that the name "figwort" comes from the plant's early use to treat haemorrhoids, which were once known as "figs." Every Blog day a learning day.

John has sited a trail camera on the Hayfield as he has noticed the deer here quite often. The first video was a surprise.

The next video demonstrates why we have the phrase ‘haring about’.

4th September

Unusually, Clare’s annual attempts to photograph Hawkers on the wing using her phone camera proved successful. Only one shot, however the photo shows two male Common Hawkers - the equivalent of BOGOF in the dragonfly world.

You may be surprised, as were Clare and John, to learn that stoats will take a hare, a creature several times bigger than itself. The stoat will chase its prey and then pounce, delivering a powerful bite to the back of the neck. The camera seems to have captured part of the chase; the hare is in no doubt about the jeopardy.

The camera on the Hayfield does record some deer activity - a doe and two kids; you can hear the twang of the fence as the deer jump out off camera.

8th September

The sex of the triplets is much clearer now. Here they are in the Scrub. Looking from left to right you can see two doe kids, the mother doe and then the buck kid.

John was particularly interested to see the next clip and several like it - he says the received wisdom has been that deer do not like rain and are seldom seen out in it. The trail camera gives the lie to that particular understanding.

9th September

One of the two young bucks from last year has unbranched antlers - regular readers of this Blog will know bucks like this are called ‘murder bucks’ - is around in the Scrub. Then the camera reveals a new buck. This one has better developed antlers, although it is still smaller than the old buck which is still around. This new buck may have been drawn in because of the does in the territory.

10th September

John has long been interested in the number of different plants that deer will eat. Below is one of four clips that each show kids choosing Ash leaves over all the other forage in their path. The leaves look as if they are freshly fallen.

11th September

The doe with triplets is reluctant to let the buck kid suckle. She has probably conceived what will be next year’s kids in the rut, and even though delayed implantation means they are far off being born, she will be keen for this year’s kids to become more independent.

12th September

A sunny day, and it brought the pollinators out. The Michaelmas daisies on the Wildflower Meadow were covered in insects, including a couple of Speckled Wood butterflies. The activity demonstrates the value of late flowering forage plants.

The sunshine also brought out the dragonflies. Clare spotted a female Common Darter ovipositing, then noticed a pair of Common Hawkers flying past clamped together. They landed on the sunny waterside of a Hawthorn overhanging the Big Pond, however Clare managed to get close enough for a photograph. She is rather pleased with the result.

13th September

Early morning in the Scrub and a doe can be heard and seen (watch her flanks move) squeaking. (While John uses the word ‘feeping’ for the kids, he usually refers to the does’ calls as squeaking. They sound the same to Clare.) The old buck suddenly erupts from off stage and chases the doe away. He pauses in front of the camera and you can see why John considers this animal to be a magnificent specimen. You can also see signs of ageing round his face (the buck’s not John’s).

Another image of which Clare was pleased - this time Common Darters mating. Clare then noticed a couple of what she thinks are Southern Hawkers, had joined the Common Hawkers over the pond. Although not a wonderful photograph, Clare managed, with her phone camera, to capture another dragonfly in flight.

14th September

Although the videos are not included here (regular readers of this Blog will have seen more than enough footage of badgers’ backsides), Clare noticed that the Scrub trail camera had recorded several clips of a badger going past in the same direction. Two of these clips were only ten seconds apart, so there must be at least two badgers using the path. (The same phenomenon occurred two nights later, with only three seconds between the clips.)

15th September

John and Clare have been delighted that all the talks (John, Keith and Clare), the two Open Days and donations from supporters, have resulted in enough money to buy a lot more trees, hedging whips and wildflower plugs. Today they spent a happy morning putting in an order. The wildflower plants will arrive first although cannot be planted until the sheep have been and gone. The trees and hedging will arrive in the winter months as it is best to move and plant them while they are dormant.

16th September

Motivated by the tree and wildflower order, Clare and John set about sowing all the wildflower seeds Clare has been collecting at every available opportunity. There are seventeen different varieties in the trays. Any that take can be pinched out into small pots and sown as plugs either next autumn or potted on for planting out in spring 2026.

18th September

John noticed that there has been a substantial collapse of part of the south boundary wall. Fortunately there is no risk of local stock getting in or out at that point, however repairs will have to be made. There had been no bulging in the wall, which indicates a weak point, just here; possibly the increase in much heavier farm machinery may have caused sufficient vibration to bring about the collapse.

The old buck again, however Clare has chosen this video because you can clearly hear at least one Chiffchaff in the background. The birds are yet to leave for their wintering grounds. It looks as though the buck is listening too. Later in the morning this same buck is in the Pit Wood and you can see how he is losing his summer coat.

19th - 20th September

John completed one of his least favourite tasks - he has retensioned the wires that are fixed to the new gatepost. He has also finished the new and wider gate into the North-east Strip.

Clare had been disheartened to discover a little while ago that the two new honey bee queens had failed to mate properly and were laying drones. The third colony, however, which Clare was given as a very small colony last year, has gone from strength to strength. The bees did not swarm, however they did build up and put a lot of effort into foraging. Clare was able to take the fullest super of honey she has ever had off these bees. Clare has given the bees sugar syrup - a small compensation for their loss.

Note the sheep-proofing. John R’s sheep are due to arrive soon

Much sticky spinning activity will follow

22nd September

It has been a while since a fox has shown up on the trail cameras. This one is making its way through the Scrub.

24th September

Clare spent some time in the hide today and was pleased to hear Willow Tits, although they didn’t appear on the feeders. They can be noticeable by their absence in the autumn/winter months, so it is good to be reassured they are still around.

John has cut Willow whips from neighbour Sylvia’s tree again. They now need planting. Fly agaric in the Scrub and berries on the Spindle trees are indications that autumn in well under way.

25th September

Chiffchaffs still audible on the trail camera footage today.

26th September

One of the does reveals the extent to which she is losing her summer coat.

30th September

John and Clare visited to collect the camera discs for a last update on this month’s Blogpost. Clare heard a Chiffchaff still present in the Scrub. John saw five hares on the Hayfield and Clare saw one in the Pit Wood - a delightful ending to the month.

August - season finale

Apparently August is known as ‘sere month’. Although Clare knew the word ‘sere’ meaning dry or withered (see Macbeth: ‘My way of life Is fall’n into the sere, the yellow leaf’), she first came across the phrase ‘sere month’ through the solution to a cryptic crossword clue. John said that he did not know the answer ‘sere’ and when Clare looked up the definition to show him, the phrase ‘sere month’ was included. The clue was ‘Issue drinks, perhaps not very dry,’

If you are new to the Blog, go to www.liddells.co.uk and click on the Blog page to see all the video footage from this month. It is most unlikely to be included in your email.

First some left over videos from the end of July. The first two clips from the camera near the Dirty Dancing Bridge have helped to distinguish between two of the does. The first doe has a much thinner caudal patch than the second, which is a far more distinct kidney shape. The third video shows the rut continuing in the Scrub with the old buck driving a doe. You can hear her squeaking.

1st August

With the relief of the hay-making behind them, John and Clare continued their preparations for the Open Weekend, working on paths, weeding inside tree cages and devising signs to help visitors navigate and enjoy the site.

Meanwhile the trail cameras have captured a fox in the Scrub and the doe with her triplets near the Dirty Dancing Bridge.

2nd August

John started building a platform for the bench David O had made for the Point of View.

Good to consider all angles in any point of view

3rd August

The bench is complete and a fine place to sit.

Providing a platform for a point of view

A Small Tortoiseshell basking on a stone nearby - thankfully a few more butterflies are beginning to emerge

Always important to consider contrary points of view

Clare has withdrawn injured and frustrated. Weeding, scything, sickling, carrying stones and chip have proved too much for her back. She is forbidden strenuous activity so is at home making signage for the coming weekend and catching up with the camera discs.

One of the cameras records the best footage of bats yet - some compensation.

5th August

A badger makes slow, investigative progress through the Scrub just after midnight and a doe suckles her twins in the early morning.

John photographed one of the juvenile robins near the hide. It has become a Robin Redbreast.

7th August

The triplets move in and out of sync in the Scrub.

8th - 9th August

A couple of clips demonstrating a kid feeping. In the second you can see the abdomen moving to make the sound.

There was also evidence of more rutting activity near the Dirty Dancing Bridge, however the footage wasn’t brilliant, so it is not included here.

Clare was back on light duties. She was struck by the autumnal colour palette in this young Chaffinch’s plumage.

10th - 11th August

The weather gods were kind and the sun shone for the Open Days. John and Clare welcomed nearly 70 visitors, all of whom seemed to enjoy themselves. Many partook in the activities on offer (some illustrated below), most wandered around at their own pace and some simply enjoyed the scenery and company. Everyone came with great generosity of spirit and of purse and talked of how lovely it was to be able to be in, and to engage with, nature. There were sightings of deer, a hare, more butterflies in a day than have been seen thus far this year, dragonflies and damselflies, and although not as many birds as usual (the birds would have been sheltering from the heat and also there was more disturbance than usual at the hide), Susie W saw a Spotted Flycatcher on one of the Hawthorns in front of the hide. Clare was particularly pleased to hear this as she hadn’t noticed any this year. Susie also heard a Redstart calling.

John’s woodworking skills on display

Clare’s beeswax and forage produce

As she walked around at the end of Sunday, Clare noticed one of the Alders on the Wetland has begun to produce next year’s catkins.

John and Clare decided to extend the delights of the weekend with a stay in the shepherd’s hut. The sunset was a rich reward.

12th August

A glorious start to the Glorious Twelfth - John and Clare had a gentle early morning stroll round Liddells. They noticed small flocks of Willow Warblers and Goldfinches, Guelder Rose berries and Branched Burr-reed that they had been too busy to see before, and two male Common Hawkers on the Big Pond, however more delights awaited at the hide. Two Bank voles were scurrying around all the time John and Clare were there and just as Clare decided that the Spotted Flycatchers weren’t going to show, two turned up. On the way back to the Hayfield John and Clare saw Wrens, a pair of Bullfinches, Siskins, more Goldfinches and Willow Warblers; then, as they walked up and out of the Scrub, three or four more Spotted Flycatchers put in an appearance. Cherries on top of the icing on the cake.

Trail camera footage shows a kid pausing as if to listen to the Willow Warbler that is still around and singing. This kid shows how much it has grown and that it still has its spots. Later the same day that one of the kids seems to be developing an anal tush, marking her out as a doe.

13th August

Tom cut the Wildflower meadow today. Unfortunately he no longer has access to a small square baler so the hay will have to be raked up and disposed of in some way.

14th August

Ruth conducted her penultimate ringing session of the season. She reported a good session with a total of 42 birds. The highlights were an adult Spotted Flycatcher and a juvenile Whitethroat. (Clare learned recently that there are many country names for the Whitethroat, ranging from Nettle Creeper to Beardie and Hay Jack. though in this instance Net Creeper might be a more fitting name.) Ruth also recaught the Willow Tit she had ringed in the winter. There were plenty of Blackbirds, Blackcaps and Willow Warblers too. Ruth said that it is hard to know whether all the birds have bred on site this year, however ‘after fledging a lot of birds tend to flock and become quite mobile, they’ll go where there is good feeding. And the warblers will be gearing up for migration, it’s possible some of the Willow Warblers are moving down gradually from the north.’ Ruth once again demonstrates what an asset she is to Liddells and to Clare’s and John’s ongoing education.

The hares are enjoying the shade from the bales on the Hayfield.

18th August

John’s turn for some impromptu shepherding. When John and Clare arrived today they could see two sheep near the bottom gate. The sheep had jumped the wall to get in.

There are several Common Hawkers around the Big Pond. Common Darters are more obliging by keeping still for a a short while. Here is a male basking on one of the treads in the Alphabet Bridge.

Clare and John discovered that defeated by the wires now securing the lids to the seed feeders, the squirrels are going straight to the source of the food. Clare and John were greeted by the following sights when they went to the hide today.

Their frustration was, however, offset by some delightful sights.

Later in the day the oldest doe goes through the Scrub, closely followed by her feeping triplets. Kids are appearing fairly regularly on the trail camera footage however it isn’t always possible to know whether they are the singleton, the twins or the triplets as they are all becoming more independent.

19th August

Juno learned the word ‘dendrologist’, and set about investigating one of the slices of wood in the log shed. Clare and John indulged in a bit of child labour exploitation and managed to fill a dumpy with hay that they will be able to give to Barry for his goats.

20th August

John had his camera with him at the hide and managed to capture footage of a Spotted Flycatcher and of a squirrel. Clare thinks the squirrel looks decidedly smug. In retrospect she thinks it was planning its bungee jump.

21st August - 26th August

Barry R took the hay off the Hayfield on 21st. Happily, the hares that habitually use the bales as shelter have not abandoned the area and Clare and Juno saw five when they arrived. Here are a pair John photographed.

Clare noticed a patch of Harebells under the roadside beech trees. The plant thrives on dry undisturbed soil and the beeches provide exactly that. Clare has tried to establish this species from seed in the past though with no success. There have been a couple of flowers in previous years, however it seems as though they have increased in number this year. In Scotland, the harebell is sometimes known as the 'bluebell'; elsewhere, it has picked up various local names, including 'witches' thimbles' and 'fairy bells', alluding to magical associations - people believed that witches used juices squeezed from this flower to transform themselves into hares. The more prosaic reason for the flower’s name is that it grows in places frequented by hares.

The squirrels had inevitably made short shrift of one of the bungees on the feed bins. Smugness will be short lived. Metal chains are on the shopping list.

John continued working on the new fence post and strainers. The work will involve rerouting the old fence so the job keeps growing. Meanwhile Clare set about raking more meadow hay into rows ready for disposal. She filled another dumpy, however the rest was thrown in the North-East Strip into one of the old pits. It seems a shame to waste the hay, however leaving it on the ground would ultimately enrich the soil, the very opposite of what is needed for a wildflower meadow. It is hard for the photos to give a sense of the depth of the pit and Clare lost count of the number of trailer loads after the thirteenth. It was a lot.

As Clare and John worked over the Bank Holiday weekend, they decided that while most people have high days and holidays, they have hay days and no holidays. They took breaks in the hide and were pleased to see two and occasionally three bank voles feeding from spilt bird seed. On the Monday John and Clare noticed there were no voles in view. Clare decided it was because it was a Monday Bank Vole Holiday. They were both pleased to see and hear Willow Tits, which were particularly vocal. They completed the hay task, creating an inverted haystack, stackhay? in the pit.

Two plant species still in flower are Marsh and Hedge Woundwort. Both have an unpleasant astringent smell, however both were used to promote the healing of wounds.

Marsh Woundwort

Hedge Woundwort

25th August - 27th August

Trail camera clips. The triplets reveal themselves to be two does and a buck. For new readers of the Blog, sexing roe deer is from the caudal patch - the creamy coloured kidney shaped patch on the rear. Does have a downward pointing anal tush of hairs at the lower edge of this.

An unusual sight - two does and one kid. The kid is probably the singleton born to the youngest doe. This doe is often captured on camera grooming her kid.

A young buck pursues the triplets and the old buck seems to be evidencing late rutting behaviour in the Scrub. Note the difference in antler conformation between the two bucks.

28th August

Ruth ended her ringing season ‘with a bang not a whimper’ - she had 82 birds and a squirrel in her nets (no damage done to net or squirrel). Her report: ‘Highlights - several mixed flocks of tits and warblers (hence the high numbers). Lots of coal tits, sadly no willow! Two young nuthatch (first for site), two young greenfinch, LOTS of young bullfinch. And…a tree pipit, which is the first I’ve ever ringed.’ Ruth added later that the tree pipit was very fat, clearly feeding up for migration. She added that there had been 14 juvenile Bullfinches, and compared that number to the 15 Chiffchaffs and 12 Blue Tits. The two latter species are far more in evidence than Bullfinches. Bullfinches will often raise two broods of young and even three in a good year. Four to five eggs are normally laid, hatching after around two weeks, so 14 juveniles could be from a couple of pairs, each pair having two broods. Or from many other permutations; impossible to know but still delightful.

John and Clare are as thrilled as Ruth that her trial season can be declared a success and are very happy to know that the diversity of birds on Liddells is much greater than they had realised. Ruth is hoping for some autumn passage surprises.

31st August

Haws are forming, Blackberries ripening, Rowan berries reddening and Rosehips swelling - all indicating Summer is morphing into Autumn and Clare can prepare this year’s Hedgerow and Rowan berry jellies.

July - 'wetter summers might prevent hay being cut' - fortunately not this year

To view the video footage in this Blog post go to www.liddells.co.uk and click on Blog.

1st July

John and Clare are keen to see how the three does and the six kids they have between them share the space on Liddells. Here the doe and singleton make their way through the Scrub.

2nd July

Clare reckoned she had removed all the Hogweed from the Meadow. Whether she has or not will be seen in due course. She completed a second butterfly transect; Meadow Browns and Ringlets were in evidence but not in great numbers. Following Tim’s route up to the Meadow from the north, Clare noticed a patch of Monkey Flower Erythranthe guttata which she had never seen on Liddells before. The plant is typically found growing in water margins and wetlands so it is not in its usual habitat, however it is very welcome, as is the Spot-winged Drone Fly foraging on Marsh Valerian.

The doe with twins is captured on the north edge Pit Wood and the singleton shows its growing independence in the centre of the Pit Wood.

3rd July

It is always a treat to see the deer and their kids in video footage, however it is also good to see evidence of other wild animals on Liddells. A fox and a badger put in an appearance in the Scrub.

5th July

Meadow Browns are around most dry days now.

A hare provides evidence that it is not just roe deer that are a threat to tree growth, however it is good to see the hares in the trail camera footage as at this time of year they are hidden in the long grass for much of the time.

7th July

Clare set about collecting Yellow Rattle seeds from this year’s growth. she bagged over 100gms which is quite a lot of seed. John mowed the path at the west end of the Top Strip for the first time since abandoning weeding as the form of maintenance - the mowing worked well so Clare can strike ‘maintain Top Strip path’ off her to-do list for evermore.

In this year’s dearth of butterflies Clare was pleased to see a Large Skipper on the Greater Knapweed.

8th July

The proximity of the rut is evidenced by the older buck chasing a doe through the Pit Wood and something has disturbed the doe and twins in the same location.

9th July

The twins forage independently in the Scrub and a bit over an hour later are with the doe in the rain in the Pit Wood.

10th July

In the Pit Wood the doe and her single kid provide a charming example of learning by copying.

Later the same day the Scrub camera, albeit with some obstruction on the lens, captures the doe with her triplets.

11th July

The triplets are the last of the kids to demonstrate their independence, caught on camera in the Scrub.

Shortly later the twins bound through the same area.

Ruth completed another ringing session. Her previous session had been very quiet so she was very pleased this time to end up with her highest number of birds yet - 50. She ringed several juvenile Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs, a juvenile Linnet and a pair of Yellowhammers. A good day!

Juvenile Linnet - Ruth said it ‘looked very fresh (wings and tail still growing)’

A Robin ‘starting to look like a Robin’!

Juvenile Yellowhammer 1…

and 2

16th July

Although the new gate on the Meadow has been at cost to a patch of Field Scabious Knautia arvensis, Clare is delighted that a different patch is thriving. Apparently species of scabious were used to treat scabies and many other afflictions of the skin including sores caused by the bubonic plague. The word scabies comes from the Latin scabere 'to scratch'. The plant is also called gipsy rose.The genus Knautia is named after a 17th-century German botanist, Christian Knaut.

Juveniles are often present on the feeders and John was able to photograph a young Goldfinch.

18th July

John decided to reposition one of the cameras on the Hayfield as there was evidence of the deer using the long grass for couching. No deer appeared however there is an amusing clip of a Pheasant staring into the lens. Clare took a photo of the camera so readers can work out where the bird perched. She also remembered that there is a wildflower called Pheasant’s Eye. If readers click on the link, you can decide whether the flower is well named.

19th July

As in previous years the Willow Tits have disappeared through the breeding season, which leaves John and Clare anxious. They were both relieved to see one of the adults at the feeders today. John will take his camera up in the hope of further sightings.

21st July

As the day warmed up Clare noticed quite a few bumblebees around. Here is a Garden Bumblebee making the most of the forage on a Spear Thistle, a honey bee on Creeping Thistle, a pair of Red Soldier Beetles illustrating their nickname (Hogweed Bonking Beetles) and some Ragwort from the Wetland. Many people have heard that Ragwort is poisonous and a threat to horses and cattle and then assiduously pull it up from verges and the like. Horses and cattle will not eat Ragwort in a field; the plant is only poisonous if it is cut into a hay crop and fed to beasts. The plant is a valuable food source for a wide range of insects, in particular the cinnabar moth. John and Clare pull out any they find on the Hayfiled and Meadow, however they leave it in other places.

Clare enjoys seeing honey bees foraging on Liddells and always assumes they are from the Liddells apiary

Bonkers!

The much maligned Ragwort.

23rd - 24th July

An update on the deer. The triplets and the twins have been captured by the Scrub camera. After last month’s first ever (for John) footage of a deer barking, here is another. Expect the third any day…

Tom and Barry had planned to start cutting and making the hay earlier this week then the weather defied the forecast, however today it and the prospect over the next few days was better so Tom cut the Hayfield. Clare is unsure whether it is more stressful not knowing whether the grass can be cut at all or, when it is cut, whether the rain will hold off until the hay is made.

Recently the fat ball feeders in front of the hide have been opened and the fat balls eaten in spite of the feeders allegedly being squirrel proof. John and Clare have tried several methods of securing the lids none of which has proved to be effective for longer than a day or two. Clare set up a camera to see what happened.

25th July

John and Clare are spending a lot of time preparing Liddells for an Open Weekend next month, so while one man (Tom) went to mow, one man (John) took to his strimmer and one woman (Clare) set to work with her sickle and her scythe. John and Clare are making sure the paths are clear ready for visitors. While Clare was walking up through the Scrub she noticed the single Nettle-leaved Bellflower (there has never been more than one) is in flower.

25th - 28th July

It took the squirrel a couple of days to get the lid off. In the process it investigated the nyjer seed feeder as well. The squirrel made four visits/attempts on the first day, four on the second and cracked it on its second visit on the third day. Thereafter it made four further visits that day and two on the next before Clare retrieved the disc. The feeder is now secured with a cable tie - probably easily chewable. The videos below show something of the process and how almost the instant the squirrel is successful and leaves with his trophy, the birds come to the nyjer seed feeder (one of the Willow Tits appears; they seem to vanish during the breeding season so Clare & John are especially pleased to have evidence they are still around). A Wood Pigeon looks bemused by how to get a fat ball even though the top of the feeder is off but then Pigeons seem bemused at the best of times. Clare was told that a way of recognising their call was to hear ‘I don’t know, I don’t’. A juvenile Woodpecker shows its head as it starts to climb the pole.

Later that night in the Scrub the camera catches the height of the rut. The old buck drives the oldest and largest of the does round in a circle through hawthorns. There were three videos. In the first the pair make three circuits; there is a five second gap while the camera regroups and then captures another two circuits and the sounds of a third before the clip finishes. In the third video, five seconds later and not included here, you can hear the doe squeaking then all goes silent. Readers can use their imaginations for what happened next. John says he has read a buck will mate with the youngest does first, so he deduces that this buck will already have mated with the other two does who have Liddells as their home patch. If there is no buck on the home patch, the doe will go and find one and draw it in. Clare commented that there must be different driving circles on Liddells as the Scrub camera has been working and has not recorded any other driving. The rut is propelled by the does, who are monoestrus, coming into oestrus from mid-July. There is thinking that this happens as daylight hours begin to shorten. Apparently the word ‘rut’ is ‘late Middle English: from Old French, from Latin rugitus, from rugire ‘to roar.’’ Red deer stags do indeed roar, however as readers of this Blog know, roe deer bark.

29th July

With no fat balls left, the squirrel has to picnic on pine cones.

Clearing inside a caged Scots Pine, Clare saw a female Nursery Web Spider carrying her egg sac in her fangs.

While John and Clare feed a pile of brash through a chipper, Tom takes a spinning class.

Tom will probably row up the hay tomorrow. It smells gorgeous

The Point of View steps looking chipper after a top up

After John and Clare had left, a juvenile Greater Spotted Woodpecker visited the feeders.

30th July

As expected the squirrel had chewed through the cable tie so there are now carabiner clips on the fat ball feeders. Ha!

Ruth had a personal best with 62 birds in her nets this morning. She said that the warblers were arriving in the nets in small flocks. She listed the juveniles - 9 Chiffchaffs, 9 Siskins, 6 Willow Warblers, 6 Robins, 5 Blackcaps, 4 Bullfinch, 3 Goldfinch, 3 Blackbirds, 2 Wrens, 2 Blue Tits, 1 Goldcrest, 1 Dunnock and 1 Great Tit. It sounds like an alternative version of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Yesterday Clare had found a Broad-leaved Helleborine where she had not found one before however she had forgotten to take a photograph. Today she went looking for more and found only about a half dozen plants in total, far fewer than when she and Mel first discovered the plants on Liddells two years ago. (Mel will probably complete a wildflower survey any day so watch next month’s Blog post for a numbers update.) On the way Clare noticed a Red Admiral and a Comma both with folded wings and blending into the bark, high on an Oak. Her attempts to take a photo of them together came to a full stop when the Comma flew off. It was the only Comma Clare has seen this year.

She also looked for the Betony in the Pit Wood and found a colony of about twenty plants still thriving; the Bittersweet nearby them was also increasing in its spread.

Betony Stachyis officinalis commonly known as Common Hedgenettle, Purple Betony, Wood Betony, Bishopwort, or Bishop’s wort. Historically, it was planted in churchyards to prevent activity by ghosts.

In dyeing the plant makes chartreuse on wool with alum mordant.

Betony was also an ingredient of “Pistoja powder,” an old herbal medicine remedy for arthritis, gout, and tension headaches. It was also claimed to be effective against snake and dog bites, and was believed to be a cure for drunkenness.

Bittersweet Solanum dulcamara also known as Woody Nightshade. The berries are toxic; the leaves smell of burnt rubber when crushed.

At the Big Pond Clare watched Common Blue and Emerald Damselflies, a male Common Darter and the impressive blue helicopter that is the male Common Hawker. Clare apologises for the poor quality of the photos, at the time she was more concerned with not falling into the pond than with sharp focus; also she didn’t have her glasses; and dragon and damselflies won’t keep still for long! She had more success filming a Raft spider weaving its web above the surface of the pond. ‘The chocolate-brown raft spider inhabits bogs and ponds. It can be spotted sitting near the water, its legs touching the surface. When it feels the vibrations of potential prey, it rushes out to catch it, floating like a raft…Raft spiders will also swim underwater, often diving beneath the surface when threatened.’ According to the Wildlife Trust website, these spiders are ‘widespread but scarce.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

On her way up to the Hayfield Clare saw what she first thought were ladybirds on one or two of the Willows in Sylvia’s Avenue, however on closer inspection they proved to be galls. Identification, even with the help of the British Plant Gall Society (who knew?) still proved difficult, however they are possibly Aceria iteina a mite that causes galls on Salix species.

The Scrub camera recorded the singleton kid with a dragonfly in the foreground - a reminder that dragonflies often use trees for shelter.

31st July

Tom rowed up the hay this morning. This afternoon, while Clare was working on path clearing, she heard the welcome sound of a tractor. The month has ended balefully. Ten bales this year, fewer than before however John and Clare are very relieved to have the work completed. Huge votes of gratitude to Tom and Barry for making time to help us.

Hip, hip, hoo hay!!

May - life and death

The usual reminder - in order to view the video footage, go the the Blog page of the website: www.liddells.co.uk

1st May

Sadly the ducks’ nest has been raided; ducks and eggs have gone. Possible culprits are herons, foxes, magpies, crows, rooks, jays and squirrels.

3rd May - 4th May

Clare was intrigued to see evidence of considerable disturbance of moss on the Crag. She wondered whether it was caused by birds finding nesting material, however the disturbance seemed on too big a scale for that to be the reason. She set up a trail camera and waited. Resulting footage suggested at first that Pheasants were responsible and maybe a Song Thrush; there is a clip of a Red-legged Partridge although the evidence is insufficient for an arrest in this case, however further footage showed a couple of Jays flinging the moss around with abandon.

Two clips of bucks from the camera behind the bee shed show the old buck still in winter coat, while one of the younger bucks shows more of his summer coat.

4th May

While John worked on one of the strainers for a gate post, Clare repaired the wire damaged by the sheep grazing on the Meadow.

More plants coming into flower; today Clare added Field Wood-rush, Bugle, Bluebell, Lady’s Mantle (the wild version is lower-growing than the one you see in gardens), Stitchwort, Marestail; there is blossom on pear and apple trees, and the Wild Service trees are in leaf. Here is a selection of those and a photo that suggests the young bucks are no longer in velvet.

5th May

Clare supported International Dawn Chorus Day with an early visit to Liddells and discovered why we have the phrase ‘up with the lark’. Skylarks were singing before dawn in the neighbouring field and there were a few lapwing calls as well. The blackbirds and robins began singing at about twenty-five past four and were soon joined by thrushes, wood pigeons, wrens and the warblers; last to sing were the titmice. Keith told his bird-watching group that the birds with the largest eyes sing first and they are after the worms that emerge early in the day. Clare was also entertained by a roe deer barking during her visit; as the light came up she could see it was the pregnant doe. (You may need the volume on the highest setting for the video.)

Thank you to Jean for offering a quote from Tom Stoppard: ‘How beautiful the dawn is. If only it did not occur so early in the day.’

7th May

Ribwort Plantain is in flower on the Hayfield and the Wildflower Meadow. The Wildlife Trusts’ website notes that Ribwort Plantain is the subject of a game that's similar to conkers - children pick the stems and knock the flower heads together, battling it out to see whose head drops off the stem first. Clare recently read Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent and in it Judi Dench quotes part of a song from Cymbeline:

‘Golden lads and girls all must,

As chimney-sweepers come to dust…’

Dench says these chimney-sweepers ‘are those reeds - I think they’re called ribwort plantain - which have a brown nobbly bit at the end. If you pick them and bend the stalk round the neck, you can go ‘phwat’ like that and shoot off the head, and all the seeds burst away like dust. I do it all the time when I find them. I can’t resist it.’

Clare noticed recent fraying on the protection around a Small-leaved Lime; happily the protection has proved effective as the tree itself is untouched.

7th May

Ruth completed the first of her breeding season ringing sessions. She ringed 33 birds in total and the species list is: Blackbird, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Willow Warbler, Garden Warbler, Blackcap, Chaffinch (unringable, diseased legs), Bullfinch. She sent a photo of a Garden Warbler adding the birders joke about the species - ‘their Latin name is Sylvia Borin, because they are boring.’

This is a male Garden Warbler identified as in breeding condition because of the cloacal protruberence (not visible in the photo and recorded as CP in the ringing records. Females in breeding condition have a visible brood patch, recorded as BP).

Speaking of breeding, there is much activity in the North-east Strip, in the very first nesting box John and Clare put up. It is being used by Coal Tits. One of the trail cameras has recorded footage of one of the birds leaving with what is probably fecal matter, keeping the box clean; a bird arrives with food and then leaves; a bird arrives with what looks like a St Mark’s fly and leaves without depositing it inside and then is followed by a Blue Tit having a very good look inside the box, maybe with a view to a takeover; the last clip in this series shows a Coal Tit with another large insect - the bird seems very hesitant about taking it into the box, however it seems to do so in the end.

8th - 12th May

Clare inspected all three bee hives and found that two of the queens had upped their laying rate. Clare added supers to all three hives to provide more space - the bees can use the super to store nectar and pollen, leaving the frames in the brood box for the brood. There is a queen excluder fitted between the two boxes so that the queen remains in the lower chamber. On her way back to the Hayfield, Clare disturbed a Tawny Owl twice in the Scrub.

John and Clare marked John’s birthday with a nesting box survey. They found 9 occupied with either eggs or sitting birds and nesting material in a further 11.

The Oaks are coming into leaf and Germander Speedwell has found its way through the stones in the top roadway. Tormentil is coming out everywhere and the Water Violets are looking splendid on the Big Pond. Large Red Damselflies, often the first to be seen in Spring, are emerging and flying.

The two young bucks who were captured sparring last month appear one after the other in the Scrub and seem to still be wary of each other.

The old buck seems contemplative in the Scrub; his summer coat is now coming through; he seeme to check out a twig for scent marking.

John and Clare both did some preparatory work for a group visit.

A badger appears on the Crag.

13th May

Members from the Wildlife group of the local U3A came for an afternoon visit. Clare had given the group a talk about Liddells earlier in the year and this was a follow-up. The visit went well - hares appeared and the big pond offering sightings of damselfly nymphs and, for one half of the group, a couple of newts close to the surface. Jenni L sent a collage of some of her photographs of the visit. The newt is bottom left.

More footage of a Thrush on the Crag.

15th May

Ruth completed another ringing session. She said it was quieter than the first, however her highlights were 2 more Garden Warblers, 3 more Long-tailed Tits a Song Thrush and the first juvenile - a Blackbird. She also heard a Yellowhammer for the second time (Clare has noticed two singing in the last few days and has seen one in an Ash tree on the west boundary which has been used as a Yellowhammer perch for the last few years.) Ruth also heard Linnets so is hoping one might appear in her nets. She sent these photos and thought the Blue Tit was ‘rather grumpy looking’!

17th May

A young doe appears in the Scrub. She could either be the one that had a single doe kid last year and therefore might be pregnant again, or she could be the kid that is now a yearling and unlikely to be pregnant. Neither has been seen for a while. Later in the day one of the younger bucks appears in the Scrub.

18th May

Clare arrived early to conduct the annual breeding bird survey. With the tree foliage well advanced the survey is primarily a listening exercise and the listener can never be sure whether the same bird is heard in more than one place, however the survey gives a snapshot. The first treat was seeing a Tawny Owl perched on Sycamore branches in the Top Strip and clearly visible. During the survey Clare noticed that she heard no Goldfinches, Siskins, Willow or Long-tailed Tits and no Goldcrests, although all have been seen recently. The most numerous songsters seemed to be Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs (13 apiece), followed by Blackbirds and Chaffinches. You can see the full result on the Surveys page of the website.

Clare tackled a long neglected patch of wall repair in the Top Strip. There was plenty of evidence that deer were using the damaged area as a place to jump in and out of the land.

With the stone back in place, Clare checked all the nest boxes again to see whether any with material were now in use. She found Great Tit nestlings in one box. She also noticed that Yellow Rattle, Sorrel and Pig nut were all flowering.

19th May

The Large Red damselflies are being joined by Azures.

A different buck appears in the Scrub. He looks young although his antlers are well developed.

20th May

In the early hours of the morning the old buck is captured chasing the new buck. While the old buck seems to be tolerating the two younger ones, probably sired by him, this new one is one buck too many.

Ruth arrived with her mentor to conduct the first of her nest box ringing sessions. She began with the Coal Tits in Box 1, however when she opened the box where Clare had seen the Great Tit nestlings, the box was empty. It had been predated, possibly by a weasel or a mouse.

25th May

Ruth conducted her second breeding season survey and ringed 30 birds including a number of new Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs, a baby Robin and a new female breeding Goldcrest.

Clare and John have been away bird-watching and delighting in seeing three species for the first time - Stone Curlews, a Wood Lark and several Hobbies. Neither of the two cameras in use had much footage of particular interest on their return, and frustratingly the batteries in the camera aimed on nest box 1 had run down so there is no footage if the Coal Tits have fledged.

26th May

The younger doe appears again in the Scrub. Her summer coat is now much more evident. She may be pregnant. John and Clare are hoping the trail cameras will capture footage of any new kids which could be born at any time now.

31st May

John and Clare came up to have a final check on the trail cameras before the deadline for the Blog. Sadly box 1 seems to have been predated. Ruth’s mentor said that with so much bad weather more nestlings may have died beacuse the adult birds have been unable to go and find sufficient food. The bad weather may have contributed to fewer boxes being used this year; conditions have made it harder for birds to breed.

More plants in flower, Clare noticed Ragged Robin, Bush Vetch, Red Campion and some White Bugle.

Large Red, Azure and Common Blue damselflies on the Big Pond and a male Broad-bodied Chaser was flying around the roadside pond and perched for just long enough for Clare to grab a quick snap with her phone - not the best quality however it was delightful to see the dragonfly season progressing.

Happily the hares seem to have bred successfully - the trail camera in the Pit Wood has captured several clips of what are clearly leverets. Here are two of those clips, delightful scenes to end the month.

Readers may remember that the Wildlife Trusts encourage as many people as possible to undertake a 30 Days Wild in June, engaging with nature in some way or other during the coming month.

October - rock stars

As always, if you wish to see the video footage included in this post, which is unlikely to be included through the email link, go to the Liddells website at www.liddells.co.uk and click on the Blog page. The videos will be there.

Corrections and clarifications: TrogTrogBlog Chris, a continuing source of support and encouragement as well as being a mine of information, pointed out that the dragonfly basking on the tree trunk in the photo below in last month’s Blog post, was not a male Southern Hawker but a male Common Hawker. Significantly Common Hawkers are not that common, so this proved to be a bit exciting. Chris said the Common Hawker, ‘has paired dots on the terminal segments (fused in southern), long shoulder stripes (short in migrant hawker) and a characteristic pattern on S2.  It doesn’t show well in your photo but the costa (leading edge of the wings) is yellow - it is brown in migrant hawker.  Common hawkers are said to prefer acidic standing water.’ Clare has bought a water testing kit…

1st October

A late afternoon walk round Liddells and as John and Clare came up to the top of the Crag, John spotted two deer and three hares all grazing near each other on the Hayfield. Getting too close would have disturbed them so here is one of each.

Clare managed to identify another fungus thanks to the wildfooduk website. The fungus is an Orange Grisette and you can read more about it here.

2nd October

Excitement for Clare as Ian delivered the colony of bees for which she has been waiting. It seems to be quite a strong colony. Before opening the entrance Clare put a bundle of leafy branches in front of it so any emerging bees would realise they weren’t in Kansas any more and would reorientate. As soon as the entrance plug was removed Clare and Ian could see that happening as the emerging bees went off for short flights before returning to the brood box presumably to communicate this new information.

4th October

Clare put a clearer board on the new colony to remove the bees from the super above so that could be taken away leaving all the bees in the brood box for the winter. The clearer board stays on overnight - and is designed in such a way that the bees in the super go down to the brood nest for the night then can’t get back up into the super next morning.

Clare noticed fungi on a Birch tree in the Pit Wood; the growths looked like footholds for climbing. The fungus is, appropriately, Birch polypore. The birch polypore is also known as the 'Razorstrop fungus' because its rubbery, leather-like surface was once used to sharpen knives and razors. Probably a bit of a stretch to sharpen a chain saw.

5th - 19th October

Clare had noticed recent signs of excavation near a large boulder on one of the paths down the Crag. The boulder has cavities below although it isn’t possible to know how big these are. John set up a trail camera and he and Clare awaited results.

October 5th

The buck kid makes an appearance. You can just see the start of buttons appearing where his antlers will grow next year. He is also in full winter coat.

The big buck goes past eight minutes later, past offering a close-up of his fine head and gorget patches.

There was quite a lot of footage of a grey squirrel. John and Clare usually delete such footage (and grey squirrels), however since the footage provides evidence of all the wildlife in this small area, and of some of the excavation, here is one clip which shows the squirrel burying what is probably an acorn.

A hare also appears to be curious about what may lie under the rock.

October 6th

The first of several clips of a badger. The animal has a look down the hole and then appears to be curious about the red light on the camera.

A male pheasant walks past the camera. Pheasants are more usually seen in the woodland patches or the Scrub.

10th October

As a record of all the wildlife associated with this large rock, the slug also needs to be acknowledged. This one takes two minutes to cover a distance of about six inches. This perseverance merits the second clip although it is hardly going at a clip. Of course it might be for a slug. It doesn’t appear again in the footage so may have gone into a crevice or a Slough of Despond. You never can tell with slugs.

14th October

There were a few videos of field or wood mice (different names, same creature). This one gives the clearest view. It is possible that the mouse is storing berries and seeds under the rock.

A buck kid appears and is joined by another kid. As the first kid moves away there is a clear view of the caudal patch. A female would have an anal tush. The caudal patch is more prominent in winter and when the deer is alarmed the erectile hairs make the patch look bigger.

15th October

One of many video clips of rabbits. Here are two rabbits for the price of one.

16th October

A rabbit in a hole, although whether or not it is in a difficult situation is unknowable. It does go on to do some digging, adding to the evidence bag for the excavations. John and Clare thought readers might not need this particular piece of evidence.

With the damp weather have come an abundance of midges and mosquitoes. The camera has captured them in front of the rock.

19th October

There have been several badger visits, however this is the first in which a badger completely disappears into the hole beneath the rock. Four hours later two badgers investigate. Although badgers have frequently appeared in trail camera footage, John and Clare have never found a sett on Liddells. This footage might suggest these badgers are looking to set up a sett. Setting a precedent.

With more of her attention focussed on this area of the Crag than usual, Clare noticed a patch of moss or lichen that caught her attention. She has been unable thus far to identify it. Any ideas, please email.

There has been far more wildlife in this small area than either Clare or John had imagined. They have moved the camera now, however may well position it back in front of the rock at a later date.

Meanwhile back on the rest of Liddells:

7th October

Barry delivered a new colony of bees for Clare. The colony’s queen was raised from a frame of eggs from one of Clare’s colonies last year. After several weeks Barry had thought this had been unsuccessful and had left the bees to their own devices. After quite a while he thought he would check on them, expecting to find most of them dead, and was met with a thriving colony. As Clare was without bees at the time, he very generously offered them to her. While he and Clare were talking by the bottom gate a stoat made its way across the Meadow and stood up on its hind legs very close to the gate, displaying its creamy underside. It was one of those times when getting a camera out would have alarmed the creature so there is no photographic evidence of the moment.

14th October

The Spindle trees are resplendent in their pink berries. The berries have bright orange seeds and although they are poisonous to humans, they are food for mice and birds.

17th October

John saw six deer on Liddells today, four on the Hayfield and two along the top of the Crag.

18th October

The hay has been collected at last. John and Clare were concerned about it deteriorating in the wet weather.

This evening John gave the first in a series of six talks offered to raise funds for Liddells. This is all thanks to Keith, who a while ago had offered four of his talks to raise money for Liddells. John’s talk was one he had given locally a few weeks ago. He is now booked with several local WI groups. The evening represents how John and Clare are thinking about making Liddells more widely known and available to interested groups.

19th October

Clare heard and saw large numbers of Fieldfares and Redwings while she walked round today. She also spotted three Goldcrests and noticed lot of Blackbirds - the winter visitors from Scandinavia are arriving.

22nd October

As Clare and John approached the top gate they saw about four and twenty black birds (irresistible) on the Oak at the top of the Crag; they were Rooks eating acorns. This is not behaviour either John or Clare have seen before.

John and Clare walked round in welcome sunshine to see if there was much damage from storm Babet. A couple of limbs had come off trees, the largest being from the Oak at the bottom of the Crag. The spring overflow was gushing water down the stream and water was coming up from the previous site of the spring a few yards east of where it is capped. This has only happened a couple of times before in the last ten years. As Clare captioned the photograph ‘Torrents’, she recalled a song by Elgar she had learned at choir, ‘As Torrents in Summer’ and wondered if there was an autumn version.

Large numbers of Fieldfares and Redwings were eating hawthorn berries in the Pit Wood.

A male Southern Hawker was flying around near the Big Pond and a lot of bluebottles were basking on a couple of tree trunks nearby. The flies on one of the trunks appeared to be making use of a vertical groove in the trunk.

Clare noticed the advancing rot in one of the trees left to decay in the Pit Wood. Rotting wood adds to habitat diversity on the site as well as looking rather sculptural.

30th October

Rain has prevented much play on Liddells for a few days, however John has made the Hayfield secure for the sheep which will be arriving shortly. The Meadow road wall also needs attention before the sheep go on there - now on the list for the next dry spell.

John saw a Woodcock - this may be resident or one that has flown in. Regular Blog readers may recall that folklore has it that these birds arrive with the first full moon in November. This isn’t due until 27th November this year, so maybe this bird took advantage of the Hunter’s Moon on 28th October.

31st October

The stream down from the spring is fuller than it has ever been.

As the month ends, here are two images that speak of time to come. Two nascent trees, an Oak with a well placed understory of Holly growing in the Scrub and some lichen that could provide nourishment in a harsh winter. Clare’s friend Gillian reminded her that lichen only grows in areas of low/no air pollution which is a comforting thought about Liddells. This particular lichen is Ramalina farinacea. The trail cameras have captured roe deer eating it on Liddells in snowy conditions. The lichen is packed with carbohydrates (more pound for pound than potatoes), contains usnic acid which has anti-biotic properties against pneumonia, streptococcus and tuberculosis bacteria, and has anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and preservative qualities. If this winter proves to be particularly harsh, John and Clare might use it themselves.

September - time to rest

As usual, video footage can be accessed through the Blog page of the website: www.liddells.co.uk

2nd September

John and Clare have decided that the next ten years will involve less hard work, accordingly they had a stroll to begin the new month. Clare found a Harvestman occupying the Necessarium, Purple Loosestrife offering late forage for pollinators and the first fir cones on one of the young Scots Pines.

3rd September

Enough rest - Clare did some preparatory work for a small wall repair on the west boundary while John repaired fencing on the Hayfield in readiness for the sheep to come later in the year.

Clare found a Violet already in flower on the edge of the Pit Wood.

Clare was delighted to see a Spotted Flycatcher from the hide. These birds haven’t been seen since early in the season. This one may have been feeding up en route south or it may have been around the whole time.

A hare in the north-west corner of the Pit Wood demonstrates the art of stretching.

4th - 5th September

John and Clare completed the wall repair then John extracted an unused hurdle from long grass while Clare used a crowbar to dig up some buried coping stones on the Hayfield. Unfortunately the crowbar slipped. As Clare takes most of the photos, not many of her appear in the Blog - good to swing the balance a bit; it would have been better not to swing the crowbar.

There has not been much activity on the roadside pond this season so Clare was delighted to spot this female Southern Hawker ovipositing near the edge.

9th September

Always good to see later flowering plants for the pollinators. Here a bee forages on Michaelmas daisies in the Meadow.

It was the local Village Show this morning and John won a first prize for his photo of a Spotted Flycatcher taken earlier in the summer, and Clare won a second prize for the Red Admiral photograph from last month’s blog post.

A kid shows off its pronking skills in the Pit Wood.

11th - 12th September

Another new insect discovery, this time a Sun fly Helophilus pendulus. It is a hoverfly and its scientific name means ‘dangling marsh-lover.’ It was neither dangling nor on a marsh. While Clare was giving some syrup to the bees, she noticed a beetle had fallen into one of the wasp traps. She fished it out and wrapped it in a tissue to bring home to check the identification. It was a Smooth Ground beetle and as you can see from the photograph, appeared pretty much dead, however the next day Clare was surprised to see it climbing out of the compost bucket where she’d put it. Another dramatic drowning insect rescue and revival.

In the gloom a badger marks territory on the edge of the Pit Wood.

13th September

John and Clare were delighted to welcome Linda F back to walk round Liddells with a view to some creative writing activity in the future. While Linda and Clare were exploring they saw a male Southern Hawker basking on a tree trunk and a female Common Darter basking on a stone, both by the Big Pond. They also noticed a group of Puffballs that had released their spores.

After Linda had left, Clare went foraging for this year’s Hedgerow Jelly and foraged quite a few creatures with the fruit - two different shield bugs and two species of spider. None of them will go into the jelly. Clare also videoed a Speckled Wood foraging on the blackberries. The butterfly seems to prefer the fruits that have gone over slightly.

Hawthorn Shield Bug

Birch Shield Bug - this is about the size of a ladybird

Eurasian armoured long-jawed orb-weaver Metellina segmentata

Clubiona comta

14th September

The doe with twins sets about grooming them.

22nd September

Clare discovered that as well as the familiar Bluebottle fly, there is a Greenbottle - here is one on Michaelmas daisies.

23rd September

Catching Covid has left John and Clare unable to do little more than gentle strolls on Liddells, however today Clare enjoyed sixteen sightings of hares - of course several were probably the same hare or hares, however the views certainly helped lift the spirits. There were five at one time on the Hayfield.

25th September

Yet another recuperative stroll and watching a hare run away on the edge of the Pit Wood alerted Clare to an Elm tree she had never noticed before. It’s quite small and much higher up the bank than the ones already identified. Liddells continues to surprise.

26th September

One of the does shows how much her coat is changing to winter colours. She also shows gorget patches. John has read some commentators who think that these are more prominent in winter.

28th September

John may not be working much, however Clare discovered that he had invested in a new toolbox dedicated to spanner activity. It takes all sorts. Clare was amused by the double sense of this and decided to see if there are any spanner jokes available. Of course there are. Once again Liddells proves to be a route to consciousness raising.

29th September

Michaelmas Day - the day that marks the end of harvest, the start of winter and the beginning of shorter days. Oak leaves are on the turn.

The doe with twins is quite clear with them that milk is off the menu. Maybe she too needs a rest. It looks at this stage as if both kids might be bucks.

Hares seem to be playing Hide and Seek.

August - Hay nonny nonny nonny yes

Video footage can be seen through the website: www.liddells.co.uk

1st August

The heather on the Crag is starting to come into flower and offers late summer forage for many insects although Clare has never seen a honey bee taking advantage of the on-site nectar. Clare and John are still hoping for some dry, warm days when the grass can be cut, however the rain persists.

3rd August

There haven’t been many hares on the Blog of late, mainly because they mostly just run past the cameras, so to make up for their absence, here is a two-for-one offer.

5th - 20th August: the rut - these dates are not precise, however they do give an idea of the period involved. John has been watching out for signs of the rut for a while; the trail cameras have provided some evidence. (* denotes footage below, PW = Pit Wood, SCR = Scrub). John thinks the height of the rut this year was on the 13th, thereafter the activity declined, the bucks’ movements are less intense and the kids start to reappear. The footage demonstrates that over a short period of time there have been three bucks, one doe with one kid and one doe with two kids (probably the remaining two of original triplets) sharing the same territory.

5th PW 05.21, 05.49, 07.19, 08.31, 11.08, 11.11, 13.20, 14.51 and 17.53 (big buck, the younger buck at this point seems to have got the message from the older one and left)

6th PW 01.11 (buck), 06.20 (buck), 07.03 (buck), 10.15 (doe), 10.16 (buck), 10.18* (a buck chasing a doe, however John spotted that this is a different and younger buck. The antlers are shorter and the tip of one looks as though it might be broken. The coronet at the base and the pearls are pronounced. It could be one that was around last year drawn back by the prospect of mating), 10.39 (big buck), 13.31 (doe)

7th PW 6.02, 11.55, 14.52, 16.54, 20.48 and 22.41 (big buck)

7th SCR 05.10, 10.44, 14.00, 17.35, 17.36 and 23.49 (big buck)

8th PW 00.15 (big buck), 06.35 (doe), 08.27 (big buck), 08.28* (big buck driving a doe), 11.39 (big buck), 11.54 (doe), 12.07 (doe), 14.15 (big buck), 22.22 (big buck)

9th PW 05.38 (doe), 05.52 (doe), 12.30 (big buck), 23.27 (doe), 23.51 (big buck)

10th PW 08.35 (doe)

11th PW 11.48 (doe), 12.54 (big buck), 12.58 (big buck

12th PW 18.55* (two bucks)

13th PW 04.26 (big buck), SCR 05.45 (‘broken antler’ buck), PW 09.02* (‘murder’ buck has returned and is seen chasing off a kid, another deer maybe the doe in the background), PW 09.18 (two deer, one definitely a buck), PW 09.24 (big buck), SCR 10.37 (buck ? broken antler), PW 12.01, 13.08, 16.06 (broken antler), 19.38, 19.44 (doe) 19.55 (broken antler buck and doe)

14th SCR 06.18 (deer ? sex), PW 06.42, 06.46 (doe), 07.05* (‘murder’ buck driving doe), 07.21 (broken antler), 08.24 (2 kids), 08.25 (doe),08.46, 08.55 (broken antler buck), 16.29 (doe) 19.05* (doe and kid; this shows the rain on hayfield cutting day)

15th SCR 04.54 (doe), 06.19* (doe and two kids), PW 07.58 (deer ? sex), 09.35 (doe), 09.36 (doe), 09.39 (doe and kid)

16th PW 05.57 (doe)

17th SCR (doe + two kids), PW 18.08 (doe and kid); 23.30 (doe)

18th PW 06.05 (big buck), 07.14 (doe), 17.29 (big buck)

19th PW 17.54* (big buck), 19.10 (big buck)

20th PW 16.05* (kid - possibly a buck), 16.07* (second kid), SCR 19.59 (doe), 20.00 (kid).

Meanwhile:

6th August

There is a tiny bit of footage, too brief to include, from the Scrub (the camera’s batteries were failing) showing the kid with the doe. The kid hasn’t been seen for a while on either camera. The remaining battery life allowed for a glimpse of a stoat.

An insect feeding on Ragwort caught Clare’s eye. It is an Eriothrix rufomaculatus, described in Wikipedia’s somewhat disparaging tone as ‘a rather common fly,’ which inhabits hedges, grasslands, fields, meadows. Surprisingly for a common insect, it only has a Latin name.

John’s car offered a perch for this Willow Beauty moth Peribatodes rhomboidaria. Apparently ‘the adults can be found by day at rest on tree trunks’. And Land Rovers.

Chris arrived with his log-splitter which made short work of the timber John had brought up to the shed. Clare went into stacking mode.

A hen pheasant shepherds her two chicks in the Pit Wood.

8th August

Clare is pleased to see insects taking advantage of the last of the flowering plants on the Meadow. In the foreground, on Knapweed, is a Buff-tailed bumblebee. (The bee in the background may be the same however the focus is not good enough to be sure.)

9th August

A hare has a change of mind in the Pit Wood and footage from the Scrub reveals the reason for the Blackbird’s alarm calls.

11th - 12th August

Walking around after stacking logs, Clare noticed a Yellow-sided sawfly Tenthredo notha, and acorns developing on one of the Oak trees. Tim reported that he had seen Purple Hairstreak butterflies at the top of an Ash next to the Oak where they were seen last year.

Although in two different video clips, footage shows the kid still with the doe. It would seem that this kid is a buck. Footage in daylight shows that it has pretty much lost its spots.

13th August

John and Clare had planned a barbecue to celebrate looking after Liddells for 10 years. Fortunately the rain held off and it was all good fun. The barbecue John built worked splendidly as did the barbecuer. Mathilda, Hal, Beth and Juno had brought thoughtfully chosen gifts and their continuing support. Clare had devised a Nature Charades game which induced much hilarity. The day ended with an unplanned bit of log rolling. Mathilda and Clare saw Common Darters on the Big Pond. The Shepherd’s Hut is proving to be a magnet for moths, usually Large Yellow Underwings Noctus pronuba, however on Saturday there was also a Dark Arches moth Apamea monoglypha. There were several butterflies on the thistles on the Hayfield and Clare was appropriately proud of her photograph of a Peacock. The Village Show is not far off; maybe Clare will challenge John for a photography prize this year. Clare and John had a walk around after the others had left and found (what Clare thinks is, but didn’t want to get too close to and disturb), a Southern Hawker perched on a willow whip. Clare and John decided they might just take a well-earned break and do non-Liddells things for a week. This proved wise as the weather continued to be wet and it would have been too disheartening to keep seeing the hay not being made.

The cake was made (not by John or Clare) using honey from Clare’s bees, foraged blackberries and edible flowers

You might notice that only three people are putting in any effort. There are two supervisors

14th August

Tom had been unable to cut the Hayfield and Meadow on Sunday so came this morning instead. It was drizzling but not too bad, however the rain developed with the day and turned into probably the wettest day of the summer thus far. Heigh ho, or rather hay no.

15th August

Better weather and the hay showed signs of drying out. All digits are crossed for the weather to hold until the hay is baled. Clare has begun her annual attempt to learn more about fungi. She also rescued a Hawthorn fly from the roadside pond.

Rufus milkcap

Rufus milkcap showing gills

Sulphur tuft

Meadow waxcap

and gills

Imperilled Hawthorn fly

Drier Hawthorn fly - no CPR required

17th August

An example from the Scrub of how different species can be indifferent to each other; although at first the doe appears to notice the hare and the hare to pause when it confronts the doe, both animals carry on with whatever they are busy doing.

22nd August

The hay is still on the ground - it keeps getting nearly dry and then the rain starts again. All very dispiriting, however today two families visited with young children and they lifted spirits with their enthusiasm. Both families enjoyed pond-dipping and found baby newts, water spiders, water boatmen and lots more besides. Sharp ears detected a Common Field Grasshopper and sharp eyes a Harelquin ladybird. Jane noticed Purple Brittlegill fungus. The afternoon group asked for a story in the story-telling circle and Clare began a dramatised version of Goldilocks. At the point where Goldilocks tries Baby Bear’s chair and breaks it, Clare sat on one of the benches and it broke! Her commitment to the theatrical arts is second to none. No one was hurt during the performance.

The Guelder rose plants in the Orchard are looking very autumnal.


She sat in the small chair. “This chair is just right,” she sighed. Just as Goldilocks settled down into the chair to rest, it broke into pieces!

One of the does is showing clear signs of beginning to lose her summer coat.

One of the kids looks as if it might be a buck and the other a doe, however it is still too soon to be absolutely sure.

23rd August

Barry was able to get up to Liddells and bale the hay at last. Sixteen and a half bales this year. The meadow has to wait a bit longer for Tom to be free with his square baler.

Proof of baling

26th August

John decided to start picking rowan berries for this year’s rowan berry jelly. Back at home he called Clare over to see a Hawthorn Shieldbug on the kitchen table that had probably hitched a ride with the rowan berries. The photo is included in the Blog as the bug came from Liddells.

29th August

Just when the rut seemed to be over, the new buck on the block chases a doe through the Scrub.

30th August

Tom has rowed up the hay on the Meadow ready for baling. With good luck and the proverbial following wind, there may be bales by the end of the month.

Leaving Liddells today, Clare noticed how many plants are making their way through the rubble roadway. She identified Ivy-leaved Toadflax, Dwarf Spurge, Fat Hen, Groundsel, Greater Plantain, Rosebay Willowherb, Mousear, Marsh Thistle, Forget-me-not, Creeping Thistle and Creeping Buttercup - it will soon be a green road.

Row, row, row your hay

Two more moths perched for long enough for Clare to take quick photographs. The first is a Pale Straw Pearl, which Clare thinks sounds like a colour in the Whites section of a paint chart. It is a frequently seen tiny white moth, barely over two centimetres in length. The second is medium sized - a Shaded broad-bar. Clare found another fungus new to her. It is a Blushing Bracket fungus Daedaleopsis confragosa; Clare wondered how Daedalus had become involved in the name and thought the smaller piece resembled a moth. Honeysuckle is still in flower - always good to see forage for pollinators late in the season.

Pale Straw Pearl moth

Shaded Broad-bar moth

Blushing bracket fungus

31st August

Squeaking, or rather chirruping into the Blog at the last minute, a Common Green Grasshopper appeared almost exactly where the Common Field Grasshopper had been seen a few days ago. Hard to get a photo, however you can see that it is green.

STOP PRESS! The meadow hay was baled this afternoon. Phew!

June - the call of the wild

First corrections and clarifications from last month. Chris, ever supportive, helped untangle the mysteries of the dragon/damselfly emergences. Chris says that the last photo of the May blog post shows ‘four damselfly exuviae and two damselflies.  The white threads coming out of the back of the two in the centre are the nymphs’ spiracles and are evidence that emergence has occurred.  Bottom left, hidden by a leaf…there are two more, one behind the other.  The upper damselfly is a female large red, recently emerged and beginning to colour up.  The lower one has only just emerged and has no colour or visible markings so we can’t say what it is, although it will be a large red or an azure.  It is still in the process of expanding its wings which will go clear like the one above’. Chris also commented that the penultimate photograph shows a Four-spotted chaser, not, as Clare had labelled it, a female Broad-bodied chaser. He pointed out the extra spots on the wings; he said that without a clear view of the abdomen, it isn’t possible to determine the sex.

NB remember that to see the videos (and there are some particular delights later in the Blog) go to the website www.liddells.co.uk and click on the Blog page.

1st June

Clare decided to embark on her 30 Days Wild - readers take note, this Wildlife Trust challenge has been featured in The Archers this year - by having a stroll round Liddells to see what she could see. She wondered about attempting some grass/rush/sedge identification but decided life was too short. She made for the Big Pond where she realised that almost every upright growth in the water had several damselfly exuviae attached.

She noticed a pair of Pied Wagtails flying away from the Hayfield, and what she guessed was a juvenile Rook hopping along the boundary wall while a parent bird appeared to caw encouragement from the top of an Ash tree.

A juvenile’s beak appears quite thin

She was keeping an eye open for any glimpse of a doe and kids and did hear a deer bark but with no sign of the animal. As she approached the north-east corner of the Pit Wood, she kept her eye out for Spotted flycatchers. It’s the part of the wood where she has seen them in previous years although she had spent a while looking there without success two days previously. She was delighted to see a pair of the birds and watched them for about half an hour as they fluttered between an Ash and a Hawthorn. Next she went to the hide to fill the feeders and was amazed to see a Spotted flycatcher on top of one of the Hawthorns in front of the hide. It flew off towards where she had just been watching them. Neither Clare nor John have ever seen this species near the hide before. While she was watching, a Tree Sparrow, usually very shy about coming on to the feeders if someone is in the hide, spent a lot of time taking mixed seed. Then a pair of Siskins perched nearby. These have not been seen for months here. A good bird-watching episode. All these sightings are a reminder that the breeding bird survey doesn’t account for all the birds that may be around. It was also a great start to Clare’s 30 Days Wild.

Clare then had another unexpected experience - she realised that about a dozen sheep and lambs from the neighbouring field had pushed against the bottom gate, freeing the bolt though the chain was still in place, and opening it sufficiently to force their way through the gap, and were busy grazing on the Meadow. Clare set about some impromptu shepherding. This involved unlocking the gate while not letting any more animals in. At the sound of the padlock some cows and calves came running down to the gate so they had to be sent on their way first. While this was happening some of the sheep had made their way up through the Scrub and were near the open gate into the Hayfield. Clare managed to head them off at the pass, get to the gate before them and close it but then had to make a wide arc round the sheep to encourage them back down. She also had to keep an eye on the neighbouring field to check nothing else was getting in. This involved a lot of running up and down hill seeking different routes from the sheep. Fortunately the splinter group made their way out of the gate. Clare then sought to move the Meadow sheep. She managed to encourage them out of the Meadow and she closed the hurdle - not an easy task as it hadn’t been moved for ages and the chicken wire at the bottom had become enmeshed in grass. As she moved them towards the gate they broke back into the Meadow by forcing themselves through the wire. Hurdle off again. Clare felt like a beginner at a sheepdog trials as they sheep kept circling the Meadow, approaching the entrance and then going off in a different direction. At last they left the Meadow but then chose to go back into the Scrub. Clare wanted to head them off before they reached the top so went up through the Scrub by a different path. The sheep, intent on getting to the top, were ahead of her. Clare went back down to the bottom, through the gate and up the road, in through the top gate and approached them from above. This seemed to work and the sheep headed down the main path. Clare took the other path and hoped to stop them turning left at the bottom rather than right and through the gate. This was a good plan except the sheep were slower than Clare had expected and were still quite a way up the path when Clare appeared at the bottom. Guess what - they went back up the path. Clare repeated the last section of the plan and this time the sheep came all the way down the path and turned right and out through the gate. Clare reckons this counts as a wild experience. She can also see that it does all sound quite amusing. One day she hopes to be able to laugh about it. Fortunately she was soothed on her walk home by seeing a pair of Linnets and a mile further on, a pair of Greenfinches.

June 2nd

Clare noticed that the cattle grazing with the sheep had been munching on the Sycamores overhanging Liddells’ road wall, probably because they are sweet with honeydew at the moment, and the cattle had knocked down quite a section of the wall. Clare made her way down to the NE Strip to prune the Sycamores there and reduce the risk of more damage. As she approached the Meadow she saw a ewe and two lambs happily grazing there. They must have split off at some point during yesterday’s shenanigans and returned to the Meadow after Clare had left. Fortunately Tim and Jane were walking past at just this moment so the business of removing the sheep only took a couple of minutes. Hardly wild at all.

The Flycatchers were still in the same area of the Pit Wood and using the same perches as yesterday. Clare returned a deer’s bark with one of her own, a skill learned from John. She saw a large newt in the Big Pond and a green Weevil on the road gate.

Clare thinks this is Polydrusus cervinus although the description does not include metal gates as a habitat.

A clip from the trail camera in the Pit Wood - although no wildlife is to be seen the footage is included here because the bird calling is a Marsh tit. They are often seen on the feeders but not so often heard.

Later that same evening the camera captures a wonderful close up of the older buck’s head. You can see the gutters (grooves) and pearls (the knobbly bits) on his antlers, and just what a fine head he has.

June 3rd

Clare did more Sycamore brashing while John repaired the wall. After that strenuous work John went to see if he could photograph the Flycatchers. He was very pleased with the result. Rightly so.

Clare had a leisurely walk around and several wild encounters - a Goldcrest, a Treecreeper, a Sparrowhawk and the Flycatchers. She sat in the hide for a while and noticed a Great tit make numerous trips to peck up some of the peanut butter-based paste that she makes and leaves on the tree trunk feeder. The bird took the paste to the nestlings in J2.

By the pond she saw a female Broad-bodied chaser ovipositing, a Small Copper butterfly and had an up close and personal encounter with a Large Red damselfly.

Keen film fans might recognise a film from 1970 referenced here (answer at the end of this post)

4th June

Mel arrived to complete a wildflower survey. He showed Clare the difference between a Bulbous buttercup and a Meadow buttercup. In the latter the sepals are turned downwards.

John created a Sycamore Gap on Liddells by removing the spindly trees in the NE Strip which were not only tempting the cattle but crowding out some Oaks.

Bulbous buttercup

Meadow buttercup

John thinks the footage below is of the younger doe and is left wondering if she is pregnant. Time may tell.

5th June

Clare often hears Blackcaps singing on Liddells however with all the foliage she rarely sees one. Today one perched in one of the Hawthorns in front of the hide. Catching up with some old episodes of Tweet of the Day later on, Clare was reminded that the bird is referred to as the ‘Northern Nightingale’.

Clare set about some preparatory work for the school visit next month by beginning to weed the steps up to the Point of View ready to add new chip.

Mel sent his updated record of the wildflowers on Liddells. It’s an impressive and encouraging record and John and Clare are hugely grateful to Mel for the time he has given and the thoroughness with which he has done this. You can see the record here. Mel was interested to find several specimens of White Bugle not far from the hide. He commented that these are quite rare. He also enjoyed the Orange Hawkweed on the Meadow and the Water Violet in the Big Pond.

White bugle

Mel prefers the name Grim the Collier:

‘Although Pilosella aurantiaca (more commonly known as Fox-and-cubs) is a native of northern Europe, it must’ve been introduced to Britain a very long time ago as it gets a mention in Gerard’s 1633 Herbal. Gerard called it Grimme the Collier, which seems to me a most intriguing name. I’ve read speculation that the name may have been coined because the plant’s hairs resemble coal dust on a miner’s beard (really?) but there was also a play that originated in the early 1600s called Grim the Collier of Croydon and that was apparently based on a real-life character from the mid 16th century. It would seem more likely that the plant’s name relates to the person or the play but, in that case, I can’t help wondering: was Grim tall with a head of bright orange hair? Was Grim an invader from northern Europe? Were these particular flowers mentioned in the play?’ (Earthstar.blog)

Water Violet

6th June

Hares and roe deer are predominant on the trail cameras however Clare and John are always pleased to see evidence of other life (except grey squirrels).

8th June

Clare was working on the steps when she saw a Red and Black Froghopper. Struck by their colour she thought about London buses and wondered if several would turn up together. Sure enough within a few minutes she had seen four, clearly the Routemasters of the insect world. Here are a couple:

John has been surprised to see the younger buck still around, particularly as this is the time when does give birth and have usually pushed the former year’s youngsters away by now. You can see that this one has, in roe deer head terms, a rather poor set of antlers.

However the older buck seems aware of the younger one’s presence as he sniffs at this branch and the next day is seen chasing him through the Scrub.

9th - 11th June

Clare noticed the first of the Common Spotted Orchids out in flower on the Meadow and a profusion of Ragged Robin at the base of the Crag. A female Broad-bodied Chaser perched long enough for Clare to get a photograph and she watched a family of Willow Warblers near the apiary. One juvenile stayed still for long enough for a short video.

13th June

Clare was delighted to be receiving a new colony of bees today - a small colony that was the result of swarm control by beekeepers in a nearby village. The delivery was due early in the morning as it was so hot and when Clare arrived at Liddells the dew revealed a mass of webs all over the grass.

‘Sheet webs are usually built by the Linyphiidae. This is the largest family of spiders in the UK, with 280 species. It includes the tiny money spiders said to bring good luck if you find one wandering over you.

The smallest species tend to build their sheet webs on depressions in the soil, others on low vegetation and some on tree bark.

The money spider hangs beneath its web, waiting for dinner to land above.’ (https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/spider-webs.html)

14th June

John and Clare have been keen to retrieve the trail camera discs as they have been expecting the roe does to have their kids at any time now, however here is the older doe still pregnant.

15th - 21st June

While metaphorically pacing the corridors of the maternity ward, John and Clare enjoyed welcoming Hal, Beth and Juno for an afternoon on Liddells, continued their preparations for group visits in July and for John’s inaugural talk on roe deer which he is giving at a local village hall. Clare also completed this year’s assault on the Creeping thistle on the Meadow - she was delighted to have found only 78 in total, well down from previous years.

Positioning the first post for what will become a tree house. Beth would like it noted that John is not carrying anything and that carrying it over, she had the heavy end

Juno and Hal indulge in a bit of tree climbing…

while John assumes the role of Health and Safety Officer

Juno joined in Insect Week by finding and examining the nymph of a Froghopper inside Cuckoo Spit. She couldn’t resist finding a use for Foxglove flowers.

John took his camera to the pond.

Male Broad-bodied chaser

Azure damselflies mating

John also spotted the creature below on a leaf on the pond. Clare thinks it belongs in a cartoon or animated film. The Royal Entomological Society has a wonderful insect identification service and the response to Clare’s enquiry about this one was that it is ‘one of the leaf beetles from the family Chrysomelidae with some 280 UK species. This one could be Plateumaris sericea or a related species. They have a variety of colour forms and are found near ponds where the larval food plants are’.

After leaving the bees alone to settle in for a few days, Clare moved them from the nucleus hive (5 frames) to a full size brood box. The bees had built wild comb on top of the frames - Clare thinks they must be upwardly mobile.

John says that bucks often seem to be invisible in the summer months however the older buck is maintaining his presence for the trail camera in the Scrub.

22nd June

The day before John’s talk ‘A Year in the Life of the Roe Deer’, Clare decided to change the discs in her camera. Imagine her delight when she saw the perfect postcript for the talk.

Clare reckons the one at the back is destined for a career in comedy. The doe has had triplets for the third year running.

The doe is picked up by the camera in the Pit Wood later the same day though only two kids appear.

23rd June

One kid appears on its own in the Scrub.

24th/25th June

With paths needing chip, John and Clare hired a chipper and invited a few friends to come and work extremely hard in return for some cake. Fortunately they have great friends. Five piles of brash were converted to the wood equivalent of mincemeat, about two dozen bagfuls were used on paths and the rest bagged up for future use. Clare was so focussed on the work she forgot to take photographs until the end so it looks as though Jane E did all the work. Clare and John would like to extend their thanks to all who took part - Barry, Jane B, Mel, Pat and Jane E. As ever they all pitched in with huge amounts of effort, great good humour and a much valued generosity of spirit. Thanks too to local farmer John R who donated lots of bags to reuse.

Jane B discovered a visitor on her jacket which Jim Hardie of the Royal Entomological Society identified as ‘an adult female meadow plant bug, Leptopterna dolabrata which is a plant/capsid bug, family Miridae of which there are some 230 UK species’. Good for it to appear in Insect Week. Also supporting Insect Week - Clare noticed these beetles bonking on Hogweed while she was walking home. Regular readers of the blog will know that in spite of their location and activity, these are not Hogweed Bonking beetles, although they may be trying to emulate them. These are Speckled Longhorn beetles Pacyytodes cerambyformis.

Adult female meadow plant bug

‘In the UK it is locally common in the south of England and the west midlands, throughout Wales and more local and scarce through most of Scotland. Adults are active from May until July … the typical habitat is deciduous woodland and wooded parkland but they fly well and will travel some distance to visit flowers and so may occur away from wooded areas, e.g. we found specimens on umbel flowers beside a busy A-road in Surrey far from any woodland, they are very active and on warm days may display a habit of hovering above flowers and moving rapidly, in the way a hoverfly might move. Mating occurs throughout the season and pairs may be seen on the leaves and flowers of various shrubs and herbaceous plants, typically umbels but also meadowsweet.’ (ukbeetles.co.uk)

Clare saw these beside a path between woodland and a road.

Crossing the Hayfield to some of the brash piles on Saturday, Clare noticed three very small couches all close together, suggesting the triplets had been left to lie up there. John says very young kids are scentless so their presence can’t be detected by the likes of a fox. On Sunday Clare arrived early and went onto the Meadow to remove some Hogweed flower heads and found a single couch. She thought this might not be one of the triplets who would most likely be together. Seeing a movement out of the corner of her eye, she realised she was looking at a single kid at the far end of the Meadow. It ran backwards and forwards along the fence line for a while watching Clare. No other kids appeared, nor a doe, so Clare left it confident that it would either find a way out or be found by the doe. John and Clare are left wondering if a second doe has given birth.

Clare also had a couple of delightful butterfly encounters on the Meadow.

25th June

Footage from the Scrub camera suggests that there is indeed a doe with only one kid.

28th June

Two video clips from the Scrub camera both seem to suggest that there is a doe with just one kid, maybe the kid Clare saw on the Meadow. The triplets have not appeared all together on the cameras since 22nd June. In the first clip it looks as though the doe stops to groom the kid just out of range of the camera.

29th June

John and Clare set about the last of the preparations for the Hexham Village Band’s visit on Saturday. Clare then went to Barry’s for some beekeeping and was delighted to spot a new queen fairly quickly - cataract surgery and new spectacles seem to work. Once a queen is identified she can be marked and this makes the whole process of swarm control considerably easier. Queens born this year are marked red although Barry’s queen was marked green as this was the pen to hand; clearly Clare and Barry are catering for red/green colour blindness.

If you have taken up the 30 Days Wild challenge, John and Clare hope you have enjoyed it.

The answer to the film question posed on 3rd June is Claire’s Knee, directed by Eric Rohmer. Clare remembers going to see this film as a student in the days of power cuts. The film had hardly started before the cinema was plunged into darkness whereupon Clare heard a disgruntled voice behind her complaining, “We haven’t even seen Claire, let alone her knee!”

May - surveys and surprises

First the familiar reminder that to watch the trail camera footage, go to the Liddells website, click on the Blog: the videos will be there in all their glory.

1st May

Clare decided to honour International Dawn Chorus Day by arriving at Liddells just before 5am to listen to the birds. She decided on an anti-clockwise route for a change and so quickly arrived at the bottom of the Scrub having heard Blackbird, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Robin, Song thrush, and Willow warblers on the way. At this point she realised she was looking at an odd shape between two Hawthorns on the Meadow. It was a tarpaulin shelter under which was a pair of boots and a bundle. This was not what Clare was expecting and she was quite scared. She backed off quietly and walked away thinking about what to do. Guessing this was a wild camper, but not knowing how wild, she made her way up to the tool shed to see if there was a suitable weapon with which to defend herself. Rejecting the idea of a rake or a hammer, she realised her best weapon was her mobile phone camera. Thus armed, she locked the top gate and made her way on the road to the bottom gate, keeping it locked and between her and the camper. She could see he was up and was starting to pack. He did this very slowly and methodically and was obviously careful to leave no trace. He saw Clare and as he approached asked if this was the Hadrian’s Meadow camping field. Clare pointed out that had it been, it was unlikely to have had a padlock and chain. Kush was profusely apologetic, particularly when he realised how upset Clare had been and that he had somewhat compromised her delight in the dawn chorus. He was courteous, thoughtful and interested in the Liddells project. He asked if there was a café anywhere soon along the route where he could top up his water bottle, then went on his way. Knowing there is no café nearby, Clare drove back home, gathered some portable breakfast goods and water and drove back to find him on route. Kush was very touched by the gesture and gave permission to be included in the Blog. He may well be reading this.

A postscript - Clare knows she is dilatory about checking the Liddells email and was both embarrassed and delighted to see, far too late in the month, that Kush had sent a kind and generous email after his stay on the Meadow, appreciating how Clare and John are engaging with Liddells and appreciative of his stay and his breakfast.

Clare did manage a few recordings so for those who would like to listen, the audio clips feature the following dominant songs (you will hear others in the background):

Wren (often described as the having loudest birdsong per body weight)

Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Garden Warbler (the Blackcap has a deeper tone, slightly more tuneful, while the Garden Warbler has more by way of burbles in among the notes. Then sometimes the Blackcap burbles and the Garden Warbler sings more tunefully.)

Chiffchaff, Chaffinch (Clare often thinks of this song as resembling a build up to a sneeze and ending with the ‘p’choo’ of the sneeze at the end)

Willow Warbler (again for Clare, as if building to a sneeze but then the sneeze goes away in a series of descending notes), Magpie, Coal Tit

2nd May

Juno came to help John and Clare flatten the last of the molehills on the Top Grazing. Not a mountainous job and Juno set about the task with enthusiasm. And a back hoe.

6th May

Clare and John took a break in the hide after strimming the Orchard and protecting Bird Cherry trees with tubes and cages. They were surprised to see a Willow warbler round the feeders and even more surprised when it went into the caged ground feeder. It was not after food though - the bird emerged with a small feather and set off to a Hawthorn not far away. The bird made several trips across the front of the hide collecting several small feathers. Clare went to see where it was taking them and saw it disappear into the base of a clump of rush. While the bird was away Clare had a quick look and saw a small hole with a mossy cup inside. This was very exciting.

7th May

More tree protection in the Orchard. John and Clare are mindful that the younger buck is still in velvet and they have found fraying damage.

8th May

An evening visit to Liddells after a day of heavy rain. As John approached the bottom gate he said, “If there’s not a deer out after that rain, I’ll eat my hat,” whereupon he and Clare saw the younger buck on the Meadow. John’s hat collection remains intact.

9th May

John had noticed a hare on the Top Grazing which frequently ran for cover from the same spot. On closer investigation he found the hare’s couch. It is more likely to be a temporary resting place than the hare’s form. Below you can see the couch and where it is on the Top Grazing.

Clare had moved her trail camera to a site near the Willow warbler’s nest and was pleased to pick up some footage of three deer. First a doe eating raspberries. She is still in her winter coat but looking very shaggy; then a splendid view of the older buck in hard horn (regular readers may remember why this phrase, although often used, is technically incorrect), and winter coat; last the younger buck still in velvet and winter coat. Not a velvet winter coat. The clips are all captured within a twelve minute period.

10th May

Clare had moved her camera again after capturing no footage of the Willow warbler near the nest. The camera had recorded a lot of footage showing the abundance of St Mark’s flies, (so called because they emerge close to St Mark’s Day, 25th April); they are also known as Hawthorn flies. They do seem to be attracted to Hawthorns in particular.

11th May

Keith generously offered his annual help with a breeding bird survey and met Clare at 7.15 in the morning to walk round listening and making a note of what they heard and saw. They enjoyed the usual Blackcap or Garden Warbler challenge. The results of the survey are here.

Clare took Keith to see the Willow warbler’s nest and was dismayed to see that it had been pulled out and apart, and was empty. Culprit unknown. Clare saved the nest and weighed it - it was 8 grams - light as a few feathers.

The destroyed nest…

…and where it was hidden

Clare commented that she hadn’t seen or heard any Bullfinches for a while. Later in the day walking home, she saw one on an apple tree in the garden at home.

12th May

Bullfinches clearly have a sense of humour - there were two on the Meadow as Clare arrived today.

John and Clare are seeing hares on nearly every visit. Below are a couple caught on camera.

13th May

A gloriously sunny day so, as Tim and Jane were away, Clare completed the weekly butterfly transect. Tim has often said that although the transect year begins in April, nothing much happens in this part of the county till later. Nonetheless Clare saw 8 Orange Tips, 4 Speckled Woods and a Small Tortoiseshell on the Liddells part of the transect. After completing the transect Clare went for a wander into a part of the Scrub that is less accessible and was delighted to see a pair of Tawny Owls. They had obviously been roosting together and flew out surprised by Clare’s proximity.

A sequence of clips from the trail camera showed a doe browsing Hawthorn for several minutes before couching at 7.15 am. She doesn’t get up until 8.43 when she begins browsing again for 2-3 minutes before wandering off.

14th May

John and Clare cleared the last of the barley straw bale from the Top Grazing and distributed it in front of the hide where the ground had become very muddy. The pheasants had a great time moving it about as they hunted for the odd grain.

A doe, possibly the older one, and in her summer coat, looks very pregnant. The kids will be born some time in the next few weeks.

15th May

All the trees in the Orchard are now fully protected either with tubes or cages. It’s a time-consuming but necessary part of routine maintenance. John’s friend Mike saw the Tawny Owls in the Scrub.

16th - 18th May

Clare found 6 of the Willows in Sylvia’s Avenue on the Wetland had been frayed and a couple pushed out completely, so she set about putting tubes on them. Clare and John have a commitment to recycling materials whenever possible in their work on Liddells; it was particularly pleasing to use the hedging tubes that originally came with the plants for the hedge by the apiary. There were exactly the right number for the willows.

Clare had moved her camera to a different area near the hide wondering if the deer might be using it. They weren’t, however she was pleased to have recorded this night time activity.

Clare moved her trail camera again, this time in the hope of capturing the owls on film. The camera proved its worth again. The very first clip after moving it provided evidence of both birds with the too-wit-too-woo calls. Although people might assume this is the call of a single Tawny, in fact the female calls ‘too-wit’ and is answered by the male’s ‘too-woo’. A couple of days later one owl is recorded coming into the tree. (Since then there have been no more sightings.)

20th May

Clare was having a gentle walk round Liddells noticing which plants were in flower. She had had cataract surgery a couple of days earlier and was amused that the first flowers that caught her attention were Eyebright.

Clare also saw Large Red damselflies mating near the Big Pond, the first damselflies of the season. She has been waiting for several months to include nuggets of information from a programme called Dragons and Damsels. First nuggets - these creatures have been around for 330 million years (not the ones Clare was seeing obviously). Both dragonflies and damselflies cover great distances in search of suitable spots; their eyes can detect polarised light reflected by water surfaces and this means they can not only detect a pond however small, but also tell a lot about the water quality and submerged vegetation.

21st - 25th May

Clare decided to pursue the idea suggested by Linda France a while ago - to think of more creative names for the different areas of Liddells rather than the prosaic terms used thus far. So the Top Grazing is henceforth the Hayfield - I think you will agree that this is an improvement in terminology. Clare is working on the Top Strip, dividing it in her mind into sections - the Quarry Walk, Up to a Point - the west end awaits a name.

While on the Hayfield Clare noticed several insects that looked rather like Daddy-long-legs, although this is the wrong time of year for them. She managed to photograph a pair mating and sent the photo to the Royal Etymological Society, as ever receiving a very quick response: ‘Tipulidae are tricky to identify, as many of the colour characteristics that look so straight forward are in fact continuous between species, such that many species are difficult to distinguish one from another without careful attention to other characters often not apparent in photographs. Nonetheless, if I'm not too much mistaken, based on the eye, wing and abdomen colouring, this is a mating pair of Tipula (Lunatipula) vernalis. The species has a preference for sweet-grassland or chalky grassland where the larvae thrive in drier soils.’

John and Clare began mapping and maintaining the trees at the east end of the Hayfield. They were pleased to note that from all the planting over a few years, particularly with the very small trees planted last autumn, there are now 37 Oaks, 18 Horse Chestnuts, 3 Beech, 3 Birch, 3 Hornbeam, 3 Field Maples, 2 Limes, 2 Hazels, 1 Ash and 1 Crab Apple. Every one of these is now protected with either a tube or a cage depending on size. Less than a handful of the trees had failed.

Wandering through the Quarry Walk later in the day, Clare found a wildflower that she had never seen on Liddells before. She thinks it is Charlock.

26th May

More damselflies around both the Big and Roadside ponds (yes, these need new names); this time Azures were abundant with much mating activity. Next nugget - Azure males will sometimes attempt to mate with female Common Blues though with no success.

Clare found a mystery creature inside one of the folding chairs in the shed. John thought it might be a tick however it seemed to be too big, then revealed itself to be a spider - a False Widow Spider.

27th May

Water Crowfoot is in flower on the Big Pond. You can also see a photo-bombing pond snail.

28th May

Clare fashioned a step into the meeting room using half an unwanted pallet. John finished extracting nails and other fixings from fenceposts and rails he had collected from different areas of Liddells which had been discarded during a previous ownership. The retrieved wood is now sawn and stacked. Clare added another layer of protective wire to the third of the Oaks that are descendants of the Leper Oak on Hexham golf course.

Clare also completed this season’s nesting box survey. 13 are in use this year - not a huge number, although clearly there are birds nesting without recourse to the boxes.

While she was walking round, Clare noticed Holly in flower which hasn’t caught her attention before. She also found another face in a tree. regular Blog readers may recall that seeing such things is called pareidolia.

30th May

Both male and female Broad-bodied Chasers were flying round and over the Big Pond. Clare waited patiently to spot the frequently used perches and waited beside them only to be outwitted by the Chasers which immediately moved to different resting points, then returning to their original places as soon as Clare had moved. Nonetheless, here is her attempt at a photo of a female. And more information - dragonfly larvae have forward-facing eyes giving them stereo vision, and jaws that can shoot out an additional half length of their body to catch prey. The ideas in ‘Alien’ were far from original.

Clare saw a juvenile Blue Tit in the Orchard.

31st May

In keeping with all the other surveys this month, Clare has been keeping a record of the plants as they bloom. Thus far the following have been in flower this month:

(the flowers are listed as you would find them in a field guide)

Nettle Family - Nettle

Dock Family - Bistort, Common Sorrel, Broad-leaved Dock

Pink Family - Greater Stitchwort, Common Chickweed, Field Mousear, Red Campion, Ragged Robin

Buttercup Family - Marsh Marigold, Meadow Buttercup, Creeping Buttercup, Lesser Celandine, Common Water Crowfoot, Wood Anemone,

Cabbage Family - Charlock, Cuckoo Flower, Garlic Mustard, Common Scurvy Grass, Hairy Bittercress,

Saxifrage Family - Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage

Rose Family - Lady’s Mantle, Raspberry, Wild Strawberry, Water Avens, Herb Bennet, Tormentil, Silverweed, Crab Apple, Rowan, Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Wild Cherry, Bird Cherry

Pea Family - Gorse, Broom, Bush Vetch, Bird’s Foot Trefoil, Red Clover, White Clover

Wood-Sorrel Family - Wood Sorrel

Geranium Family - Meadow Cranesbill, Herb Robert

Milkwort Family - Common Milkwort

Spindle-tree Family - Spindle Tree

Violet Family - Sweet Violet, Common Dog Violet

Carrot Family - Cow Parsley, Pignut

Heath Family - Heather, Bilberry

Primrose Family - Primrose, Oxlip, Cowslip, Yellow Pimpernel

Bedstraw Family - Woodruff, Heath Bedstraw, Common Cleavers

Borage Family - Common Comfrey, Lungwort, Field Forget-me-not,

Labiate Family - Bugle, Water Mint

Figwort Family - Germander Speedwell, Common Field Speedwell, Eyebright, Yellow Rattle

Plantain Family - Ribwort Plantain

Honeysuckle Family - Guelder Rose

Daisy Family - Daisy, Ox-eye Daisy, Perennial Cornflower, Dandelion, Common Catsear, Orange Hawkweed

Lily Family - Lily of the Valley, Ramsons, Bluebell

Of course some are past their flowering period and there are others yet to come. Clare was particularly please to see Common Spotted Orchid leaves appearing in several places.

Readers may note that Clare has made no further mention of the course she joined on Grasses, Rushes and Sedges. She felt that she insufficient botanical background and inadequate eyesight (at least while she still had a cataract), to derive most benefit from the sessions, so she withdrew. She still has a field guide so hopes to learn a few specimens in her own time.

Another juvenile Blue tit near the Big Pond and three juvenile Thrushes in the Pit Wood.

John and Clare had an afternoon walk on Liddells - yes, they can just walk without any need to work - and spent a lot of time by the Big Pond observing dragon and damselflies. Thanks to Chris W’s wonderful blog, Clare had read of his experience watching a dragonfly emerge from its exuvia and so today she thought to inspect some of the rushes in the pond. One plant had at least seven nymphs, another three or four; luckily John was there with his camera. A splendid way to end this month’s Liddells experience.

Male Broad-bodied Chaser

Female Broad-bodied Chaser

Here are some we prepared earlier - Clare is not quite certain about what is shown here and as this all happened just as this post is about to be published, she hasn’t had time to check in with Chris. Her guess is that three dragonflies have emerged and are yet to develop their full colour; the darker smaller form is a nymph that is yet to split and release a dragonfly or it maybe the exuvia from which a dragonfly has emerged, Clare is also uncertain what kind of dragonflies these are. So much still to learn. Clare hope to follow up on this great photograph next month.

A reminder that June is the month for 30 Days Wild - readers may enjoy the challenge to engage with nature in the month ahead by being in, watching, listening, reading, creating, discovering, questioning, learning, or any other ways…

August - being driven round in circles

For new subscribers, it will be unlikely that you can watch the video footage through an email. We suggest that when you see the Blog email, go to liddells.co.uk and click on the Blog page. All the video clips will be there.

1st August

Clare and John visited the Knepp Estate in Sussex. This is where Charlie Burrell and Isabella Tree have abandoned intensive farming in favour of a pioneering rewilding project. The Maori use the word kaitiakitanga, for ‘Guardianship or management, esp. of the natural resources of a place or area; environmental stewardship considered as a duty and responsibility of the inhabitants of an area’ (OED Word of the Day 04.07.22). The undertaking is inspiring, based as it is in respect for and trust of nature, and those qualities were apparent throughout. Although not the best time of year to see some of the more exciting species that have returned there, Clare and John each saw a Turtle Dove in fight, many White Storks and were astonished that a pair of red deer stags grazed within ten yards of the hut where they were staying. There were numerous Gatekeeper butterflies which Clare had not knowingly seen before; Clare noticed a Common Field Grasshopper had landed on her jacket, a short distance from its usual habitat of unimproved grassland, which was there in abundance.

Meanwhile, back on Liddells, the trail camera in the Scrub captured footage of a neighbour’s dog chasing one of the roe triplets. The doe and other two kids appear, following the scent and much alarmed. Clare and John are now waiting for any footage that shows the kid has been reunited with its family.

2nd August

Tim and Jane thought they had seen a Purple Hairstreak butterfly on the large oak on the Wetland last evening, so set off again this evening to try their luck. They were successful and saw a couple on a tree that overhangs the north boundary near the bee hives, although photographing the butterflies proved hard.

4-5th August

Clare has learned a lot about roe deer from John and was therefore excited to discover what she believed could be a driving circle in the Scrub, a clearly trampled circle round a Hawthorn. In the rut, a buck, sensing a doe coming into oestrus, will quite literally, drive her round in circles or a figure of eight until she is receptive. This may happen over several days. The buck appeared early in the day of the 5th. John came to look at the circle and agreed with Clare’s speculation so Clare moved the Scrub camera to focus on the central Hawthorn. Later that day the doe appeared, the buck is seen in pursuit, and a single kid follows on its own.

Clare worked some more on digging out the roadside pond while it remains dry.

6th August

Clare found a Ground Beetle cloaked in a spider’s web on the brush in the Necessarium. Ground Beetles are often found under the bark of decaying wood, so perhaps the sawdust was the attraction. The brush didn’t seem to be decaying.

The single kid appears on its own for several minutes in the morning and in the afternoon, near the Hawthorn in the Scrub.

7th August

Clare and John celebrated nine years of kaitiakitanga of Liddells by getting on with their chosen projects - Clare digging out the roadside pond and John working on the classroom. Mindful of the damage caused by Storm Arwen, he has decided to put shutters on the openings, which can be fixed open if there are weather warnings, thus allowing any storm winds to go through the structure without lifting off the roof.

Clare’s hunch proved to be well founded although the main driving circle proves to be to the right of the Hawthorn. The doe was captured hanging around the circle early in the day. The drive happens in the early evening. John has edited together all the clips from the trail camera and you can see the buck driving the doe for several minutes. There are calls audible throughout the drive. John is unsure whether these are from the buck or the doe. She seems to tire towards the end and then returns on her own, presumably after mating. John says that the buck will mate with the younger does first, hence selecting the doe with only one kid. John is very pleased to have footage of a drive.

8th August

Clare, having unsuccessfully tried to find Purple Hairstreaks on previous days, not realising that they are usually seen in the early evening in sunny, still conditions, rather than earlier in the day, was pleased to see Tim also out to look for them. Tim showed Clare exactly where to look and there indeed were a couple of the butterflies, just visible to the naked eye, however binoculars gave a better view.

9th August

Tom made 30 bales from the hay on the Wildflower Meadow. Clare and John enjoyed seeing the old-fashioned rectangular bales. Clare, finding it hard to know how deep was deep enough, saw the heap of soil she had removed and decided she had added sufficient depth to the roadside pond. She started work on uncovering the edging stones that had become overgrown.

Giant haystack not

11th August

Tim managed to get a photograph of a Purple Hairstreak and has helpfully circled its whereabouts! He pointed out that, rather than purple, the wing colour appears rather reddish.

13th August

Barry told Clare that in the north of England and in Scotland, the process of moving hay out of the fields and storing it in a barn is called ‘leading the hay’. Clare had not heard this before although then synchronously heard John use exactly this phrase later in the day. Barry also demonstrated the use of some rather nifty straps with ratchets to secure the hay on the trailer. Just as he was explaining that if you threaded them the wrong way, they were almost impossible to undo, John provided a visual aid for this problem. John and Barry led the hay to Barry’s barn. John finished untangling the strap by early evening. While investigating the phrase Barry had introduced, Clare discovered a photograph in National Galleries Scotland entitled ‘Leading Hay’. She rather wished she had worn a boater for the Liddells event.

Clare started work on the north side of the pondside road, spotting a Small Copper nearby.

14th August

Clare finished uncovering the stones on the south side of the road, so turned her attentions to the north, remembering that when the large digger had come to further dig out the big pond, it had displaced several of the road edge stones.

15 - 18th August

The classroom building work continues. You can see the first shutter in place.

Clare’s work on the road edge continues.

One of the trail cameras, now returned to the Pit Wood, shows a doe with two kids. There has been no footage showing all three kids since the beginning of the month.

A hen pheasant has a young chick. This is quite late in the season as pheasants typically raise a brood between April and June with the incubation period lasting on average between 22 and 28 days.

With no hare on the blog thus far in the month, here is a hare. John is seeing hares regularly on the Top Grazing while he works on the classroom. The hares may be using the hay bales as shelter from the sun. They seem unperturbed by John’s activities. He has seen five out at the same time.

21st August

A busy day. Jane B had arranged to bring several family members to Liddells. Zoe, who is studying agri-forestry, came early for a tour with Clare. There was plenty of activity on the pond and Zoe managed to capture a shot of a Common Darter at rest. Georgie and Charlie had fun testing their strength pushing bales and in the process found a caterpillar of the White Ermine Moth. The contrast in colouration between caterpillar and moth is striking. A visit to the hide entertained.

Male Common Darter

White Ermine Moth caterpillar

Georgie focussing on the birds

This is what the birds see

Charlie inspecting the results of his pond-dipping

Not a masked invader but Clare in her bee suit

Checking all the struts are there on the Alphabet Bridge

Climbing the hay bales is always fun

John lifted a roofing sheet from a pile on the ground to find two Violet Ground beetles underneath. They quickly scuttled for cover, however Clare managed to photograph one of them.

Clare completed a butterfly transect as Tim and Jane are away. Clare saw 8 different species - Large White 7, Green-veined White 4, Small Skipper 1, Red Admiral 3, Peacock 1, Speckled Wood 5 and Wall Brown 1. The Wall Brown was the first she had seen this year. Here is a photograph of one she saw just six days later while she was on a walk with Pat.

Violet Ground beetle

While Jane et al dipped the pond, Clare inspected her bees and was delighted to discover that the most recent split had worked, and the nucleus hive had frames of capped brood, indicating a successfully mated queen. Clare began the season with two colonies and has increased them to six. This hot, dry summer has offered ideal conditions for new queens to mate, unlike in previous years where cold, wet spells have compromised successful mating.

22nd - 23rd August

Clare was relieved to finish restoring the roadside edges. She then turned her attention back to the big pond and she and John started tackling more of the invasive Branched bur-weed and Hard and Soft rush.

John used surplus roofing sheets bought for the hide at a farmers’ sale three years ago, to create a weed-suppressing sub-floor for the classroom. Perhaps also a Violet Ground beetle hideaway.

24th August

The single kid has appeared on its own several times in the Scrub, however today the doe and kid appear together.

25th August

A doe followed by a single kid walk in front of the trail camera. Clare and John were relieved that the next clips show all three of the triplets. This is the first time they have all been recorded since the dog was seen chasing a kid.

In the evening a pair of hares run through the Scrub.

26th August

Clare and John were delighted to welcome TrogTrogBlog Chris to Liddells. They took a scenic route to the big pond where male and female Emerald damselflies, male and female Common Darters and two male Southern Hawkers kept them entertained. The Southern Hawkers frustrated all attempts to have their photographs taken, however you can see how spectacular they are here. While watching the activity on the pond, Tim and Jane appeared doing a butterfly transect so Clare was able to introduce three members of the Liddells curatorium (‘A group of curators (in various senses), typically acting as an advisory body.’ OED Word of the Day 28.08.22) to each other.

Clare and John, not having heard or seen a Greenfinch on Liddells for months, noticed a pair coming to drink at the pond. John managed to get a photograph of one.

He also took a couple of images that showed autumn on its way.

After Chris had left Clare noticed a dead hare near the log shed. There was no obvious cause of death.

Not long till hedgerow jelly making time

Not for the hedgerow jelly, these are poisonous, however thrushes can feed on the berries, as they are immune to its poisons, and scatter the seeds abroad.

27th August

Clare found, if not a fairy ring, at least a fairy semi-circle, in the Scrub near to the driving circle.

Fairy semi-circle

John moved the hare’s carcass and saw two Common Sexton beetles scuttle away into the grass. A hare would seem to be a bit too big for them to bury, however they may well have been feeding on the corpse. Apparently the beetles can sense rotting flesh at a distance of two miles.

John began flooring the west end of the classroom.

I’m not floored

John and Clare were most surprised to see footage of a Woodcock in the Scrub. Readers may remember that there were clips of Woodcock in the Scrub last winter, however John and Clare had always thought that the birds were migrants rather than resident. You can hear a Tawny Owl calling in the background. Shortly after the Woodcock had left, a stoat appeared.

On their way to the hide, John noticed a frog sitting in the roadside pond Clare wondered if it was optimistic about the prospect of water, in which case it could be a Froghoper.

While John progressed with the classroom, Clare turned her attention to the damp section of the Wildflower Meadow and dug out the mint that was beginning to take over again. She also lifted and split Yellow Iris and Purple Loosestrife to replant round the ponds.

28th August

More activity in the Scrub. A Tawny Owl appears in front of the camera, then about twenty minutes later, the buck comes through. John has always said that after the rut, the bucks seem to vanish, however this one is still around.

A Great Tit flies at the camera. This happens again round about midday. The bird can’t be looking for a nesting site at this time of year.

Meanwhile, John decided to put a trail camera on the Meadow. He and Clare have seen deer on and nearby there quite often. His choice proved successful and a doe appears several times, again challenging the received wisdom that roe are crepuscular. The camera is pointing east.

29th August

Clare worked on the big pond again while John began the doorway for the classroom. They both spotted a new bit of excavation on the path near the hide. Best guess is a vole hole.

While at the hide there was a moment when there was a flurry of alarm calls, all the birds flew for cover and before Clare had finished saying, “Where’s the Sparrowhawk?” a female flew across the feeders. No birds were taken however it was a while before they reappeared, led by two Marsh tits.

Kathryn arrived with a trailer full of hazel seedlings which had germinated in pots in her garden, possibly from nuts buried by squirrels.

Manmade doorway

Mammalmade doorway (the tunnel is about 6-7 centimetres wide)

When Clare checked the trail camera she found several clips of a grey squirrel in the Scrub. There are often clips of grey squirrels and normally she would delete such footage muttering darkly, however, this time the videos raised a grudging smile. The squirrel’s activities lasted for a couple of minutes; John has stitched the videos together. The animal seems to be playing in a way reminiscent of stoats gambolling.

July - discoveries, neither hellish nor boring

There are more than usual video clips this month - roe kids are very cute. Remember that you are unlikely to be able to access these through the Blog email. Go to www.liddells.co.uk click on the Blog and watch them through the website.

John and Clare have been waiting and hoping for sightings of this year’s roe kids, and the first glimpse was towards the end of last month, however retrieved too late to include it in the June blog post.

1st July

Kathryn L came to plant trees she had kindly donated - a beech, an oak, two birches, a rowan and a holly. Cutting gorse for protection revealed a birds’ nest tucked deep into a gorse bush near the top gate. The nest hasn’t been feathered so may not have been used this year.

Kathryn planting ‘Son of a Beech’

2nd July

The trail camera in the Scrub is showing at least six hare appearances in any twenty-four hour period.

The trail camera in the Pit Wood shows another tantalising glimpse of a roe and kid.

Earlier in the year, and on the way to check on one of Juno’s bird boxes, Clare had noticed an unfamiliar plant growing near one of the signposts to the hide. She had kept her eye on it and wondered if it might be an orchid although since the flowers have been late emerging, she dismissed the idea. More on this story later…

3rd - 6th July

The repair work from Storm Arwen continues. John finished restoring the fencing behind the sheds and started on the stretch at the east end of the Top Strip. Clare was delighted to see a pair of Bullfinches below the Scrub - she had remarked yesterday that it was a while since she had seen any. So gratifying to know the birds are listening.

At last there is a proper view of the new kid. Then one of the doe and kid together. Take a look at the shape of the doe’s muzzle. More on this story later…

The old buck chases another deer through the Scrub. John says it is a bit early for the rut (mid July to mid August), so more likely the buck is chasing another buck off his patch in readiness.

The hare is investigating a fern frond. More on this story later…

The doe appears with the kid. Then another kid. Then another kid - triplets again!

7th July

Obviously footage of the kids is irresistible. This doe’s muzzle markings are clearly visible. The edges of her muzzle are squared off.

A little later, still in the Pit Wood, a doe with a different muzzle shape appears. This muzzle tapers to a point at the sides.

8th July

The hare checks the frond again. Or it might be a different hare.

Clare and John set about collecting Yellow Rattle seeds from the Top Grazing. They were pleased to see how well the plant is establishing there.

Clare busied herself trying to photograph a wood wasp on one of the log piles, however it found a way down to the bottom and out of the camera’s view. On the way home from Liddells, John and Clare realised they had a longhorn beetle in the car which probably decided to hitch a ride while they were distracted by the wood wasp.

9th July

The buck is marking in the Scrub again. This is probably preparation for the rut, as would be chasing off any other bucks.

John and Clare are watching the footage of the new kids carefully and are a bit confused by what they are seeing - sometimes one, sometimes two, sometimes three. It is perfectly possible that sometimes a kid or two is off camera. However, the doe’s muzzle in the second of the three clips below, is just visible, and looks to be pointed at the sides. The kid on its own in the third video, may well be the third kid, following a little behind.

John and Clare are reaching the conclusion that there are two does with kids, one with three, and one with one. The doe with one kid is likely to be a youngster, no more than two years old. John says it is unusual for two does to be appearing to share the same territory.

10th - 14th July

Activity on the Top Grazing. John starts putting in the posts for the outdoor classroom. The hay is cut. (7th - 11th July is 温風至 Atsukaze itaru - Warm winds blow - in the Japanese microseasons. Good hay-making weather.)

Clare was surprised to find that the bees in the first colony she split are once again thinking of swarming. Nothing ventured, she decided to execute another split, putting the swarm cell and four other frames of brood into a nucleus hive. More on this story later…

Clare began digging reeds out of the roadside pond while it is empty, and using the opportunity to add a little more depth to the pond.

One doe and one kid appear in the Scrub on two occasions; one kid appears, and leaves, independently. Then a doe goes through with three kids.

A hare nibbles at a rose stem in the Scrub. When Clare looked closely at the stem later, she found that it had no leaves (the hare doesn’t seem to be eating leaves), and concluded that the hare must have been eating the thorns. Rabbits are known to eat all parts of roses, including the thorns; as with deer, they are drawn to plants in the Rosaceae family, so it is likely hares are too. In a later video one hare jumps out at another; the first is noticeable smaller than the second, so probably one of this year’s young being surprised by an established resident. The next clip shows the hares apparently not in conflict.

15th July

After a long interruption, Clare and John were delighted to organise a Green Gym Day. They had over 50 trees to plant - donations and their own successful germinations from acorns and conkers - however as the forecast showed days of very hot, dry weather to come, planting trees with no means of watering them seemed to be a bad idea. The other task was to harvest Yellow Rattle seeds from the Wildflower Meadow. All good plans… There was rain. Off and on, quite a lot of rain. With the hot weather still in prospect, planting was out and with the rain, seed collection was out. What to do? John and Clare had been thinking about taking up the path at the west end of the Top Strip to make it possible to cut with the flail mower. The first job was to remove all the edging logs and the stakes holding them in place.

Clare arrived early and decided to catch up with the weekly email from the Northumbria Natural History Society. The email featured a short video on the Broad-leaved Helleborine. Clare was excited to realise that this very closely resembled the mystery plant near the hide and set off to check. Helleborines are also part of the orchid family. Bingo!

The Green Gym team arrived and set about tackling the Top Strip path. They created several piles of pleasingly rotting wood that will no doubt be appreciated by the local bug life. Gratifyingly, there seemed to be no need to pull up all the membrane underneath the path as there is sufficient weed growth for the chip, which is composting anyway, not to compromise the flails. There were gaps in the rain almost long enough for a picnic lunch. Clare noticed that for the first time there were nuts on one of the hazels planted as understory several years ago.

After the work was done, Clare took Pat with her to examine the plants again, and Pat noticed that some flowers had begun to open at the base of the spike, and agreed with the identification.

The doe and three kids are seen on the trail camera, as is the lame doe who hasn’t appeared for a while.

17th July

Although they are two days apart, the clip of the limping doe is followed by a video of a limping fox.

Clare was rewarded for her frequent visits to monitor the Nettle-leaved bellflower in the Scrub, and found that it had come into flower. In spite of the plant allegedly producing copious amounts of seed, there has only ever been one plant in this area.

The Alder Buckthorns from Tim and Jane have grown beyond the tops of their tubes.

Mel had been excited to hear about the Broad-leaved helleborine, saying it was a plant he had been looking for for many years. He went to see it and reported back that there were another 15-20 plants downstream of the first. So not a random occurrence but more likely an established colony that had just gone unnoticed all these years. It is thanks to Juno’s bird boxes that they were seen at all.

Clare inspected the nucleus and hive from which it had been split. There was another queen cell under construction in the nucleus, so Clare took that down, leaving the original. The hive will remain in purdah for a month or so until any new queen has had time to emerge, mature, mate and start laying. More on this story next month… There were eggs in the other hive so it would seem as if the bees have given up on the idea of swarming. It is now late in the season for them to do so, although bees have never been known to read the text books.

Clare was pleased to see a male Linnet in the Scrub - another bird that hadn’t been noticed around for a while.

A hare breaks off a piece of the bracken frond, then leave it uneaten. Some ferns are toxic to rabbits and hares. Maybe this hare remains unsure about this particular plant and takes the safe option.

19th July

John went out for an evening’s deer watching, armed with a video camera and a squeaker that mimics a roe kid’s cry. He wondered if the squeaker would attract a doe and kids. Instead the sound attracted the old buck who came barking and leaping around the Wetland. The buck would be looking for does to mate.

John also saw a Tawny Owl fly out of the North-east Strip.

20th July

The hay was baled yesterday. Barry advised that the bales are left standing to cool down for about 10 days. If they are stacked while the hay is very warm, and in this heat, there is a risk of combustion.

Knowing that the big pond was gradually getting choked with rush and Branched Bur-reed, Clare decided to face her dislike of wading through mud and to order waders so that she could tackle the task of reducing the numbers of these plants. With the dry weather the water in the pond is fast disappearing, offering the perfect opportunity to wade in. Clare began by working round the edges of the island which has slowly been increasing in size. She has decided to call the island St John’s, not to beatify John but to reflect the increasing number of St John’s Wort plants that appear there each year.

The doe with one kid appears in the Pit Wood. There are four clips of a kid foraging on its own in the Scrub, over a period of 8 minutes.

21st July

Clare spotted a pair of mating Red Soldier beetles on Hogweed. It isn’t a very good photograph, however she wanted to use the caption.

A kid leaps off into the Scrub, and then a doe emerges from the direction in which it leapt.

Bonkers.

(Red Soldier beetles are commonly known as Hogweed Bonking beetles. They are doing what it says on the tin.)

22nd July

A fox with gait unimpaired trots through the Scrub. A couple of hours later a badger goes through with a passing interest in the fern. Another couple of hours and a badger comes towards the camera.

23rd July

More pond work. Clare noticed what appeared to be a newly emerged and not fully uncurled male Common Hawker Dragonfly very near where she was working. It obligingly moved onto her arm where John was able to take a photograph. Clare then replaced it on rush where she kept an eye on it. It straightened up over the next few minutes. Clare looked in vain for the exuvia - the cast skin from which it had emerged.

While on her way up through the Pit Wood near the hide, Clare spotted another 4 Broad-leaved Helleborines. They are several yards away from the original finds. She then went to top up the feeders and thought to have another look at the plants on the way out. Curiously they weren’t quite where she had remembered. That was because this was yet another different patch although closer to the one found earlier. Altogether there are another 9 plants; today’s finds are more fully in flower. Not including the ones that are sitting still unnoticed.

There is a sequence of four videos showing the doe, the doe with one kid, with two kids and a bit of grooming, then again a third kid appears a couple of minutes later. In the first clip, you can just see the pointed edges to her muzzle. She is being bothered by the flies.

24th July

It is the season for discoveries. Today Clare spotted another plant in the Pit Wood that she had not noticed before. She thinks it is Lesser Burdock.

On her way through the Orchard she saw two juvenile Chiffchaffs in an Elder, and on the path leading up away from the Orchard, she found a Thrush anvil.

Lesser Burdock

Empty broken snail shells by the Thrush anvil

26th July

Mel came to help dig reed and rush out of the big pond. Clare decided that as well as the phrase ‘mud in your eye’ there should be ‘mud in your ear,’ ‘mud up your nose,’ ‘mud in your mouth’ and ‘mud in your hair’. The OED Word of the Day came up with a timely offering: goopy, ‘That is viscous or semi-liquid, often in an unpleasant or disgusting way’. Clare regretted not taking a ‘before’ photograph of the pond, however she did manage an ‘after’. There were plenty of dragon flies and damselflies about, particularly emerald damselflies, and a Common Hawker laying eggs.

Mel and Clare went to visit the ‘new’ helleborines and found not eight, but thirteen. On the way Mel noticed that the red clover in the Pit Wood is Zigzag clover. The leaves are longer and more pointed that with the usual red clover, the flowers are redder and more open, and where side shoots emerge from the main stem, the main stem goes off at a slight angle, hence ‘Zigzag’.

Tim has noticed that butterflies are fewer in number and diversity this year, however at the moment there are a large number of Small Skippers around.

Zigzag clover

Small Skipper on Hogweed

29th July

The day began with rain, then warmed up, the perfect illustration of the start of 土潤溽暑 Tsuchi uruōte mushi atsushi: Earth is damp, air is humid, 29th July - 2nd August. John began fixing boards to one side of the classroom. Clare dug out some more reeds and rush and spotted an azure damselfly by her foot.

30th July

John did further work on the classroom while Clare mudlarked about in the big pond and dug out more of the roadside pond. The big pond looks a little fuller after two days of heavy rain; the roadside pond remains empty. There was plenty of life in the big pond with water boatmen, pondskaters, pond snails, water beetles all visible, as well as damsel and dragonflies flying around.

May - doing the splits

1st May

John saw the two Mandarin ducks on the big pond in daylight. Unfortunately they were too far away for his phone camera.

2nd May

The local Community Choir with which Clare sings, has the bonkers habit of meeting at the local bandstand to sing in the sunrise on the first of the May Bank Holidays. They then eat breakfast together. Three years ago this day coincided with International Dawn Chorus Day so Clare took several singers with her for a walk round Liddells after the breakfast, in order to listen to some birdsong. This year she repeated the offer and nine others joined in. She began the walk by suggesting people kept their eyes open for hares as it was very unusual to be on Liddells and not see one. They heard Pheasant, Blackbird, Crow, Song thrush, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Chaffinch, Willow warbler, Garden warbler, Great tit, Wren. Three Swallows flew over, the first Clare had seen over Liddells this year. Other identifications included a frog, jelly ear fungus, and several flower species. Maggie saw two deer as they jumped away over a wall. No hare appeared.

Later that morning Clare returned and saw two hares - they clearly have a sense of humour. She saw a Great Spotted Woodpecker twice at the hide. She planted a third Field Maple grown and donated by Mel. Now the saplings can have three-way conversations and encourage each other to grow.

Clare started a cowslip survey organised by Plantlife (if you have or know of cowslips nearby, go to Plantlife.org and consider joining in). Apparently cowslips are heterostylous - flowers which have style and anthers of different heights. Long style and low anthers = L-type, short style and high anthers = S-type. This is needed to prevent self-pollination and therefore ideally there will be an equal amount of both flowers in any location. An unequal balance might mean that the flowers are not doing so well. The survey began in Estonia in 2019, where a citizen science campaign, Looking for Cowslips began, in order to see if the landscape, grasslands in particular, was supporting the flowers’ wellbeing. The idea spread to Europe and the UK. The results showed that the balance was more skewed in smaller populations and in urban areas, indicating that human activity may be having a negative impact on the species. Grassland preservation and protection is imperative.

Clare was pleased to record that her survey of 100 plants showed 52 S-type and 48 L-type.

She also valued the experience as an example of ‘opsimathy’: Learning conducted or acquired late in life; an instance of this. Of course Liddells has been offering that for the last nine years.

Meanwhile John saw the pair of Mandarin ducks on the big pond again, however they flew away as soon as they became aware of him.

Listening and watching

‘[w}ild-scatter'd cowslips bedeck the green dale’ Robert Burns

‘Among the many pleasing purposes to which these favourite flowers are applied by children, none is prettier than the making of Cowslip Balls. The method, which may not be known to all my readers, is as follows:

The umbels are picked off as close as possible to the top of the main stalk, and from fifty to sixty are made to hang across a string stretched between the backs of two chairs. The flowers are then carefully pressed together, and the string tied tightly so as to collect them into a ball. Care should be taken to choose such heads or umbels only as have all the flowers open, or the surface of the ball will be uneven.’ Rev. C.A. Johns From Flowers of the Field, 1885

4th May

John has moved one of the cameras back to the middle of the Pit Wood. A hare showed up almost immediately. You can also hear just how much birdsong there is, even in the middle of the day.

5th May

John and Clare were joined at Liddells by three officers from the Northumberland Wildlife Trust to see how the site was doing (readers may recall that Clare and John intend to leave Liddells to the NWT), and in particular to see whether it might qualify for Local Nature Reserve (LNR) status. It is always excellent to walk round with people who bring expertise to the land and this was no exception. Duncan, Geoff and Alice - a curatorium: A group of curators (in various senses), typically acting as an advisory body, OED Word of the Day 18.05.22 - were very encouraging and although didn’t think that Liddells would yet have the required species richness over the whole site for LNR designation, there were pockets in which that richness was there or almost there. The amount of Adder’s Tongue Fern on the Meadow proved to be quite exciting, and the way Yellow Rattle has established. Duncan and Geoff puzzled over exactly which Lady’s Mantle they found in the Meadow, subsequently sending the identification Hairy Alchemilla: Alchemilla filicaulis subspecies Vestita. Geoff spotted moths mating on the outside of the hide, though wasn’t confidently able to identify them. As part of a general discussion at the end of the visit, Alice commented that the root plates exposed by trees felled by Storm Arwen are offering excellent opportunities for mining insects. More investigation called for.

Before he left, John saw Redpolls and Siskins, and a Greenfinch on one of the peanut feeders at the hide. Greenfinches have been notable for their absence for a while, however Tim had sent a photograph of one in his garden (half a mile away), this very day.

Pale Pinion moths - very many thanks to TrogTrogBlog Chris who responded to Clare’s identification plea. Chris added that this moth ‘is uncommon in the north but occurs regularly in Dumfries & Galloway (see http://www.dgmoths.org.uk/species/macro-moths/pale-pinion). Stewart Sexton sees it every year up the coast at Boulmer (https://boulmerbirder.blogspot.com/search/label/Pale%20Pinion?m=0). And this is the right time of year. This is the NBN atlas, not always the most reliable source’. As Chris pointed out, the moths are exquisitely disguised on the wood grain.

Redpolls, male on the left

Two female Redpolls

Particularly rosy male Redpoll and male Siskin

Greenfinch

To add to the colours - Bluebell

‘We call wild flowers common because of their quantity. But this is just where we strike the great difference between productions of Nature and the productions of Man. When we produce many samples of the same thing they are of poor quality and we speak of them as mass-produced. The mass productions of Nature do not fail at all in terms of quality. Take the bluebell. There indeed is quantity. Yet every year we are freshly struck by their quality. Only a flower-snob could fail to see that any one of those bells on the uplifted belfry is as delicate a construction as any tulip or rose. I will not say more beautiful, or less, for in this realm of flowers we are actually in the presence of abundant examples of - perfection. I think that perfection is the key to the emotion that flowers cause in us.’ John Stewart Collis From Down to Earth, Part II, The Wood, 1947

6th May

Another example of the camera light transfixing a badger. The camera has recorded badgers going away from the camera several times. This one seems stopped in its tracks.

7th May

The two cameras recorded deer activity at about the same time in different places in the Pit Wood. The old buck is anointing again. Three minutes later and a hundred yards away, the young buck and doe appear by the bottom of the stream. Six minutes after that the doe appears where the big buck had been. The old buck shows no signs of losing his winter coat, while the two youngsters’ summer coats are clearly on their way.

10th May

Saturday’s Guardian suggested that one of the ‘60 Ways to Turn Your World Upside Down’ (should you feel the need), would be to tune in to the Japanese concept of micro-seasons. Today is the start of the five day 蚯蚓出 Mimizu izuru, or Worms Surface. Others might feature later in the Blog as appropriate. Prepare to be upended.

John has been investigating all the different plants roe deer will eat. The young doe here is eating Water Avens.

13th May

Here the young doe is joined by the young buck. The camera has captured excellent close-ups of both. The young buck is no longer in velvet.

14 -16th May

John and Clare returned from a few days in Cumbria listening for and watching cuckoos. Derek, who farms next to Liddells, says there used to be cuckoos every year locally.

A pair of Greenfinches turned up at the feeders.

Clare inspected the bees having done so on Sunday 8th before she went away, when she spotted that one of the queens had lost her marking. Clare re-marked her, feeling pleased that this would make swarm management easier. Today she was amazed to see that the stronger colony had taken advantage of her absence and created several swarm cells. One way of hoping to prevent a swarm is to remove the queen and establish a small colony - the theory being that this mimics swarming. So Clare set about finding the queen. After going forwards and backwards through the frames four times she gave up. She returned in the afternoon with John hoping that two pairs of eyes would solve the problem. It didn’t, even after taking each frame out three times. She returned the next day and was relieved to see that the bees still hadn’t capped/closed the cells (capped swarm cells means the bees have already swarmed). Three more goes at finding the queen proved as unsuccessful as the previous seven. Much harrumphing ensued. Fortunately her old bee-keeping mentors responded very promptly to a plea for help and suggested an alternative method of swarm control. Clare geared up to do this on Monday but was thwarted by heavy rain and hoped the bees would be too.

17th May

Barry came to help Clare split the colony with queen cells. As Barry’s bees were not thriving, he and Clare took the opportunity to see if they could create two new colonies. First they identified two large queen cells and brushed all the bees off the frames where these were; these frames went into a new brood box; all except one of the brood frames were added to this box having shaken off all the bees (so that the queen remained in the old brood box). It was important to check that this remaining frame had eggs from which the bees could create a new queen cell in case the queen swarmed anyway. The new brood box was placed on top of the old one with a queen excluder between them, and left till next day. The theory is that the nurse bees will move up to look after the brood. Next morning the new brood box, which had plenty of bees in it, was removed; the two frames with queen cells were put into two nucleus boxes (smaller than a regular brood box and suitable for raising new colonies); the remaining brood frames were shared between the boxes. Syrup was added in feeders. The nucs were then left for a few days. Any flying bees in the nucs would make their way back to the old hive.

18th May

Keith came to help Clare with the annual breeding bird survey. Clare is always surprised by the birds they don’t hear, and rather disappointed that they then can’t be included in the count, however as Keith says, this is only an audio equivalent of a snapshot - it could be repeated every hour on the same day, and the results might vary. One of the highlights was watching a Chiffchaff go in and out of brambles near the wall, suggesting there was a nest there.

19th May

Meanwhile the territorial disputes between the bucks continues - the old buck is captured marking again. John says it is unusual for bucks to share the same territory, although it can happen when the stronger animal doesn’t consider the other to be a threat, and will tolerate its presence.

20th May

Keith has often expressed his surprise that there have been no Whitethroats on Liddells, since the land offers ideal habitat for them - plenty of low vegetation like scrubs, bushes and brambles. Last year Clare thought she had seen one in the Scrub, however with no further sightings, concluded it must have been wishful seeing and more likely a Garden Warbler. Today she was thrilled to see a Whitethroat hopping about in the raspberries and brambles close to the hide, close and visible enough for there to be no doubt about identification, and thought that maybe she hadn’t been mistaken last year after all. She dared not move and scare the bird away, so couldn’t reach for her phone to take a photo.

The old doe appeared in the Pit Wood looking decidedly pregnant. Roe does have their young between mid-May and mid-June. In Northumberland the births tend to be at the later end of this period. This is the doe that had triplets last year so it will be exciting to see what young appear this year.

21st May

Clare had to inspect the second of her hives today and again found queen cells - the evidence the colony is preparing to swarm. This time she decided against endless searches for the queen and repeated the splitting procedure. As it was early morning, she was able to return later in the day and move the new brood box into its new position.

And on the theme of boxes, a Greater Spotted Woodpecker has been showing interest in J2 where Great tits are raising a brood. John has made a metal cover with a smaller hole for the box to deter the intruder.

Clare began her annual thistle cull on the Meadow, removing 106 plants on this first go. No doubt there will be more.

Clare also saw the first damselflies out on the Big Pond. They were Large Reds and too far away to photograph.

22nd May

Clare returned to the apiary to check on progress with the first split. She discovered the queen present in the original hive and laying well. Phew. When she opened the nucleus however, the queen cell was open, so the queen had already hatched. Clare went through the frames extremely cautiously and destroyed the one further queen cell that the bees had made. This nucleus will now be in purdah for at least three weeks to allow for the queen to mature, go on mating flights and start laying eggs.

23rd - 24th May

There is much feeding activity at both J1 and J2. Clare is hoping the trail camera on J2 will capture the fledglings leaving the nest. So far it has recorded the earliest food delivery at 4.46am, and the latest at 20.37pm. This article from the BTO (British Trust for Ornithology), gives more detail about the birds and breeding, noting that an excess of 10,000 caterpillars might be delivered to a typical brood. Clare has noted that parent birds from both J1 and J2 take food from the hide feeders and deliver it to the nest boxes. The birds also remove material from the nest to keep it clean. Both birds are involved in managing the brood.

25th May

A badger makes its way through the Pit Wood and returns 12 minutes later.

27th May

Clare went for an evening’s watching, hoping to see the Whitethroat but saw a Spotted Flycatcher instead. She also saw a bat in The Pit Wood however it was too fast to make any clearer identification.

28th - 29th May

The camera in the Pit Wood, which John is hoping will capture the doe and any kids some time soon, shows that the doe is still pregnant; the older buck ignores the branch he usually marks.

It was time to check on the bees after the second split. There were a couple of new queen cells in the newly created brood box so Clare took one down and took the other to Barry to see if it would hatch successfully and provide a new queen for his failing colony. The original hive had no evidence of a laying queen so she may have swarmed after the split; it was puzzling that the remaining bees hadn’t raised another queen cell from the eggs left behind, so Clare took a frame with eggs from the thriving colony and will check again in a few days time to see if the bees have created what they need. ‘Swarm control’ is a phrase created by beekeepers to help them think they are ahead of the bees’ game. Hmmm.

Clare visited the pond again to find dozens of damselflies in the air. She managed to get a couple of shots with her phone though they are not of great quality. The most interesting was seeing a newly emerged damselfly. It clung to the rush but would move to the far side of it every time Clare tried to get close with her phone. TrogTrogBlog Chris - another of the curatorium - suggested waving an outstretched hand to one side can help to get the damselfly to move round a bit more - as Clare dropped her phone in the pond on the first attempt, she is not that keen to try again.

On 26th May, in Nature Writing for Every Day of the Year, ed. McMorland Hunter, there is a passage from Our Village, by Mary Russell Mitford, 1824:

‘Walking along these meadows one bright sunny afternoon, a year or two back, and rather late in the season, I had an opportunity of noticing a curious circumstance in natural history. Standing close to the edge of the stream, I remarked a singular appearance on a large tuft of flags. It looked like bunches of flowers, the leaves of which seemed dark, yet transparent, intermingled with brilliant tubes of bright blue or shining green. On examining this phenomenon more closely, it turned out to be several clusters of dragon-flies, just emerged from their deformed chrysalis state, and still torpid and motionless from the wetness of their filmy wings. Half an hour later we returned to the spot and they were gone.’

Mating Large Red Damselflies - usually the first of the Odonata to emerge each spring

Adult male Azure Damselfly - TrogTrogBlog’s Chris says you can see the coenagrion spur on the side of the thorax. (Yes, Clare had to look up coenagrian too.) Chris suggested this, from www.odonata.org.uk is a great help to tell the difference from a Common Blue.

Teneral (of, relating to, or constituting a state of the imago of an insect immediately after moulting during which it is soft and immature in colouring) female azure damselfly

30th May

Tims sent this article about Brimstone butterflies in the north-east. Apparently they are prospering. Clare is pleased that the Alder Buckthorns Tim and Clare donated are now in leaf.

31st May

There are fewer videos of hares this month and John and Clare have seen fewer hares, although they are still about and Clare saw a small one on the Top Grazing which would seem to be one of this year’s young. It may be the adults are fully occupied in looking after them.

Next month is the Wildlife Trust’s annual challenge to everyone to do one wild thing every day throughout the month. John and Clare hope Blog readers will be inspired to join in.

August

Corrections and clarifications:

The bird in the photograph below is not, as declared last month, a juvenile Redpoll, but a juvenile Spotted Flycatcher. With no disrespect to the Redpoll fraternity, this is a bit more exciting! Thanks to Keith and TrogTrogBlog Chris for helping with identification.

1st August

John continued his pursuit of flora, one of the twins pursued an opportunity, the young buck recollected himself.

Fleabane Erigeron bonariensis: ‘Its curious scent, with hints of carbolic soap and chrysanthemum, is an insect repellent. In the past it was kept in houses specifically for the purpose of driving away fleas. Bunches were dried and burned as a fumigant or hung in rooms.

To Gerard it was called Conyza, whilst the Konuza of Dioscorides, drove away midges in addition to fleas. It is in fact a relatively close relative of pyrethrum, which supplies the insecticide.

Other past uses include treatments for unspecified eye ailments and dysentery.

Local names include Camels, Harvest flower (since it blossoms in August and September), Job's tears, Mare's fat and Pig-daisy.’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Yellow Loosestrife Lysimachia vulgaris: ‘Lysimachia, the genus name, is in honour of Lysimachus, (c. 360BC - 281BC), a Macedonian general who, as one of the successors to Alexander the Great, became ruler (king, in effect) of a large part of the divided Macedonian Empire that had all been Alexander's realm.

King Lysimachus is reputed to have fed 'loosestrife' plants from this genus to his oxen in order to calm them down whenever they became agitated and difficult to manage. The name Loosestrife means 'lose (or forget about) strife'. No worries, then!

The specific epithet vulgaris means common.

Yellow Loosestrife tied around the necks of oxen was reputed to keep irritating flies away from them. In the distant past these and several other kinds of 'loosestrife' plants were also used to get rid of infestations of flies in houses. The plants were dried and burned indoors, and toxins in the smoke drove out the flies (and no doubt also any human occupants).’ (first-nature.com)

Purple Loosestrife Lythrum salicaria: apparently no relation to Yellow Loosestrife, was ‘[i]ntroduced into North America in the 19th century. Purple-loosestrife is now an invasive weed, forming impenetrable stands that are unsuitable as cover for native animals and shade out native plants.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

However, ‘Purple loosestrife is a beauty. Like the Buddleias growing in railway sidings it's so common people don't notice it. Purple loosestrife flowers around the same time, and it seems to me to be just as a good a plant for pollinators.’ (habitataid.co.uk)

Upright Hedge Parsley Torilis japonica: ‘[I]n Chinese traditional medicine it has been used for treating haemorrhoids, spasm, uterine tumours, fever, and dysentery. Recently, medical studies have shown that Japanese Hedge Parsley may have a potential for combatting cancer. A substance known as torilin can be extracted from the plant and has been shown to be a potent inhibitor of 5 alpha-reductase, the enzyme that converts testosterone to DHT (dihydrotestosterone) Torilin is a compound from the fruits of the plant and has been shown to inhibit the growth of blood vessels in tumour development from benign to malignant and thus has a toxic effect on tumours. It also has been found to inhibit the conversion of testosterone to androgen, which is being studied further in the treatment of prostate cancer and alopecia. (wikipedia.org)

2nd August

John and Clare are very much enjoying the repaired trail camera. It was a treat to see a Jay in the Pit Wood. They are often heard, less often seen. The roe twins are always a delight - in this footage their ears seem particularly active.

3rd - 4th August

Clare had a visit from the Bee Inspector. This was the second time she had been visited and so was less nervous and knew this wasn’t the equivalent of a tax inspection. Although Mathilda likes to think of each individual bee being inspected and emerging with a certificate and mortarboard to throw in the air, the Inspector checks for signs of diseases or pests, provides help and advice on good husbandry and how to tackle any problems he, she or they might find. Clare has always learned from watching other beekeepers and gained from their experience. This time the Inspector noted a few instances of Deformed Wing Virus, which is most often spread by Varroa mites. Autumn is a good time to treat for Varroa although Clare heard an edition of Inside Science two days later which featured research on how honey bees were coping to resist the mites without any chemical control being used.

Clare spent a considerable amount of time pointing out to John the location of a small insect which was clinging to a Marsh thistle stem on he island in the Big Pond. The first task was to find the correct thistle. The island has many thistles. Clare could only see the creature through her binoculars (and what seems like three net curtains - she is waiting for eye surgery), and only realised why John was having such difficulty when, after several fruitless attempts at location description, she looked through his camera lens. She is still unsure of the identification, although it might have been a grasshopper. At one point Clare was tempted to name it a ‘Could-lead-to-divorce’ insect.

John found the mating Common Darters easier to spot. Clare was pleased to see her first Painted Lady of the season on Knapweed in the Meadow.

John took photographs of some of the last plants to flower this season and noticed the prospect of autumn fruitfulness.

It is the time of the Roe deer rut and the trail camera has captured footage which would seem to provide evidence of this on Liddells. In the second clip you can clearly see the scent glands on the buck’s rather crooked hind legs. The squeaking sound in the background could well be one of the kids, and the sound may well have attracted the buck as he would know the doe would be close by.

The trail camera also provided evidence that the big buck is back. John believes there are three bucks around Liddells at the moment - the big old one, the one with the broken antler, and the one with rather crooked hind legs.

Common Ragwort Senecio jacobaea: is the foodplant of the black-and-red cinnabar moth: sometimes its black-and yellow-barred caterpillars cover the plant, totally stripping the leaves…Common ragwort is one of the most frequently visited flowers by butterflies in the UK and more than 200 species of invertebrate have been recorded on it.’ (wildlifetrusts.org) Many people know that this plant is poisonous to livestock, however it is not as well known that livestock will not graze on the plant. It is only poisonous if it is chopped up and mixed in hay, when animals eat it not knowing it is there. John and Clare always check the top Grazing and Meadow and remove Ragwort if they find it there, however the plant is left alone in other locations.

Mugwort Artemesia vukgaris: The mugwort plant has been traditionally used for everything from digestive disorders to beer-making, insect repellent, and more…The aerial parts of the mugwort plant are used as an essential oil. The plant is also burned in moxibustion practices.* In addition to its medicinal use, mugwort has been used for smudging, protection, and inducing vivid dreams (when placed underneath a person’s pillow).

Historically, mugwort was used by the Romans, who are said to have planted it by roadsides, so that marching soldiers could put the plant in their shoes. This was done to relieve aching feet. St. John the Baptist was said to have worn a girdle of mugwort.’ (verywellhealth.com)

* Moxibustion is a type of traditional Chinese medicine. It involves burning moxa, a cone or stick made of ground mugwort leaves, on or near your body's meridians and acupuncture points. Practitioners believe that the resulting heat helps stimulate these points and improves the flow of qi (energy) in your body.

Burdock Arctium: ‘Recent studies have shown that the extracted oil from the root of Burdock is rich in essential fatty acids and phytosterols.Burdock was commonly used in cooking in the UK in times past but has long been forgotten about. In Asia Burdock is still used to this day where it is collected commercially and called Gobo. Starting in 1948 George de Mestral, a Swiss inventor, created Velcro after walking his dog and noticing the ‘burs’ from Burdock sticking to his dog. If you are lucky to be near some Burdock when it starts to rain the leaves are big enough to make a foraged umbrella!’ (wildfooduk.com)Readers may also remember drinking the very sweet Dandelion and Burdock fizzy drink.

Burdock Arctium: ‘Recent studies have shown that the extracted oil from the root of Burdock is rich in essential fatty acids and phytosterols.

Burdock was commonly used in cooking in the UK in times past but has long been forgotten about. In Asia Burdock is still used to this day where it is collected commercially and called Gobo.
Starting in 1948 George de Mestral, a Swiss inventor, created Velcro after walking his dog and noticing the ‘burs’ from Burdock sticking to his dog.
If you are lucky to be near some Burdock when it starts to rain the leaves are big enough to make a foraged umbrella!’ (wildfooduk.com)

Readers may also remember drinking the very sweet Dandelion and Burdock fizzy drink.

Canadian Goldenrod Solidago canadensis: probably originally naturalised from garden stock, now well established as a wild flower and much visited by bees, ‘Three colours of dye, mustard, orange and brown, can be extracted from the whole plant.

It is poisonous containing some pyrrolizidine alkaloids,’ (wildflowerfinder.org.uk)

Nipplewort Lapsana communis: one wildflower recorder proposes that ‘Nipplewort derives its name from the nipples within the spent flower going to seed, a very distinctive feature of Nipplewort. They appear to shine as stars within the dark interior of the 'sepal tube', which is a row of bracts which distinctively has eight 'teeth'. (wildflowerfinder.org.uk)

Young leaves can be harvested and eaten as microgreens or cooked and used like spinach. ‘The plant is said to have an overall calming effect, reportedly helps the kidney function, and can help stop the flow of milk when breastfeeding mums want to wean.’ (wildplantguides.com)

Rosebay Willowherb Chamerion angustifolium: ‘Rosebay Willowherb is able to colonise new areas because of its specially adapted seeds - fitted with tiny, cottony 'parachutes' they are able to disperse across long distances on the slightest breeze. Each plant can produce up to 80,000 seeds and the heat from fires and bonfires can help to germinate them, hence another common name of 'Fireweed'.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Hedge Woundwort Stachys sylvatica: the usp of this plant is its unpleasant and astringent smell, particularly strong when the plant is crushed. Fortunately bees are not deterred by this as they pollinate the plant.

‘[T]his wildflower was used as a herbal remedy to staunch bleeding and heal tissue…

Its Latin name Stachys means 'spike of flowers', and Sylvatica means 'of the forest'.

It is also known as Wood Woundwort, Hedge Nettle, Red Archangel, and Whitespot.

The London based herbalist John Gerard would use Hedge Woundwort to treat injuries received in pub brawls during the 1600' (plantlife.org.uk)

Heather or Ling Calluna vulgaris: ‘Historically, Heather has been used for many purposes, such as fuel, fodder, building materials, thatch, packing and ropes. It was also used to make brooms, which is how it got its Latin name - Callunais derived from the Greek word meaning 'to brush'.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Wild Raspberry aka Hindberry Rubus Idaeus: Clare is fond of collecting berries for her hedgerow jelly. ‘The leaves can also be used to make tea, simply steep them in boiling water for a few minutes. The tea is said to relieve stomach cramps and diarrhea. But care must be taken if you are pregnant.’ (totallywilduk.co.uk)

Bramble Rubus fruticosus: An excellent food source. ‘Bramble flowers are a food source for honey bees and bumblebees and other wild animals. Leaves are eaten by certain caterpillars as well as some grazing mammals, especially deer. Ripe berries are eaten and their seeds dispersed by several mammals such as fox and badger, and small birds.’ (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

John adds that Bramble is a favourite food of the Roe. And when all of those have eaten their fill, any berries left go into the aforementioned hedgerow jelly.

Beech Fagus sylvatica: ‘The ancient Greeks believed that beechnuts or ‘mast’ were the first food eaten by humans. The nuts are edible but should not be eaten in large quantities…[as e}xcessive consumption of the raw nuts may cause poisoning.’ (eatweeds.co.uk)

Beech Fagus sylvatica: ‘The ancient Greeks believed that beechnuts or ‘mast’ were the first food eaten by humans. The nuts are edible but should not be eaten in large quantities…[as e}xcessive consumption of the raw nuts may cause poisoning.’ (eatweeds.co.uk)

6th August

The buck is in pursuit of the doe again.

7th August

The shepherd’s hut offered more insect identification challenges. Both the ladybird and the wasp were on one of the windows looking north.

A limb has broken away from a large Oak in the Orchard. Unfortunately it has damaged the top of the Tawny Owl box however as the box has only been used by squirrels, John and Clare are not too upset about that, although the damage to the tree is upsetting.

Another wildflower for the records and more ingredients for hedgerow jelly.

Clare’s best guess is that this is a Cream-spot ladybird Calvia quattuordecimguttata. By chance the Natural History Society of Northumbria has recently included a feature on ladybirds and this helped.

Another Ichneumenoid, however it has been hard to identify it in its deceased state

Enchanter’s Nightshade Circaea lutetiana

A close-up of the flower. The plant is related to the Willowherb family, not to Deadly Nightshade as might be assumed.

‘The Latin name Circaea relates to Circe, an enchantress sometimes depicted as the Greek goddess of magic, who was known for her knowledge of herbs…Enchanter’s nightshade has been used treat wounds and as a flavouring in Austrian tea. In the Scottish Highlands it was thought to be an aphrodisiac.’ (woodlandtrust.org)

However -

‘Despite its evocative name, there are no known herbal uses or supposed powers attributed to enchanter's nightshade.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Perhaps the discrepancy in understanding is part of how it enchants.

Hawthorn berries - these are plenteous this year so when ripe will provide plenty of food for birds over the winter (and be included in hedgerow jelly).

Rowan berries - jam jars are ready

8th August

One of the bucks is on the trail of something. One of the kids is beginning to forage for herself, and one of the kids is in pursuit of one of the bucks, maybe its father.

9th August

Juno looks ready to create her own enchantments.

Footage from the trail camera is causing John and Clare to think the doe may have had triplets not twins, however it is more likely that there are twins to a young looking doe.

10th August

Clare remembered to take a photograph of one of the last of the year’s wildflowers to appear on the Meadow- Tansy - while John took one of Meadowsweet on the Wetland. Tim sent an image of a ‘stunning creature’ that he thinks is a second generation Speckled Wood.

Tansy Tanacetum vulgare: ‘Tansy leaves were traditionally eaten at Easter to help kill off the worms that the diet of fish at the time caused. They were quite bitter, so were mixed with eggs, milk and flour in a kind of pancake or omelette.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Meadowsweet Filipendula ulmaria: also known as Mead wort, Queen of the meadow, Pride of the meadow, Meadow-wort, Meadow queen, Lady of the meadow, Dollof, meadsweet, and Bridewort. ‘The flowers of Meadowsweet are sometimes used in wine, beer and vinegar, or to give jams a subtle almond flavour. In fact, the common name of this plant likely arose as a result of it being used to flavour mead.’ (wildlifetrusts.org). A natural black dye can be obtained from the roots by using a copper mordant. A tea can be made from the flowers and the leaves and drunk to help treat rheumatism, gout, infections, and fever.

Speckled Wood

Speckled Wood

11th August

Clare spotted a hoverfly waiting its turn to enter a Foxglove flower. Clare’s niece and family visited Liddells for the morning and Julian sent some of her photographs. She has perfectly captured the different qualities of the two boys. Much fun was had pond-dipping.

After the fun, the hard work as John and Clare began prepping the Meadow for cutting, strimming the edges and brashing the Hawthorns.

Marmalade hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus: apparently the UK’s most common hoverfly, getting its name from the orange and black bands across its body.

Tristan in serious dipping mode

Bron in less serious identification mode.

Newt

Newt

12th August

More Meadow prep. Clare and John are going to use the Hawthorn brash to provide natural protection from deer fraying for some of the saplings where the tubes need removing.

Tom was able to cut the Meadow this evening.

Small-leaved lime protected from fraying

13th - 23rd August

A most frustrating time - after a couple of warm breezy days when Tom was able to turn the hay and row it up, there followed days of cold and rain. The hay was ruined as a food crop though can be used for bedding. Clare and John are very disappointed and recognise the annual dilemma with the Meadow, which is late -flowering - cut early and lose the benefit of seeds setting and falling; cut late and risk losing the whole crop because of August rains.

Walking past the roadside pond, a female pheasant scuttled away leaving two chicks - a moment of delight to offset the Meadow disappointment.

Before the rain came, the roadside pond had almost dried out, revealing some pond snails. They can feed on algae which is A Good Thing although they can also eat pond plants which is A Bad Thing. Apparently there are over 30 different species of freshwater snail in Britain. Another area for study and learning.

Clare found a grasshopper basking on a warm stone in the boundary wall. It was far easier to see and identify than the creature on the pond island and led to no matrimonial conflict whatsoever.

The trail camera has captured more footage of the deer - a kid showing its inexperience and being unsure what lies ahead, the doe without the kids, and the different behaviour of the two kids, one seemingly more venturesome than the other.

Spot the stripes

Here they are

Common green grasshopper Omocestus viridulus: no stridulation to be heard at this sighting

24th August

Clare, with John’s help, took a super of honey from one of the hives. The other hive is subject to robbing from wasps which have dug a nest in the Meadow. Clare has done what she can to help the bees defend their forage, confusing the wasps with a glass sheet in front of the hive entrance and reducing the entrance to a small hole which the guard bees can more easily defend. The next step will be destroying the wasps’ nest. Clare saw a Wall Brown by the hives and was amused by the idea of a Wall Brown sitting on the fence.

25th August

The deer family are captured altogether and attending to their hygiene.

29th August

Just when Clare had thought that there were no more wildflowers to emerge this year, she saw a plant in front of the hide that she had not seen before. Initially she was alarmed that it was Japanese Knotweed however Mel has provided a more reassuring identification - Pale Persicaria, which is in the Knotweed family though not as troublesome.

Clare set about destroying the wasps’ nest on the Meadow and hoped that this will alleviate the honey bees’ struggles to defend their stores.

One of the roe kids demonstrates how it she is learning behaviour from her mother, while the other can be heard and seen squeaking - watch her abdomen moving.

Pale Persicaria Persicaria lapathifolia: aka Pale Smartweed, Curlytop Knotweed and Willow Weed. The seeds may have arrived in the bird seed mix and dropped from the feeder above.

July - delights, surprises and floribundance

1st July

An exciting start to the month - Clare and John saw Tree Sparrows on the feeders in front of the hide. Their presence on the feeders suggested they were already familiar with the availability of food there, although they seemed very flighty and camera shy. John had made a nesting box suitable for Tree Sparrows and placed it behind the sheds a few years ago and not only was it not used, but the birds were never seen on Liddells, even though it would seem to offer the right kind of habitat for them. The nest box was duly moved home where Tree Sparrows are seen regularly - again, never used. Maybe another move, back up to Liddells, might see it used in the future.

John and Clare worked on preparing the shepherd’s hut for habitation. Sally, hearing of Clare’s wish to furnish the hut in as eco-friendly way as possible, donated a washing-up bowl for which she had no use.

2nd July

Another donation from friends - Gill and Mark offered a set of pans, a corkscrew and a cheese grater for the shepherd’s hut. Clare is amused that her list of essentials began with wine glasses, coffee and Marmite. Her friends are more realistically or more practically minded. John and Clare will be able to stay in fine style.

Kitchen essentials

4th July

John took to his camera as an antidote to hut interior work. He was especially thrilled to see Bullfinches on the hide feeders. While Bullfinches have been seen on many occasions on Liddells, this is the first time they have ever been seen on the feeders. John said that the feeders were particularly busy - this may be because there had been very heavy rain for the previous two to three days and birds were very hungry as a consequence.

Foxglove Digitalis: ‘The origins of the name foxglove are unclear, but can be traced all the way back to the Anglo-Saxon period. It’s thought the ‘glove’ part of the name is simply due to the flowers looking like glove fingers. Less certain is the connection to foxes. One theory is that people believed foxes wore the flowers on their paws to silence their movements when hunting. Another is that the flower is often found growing close to the earths where foxes raise their young… Foxglove contains a chemical called digitalis that can be used to treat heart failure and high blood pressure by raising blood flow and increasing the body’s defence mechanisms. However, the plant is poisonous if consumed directly, and can cause a number of health problems. Other names for foxglove include goblin gloves, witches' gloves and dead men's bells.’ (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

Dog rose Rosa canina: ‘The dog rose is a common symbol in medieval heraldry. It has a less regal connotation in Germany where it is linked to the Devil and its fruits were said to be used by fairies to make themselves invisible…Rose hips are high in vitamin C and were traditionally used to make syrups taken to boost levels. Rose-hip oil is also a popular skincare product. The hairs inside the hips are an irritant and are extracted to make an itching powder.’ (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

Orange hawkweed Pilosella aurantiaca: ‘The name of 'Fox-and-Cubs' refers to the way that many of the as-yet un-opened flower heads hide beneath those that have opened.’ (wildflowerfinder.org)

Hogweed: ‘The hollow stems of hogweed were traditionally used in many children's games as water guns, pea-shooters and swords. Its sap is less toxic than that of giant hogweed (and some other umbellifers), so doesn't cause the same skin irritation.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Ox-eye daisy: ‘The Latin name Leucanthemum is said to have originated from the ancient Greek word ‘leucos’, meaning white.

It was thought to be strongly linked to divination, particularly in France, where it would be used in romantic predictions. These links to divination have filtered down to the modern game of ‘he loves me, he loves me not’ where petals are picked to determine luck in love.’ (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

Red dead-nettle - newly spotted on Liddells, and welcome: ‘Lots of different species of long-tongued insects visit the flowers of red dead-nettle, including the red mason bee and bumblebees. The caterpillars of garden tiger, white ermine and angle shades moths feed on the leaves.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Red dead-nettle - newly spotted on Liddells, and welcome: ‘Lots of different species of long-tongued insects visit the flowers of red dead-nettle, including the red mason bee and bumblebees. The caterpillars of garden tiger, white ermine and angle shades moths feed on the leaves.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Bullfinch pair, male on the left

Female Bullfinch (John was playing with camera settings here and was rather pleased with the painterly quality of this image)

Bullinch and Siskin

Bullinch and Siskin

Finch feeding frenzy

Common carder bee on Marsh thistle Cirsium palustre: wildflowerfinder.org shows several examples of fasciated plants (abnormal fusion and flattening of plant organs due to physical damage or weed-killers, virii, an infection, infestation, or several other causes). Clare read fasciated as fascinated and was appropriately fascinated.

5th July

Clare is enjoying the challenge of fitting whatever is needed into the hut in a way that uses least possible space. The plate rack is an example.

11th July

The shepherd’s hut now has three rooms prepared. John and Clare were delighted to see Tree Sparrows on the feeders by the hut. They may be the same birds as in the Pit Wood, or they could e a second colony.

Dining room

Sitting room

Kitchen

Kitchen

13th July

Another excursion with his camera for John. He particularly enjoyed taking photographs of juvenile birds round the feeders.

Redpoll and juvenile.

Juvenile Redpoll

Juvenile Dunnock waiting for food…

Juvenile Dunnock waiting for food…

…patience rewarded

Juvenile Chaffinch preening

Full house - juvenile Great Tits

Treecreeper (of indeterminate age)

Ringlet

Bugle ajuga reptans: ‘Bugle is much loved by bumblebees. The ‘reptans’ in its Latin name is derived from ‘repto’, meaning ‘creeping, crawling’. It was a popular ingredient in herbal remedies, particularly for stopping bleeding.’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Self-heal Prunella vulgaris: ‘As its common name suggests, selfheal has a long tradition of being used in herbal medicine for everything from stopping bleeding and healing wounds, to treating heart disease and sore throats.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Bittersweet Solanum dulcanara: ‘Despite being a member of the nightshade family, Bittersweet (also known as 'Woody Nightshade') is one of the less toxic plants in this group, althought its berries are still poisonous…The leaves smell of burnt rubber when crushed.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Rowan blossom Sorbus aucuparia: ‘Greek mythology tells of how Hebe, the goddess of youth, dispensed rejuvenating ambrosia to the gods from her magical chalice. When, through carelessness, she lost this cup to demons, the gods sent an eagle to recover the cup. A fight ensued and the eagle shed feathers and drops of blood. These fell to earth where each of them turned into a rowan tree. Hence the rowan derived the shape of its leaves from the eagle’s feathers and the appearance of its berries from the droplets of blood… In the British Isles the rowan has a long and still popular history in folklore as a tree which protects against witchcraft and enchantment... The tree itself was said to afford protection to the dwelling by which it grew, and residents would make sure not to damage them.’ (treesforlife.org.uk)

John and Clare are relieved that the shepherd’s hut will be protected by the nearby Rowans. Also Clare’s rowanberry jelly is delicious with cheese (and a firm favourite with Neil).

15th July

Final touches to the shepherd’s hut - John made a boot rack. He was particularly pleased with his efforts as he had seen a teak version on sale for £165 (in a sale) whereas his, made from oak, cost him £8. Of course that was not taking into account building and equipping the woodworking shed in which it was created, which will have upped the costs somewhat.

16th-17th July

The OED must have known. The Word of the Day for 16th July is ‘staycation’: to holiday at home or in one’s country of residence. John and Clare set out to spend two nights in the shepherd’s hut and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Clare honoured the occasion by putting the flags out. The weather was stunning, the sunset sublime, and the night sky filled with stars. They can’t wait to repeat the experience. While Clare sat in the sun and read, John continued with his efforts to document as much of the flora (and some of the fauna) on Liddells as possible. He was particularly delighted that he finally managed to get a photograph of a Tree Sparrow.

Juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker, identifiable from the red spot on the front of the head.

Spot the Pheasant

Juvenile Chiffchaff - this bird has often been seen close to the hide. It doesn’t seem to have learned yet to be wary.

Juvenile Chiffchaff - this bird has often been seen close to the hide. It doesn’t seem to have learned yet to be wary.

And finally - Tree Sparrow. Well worth John’s persistence.

There have been more Common Spotted Orchids this year than ever before on Liddells. The area in front of the hide is particularly orchidaceous.

St John’s Wort Hypericum perforatum: also known as devil chaser, devil's flight, devil's scourge, God's wonder plant, herb John, human blood, Klamath weed, penny John, rosin rose, St Columba's flower and often used to treat mild depression.

There is a small clump on the Wildflower Meadow, however there are a large number on the island in the Big Pond though not round the margins. (gardenia.net)

Agrimony: ‘Some people use agrimony to represent thankfulness or gratitude.Partly due to its astringent qualities, it has many uses in herbal medicine including for ulcers, to stop bleeding and for gallstones. Also for unsettled digestive systems and catarrh.Dioscorides recommends it against snake-bite, dysentery and upsets of the liver.Local names include Aaron's rod, Church-Steeples, Clot-Bur, Fairy's wand, Money-in-both-pockets, Salt-and-pepper and Sweethearts (from the clinging receptacles of the fruit).’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Agrimony: ‘Some people use agrimony to represent thankfulness or gratitude.

Partly due to its astringent qualities, it has many uses in herbal medicine including for ulcers, to stop bleeding and for gallstones. Also for unsettled digestive systems and catarrh.

Dioscorides recommends it against snake-bite, dysentery and upsets of the liver.

Local names include Aaron's rod, Church-Steeples, Clot-Bur, Fairy's wand, Money-in-both-pockets, Salt-and-pepper and Sweethearts (from the clinging receptacles of the fruit).’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Lady’s Bedstraw: ‘Historically, Lady's bedstraw was used to curdle milk in the process of cheese-making - a convenient vegetarian replacement for rennet, which is made from the stomach lining of cows.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Honeysuckle: ‘It was once believed that if honeysuckle grew around a home’s entrance, it would bring good luck and stop any evil spirits from entering. It has also long been considered a symbol of fidelity, and in Victorian times young girls were banned from bringing honeysuckle into the house because it was believed the strong smell would make them have suggestive dreams! Honeysuckle has been used to make beautiful walking sticks which were once popular with Scots music hall performers. They were created as the honeysuckle entwined itself around branches, causing the branches themselves to become twisted.
While the berries are poisonous, the leaves, flowers and seeds have been used for medicinal purposes for a variety of conditions.’ (woodlandtrust.org.uk)

Sitka Spruce cones

Bladder Campion: ‘Bladder campion is one of the foodplants of the attractive red-and-black froghopper - an insect known for wrapping itself in a frothy mass we call 'cuckoo-spit'.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

20th - 23rd July

The good weather persisted and Tom was able to cut the Top Grazing on Tuesday evening. Wednesday and Thursday he turned it and by Friday it was made.* Tom rowed it up and Barry was able to bale it the same day. John and Clare spent an energetic hour and a half raking up before Barry arrived. There were 20 bales, 7 more than last year.

*Clare had always assumed that ‘hay-making’ referred to the process of drying, rowing, baling, stacking, however she now knows that hay is ‘made’ when it is ready to be baled. Clare learned the difference between hay, haylage and silage: ‘There are two main methods of forage conservation: controlled fermentation where the pH is reduced to a level where growth of bacteria ceases, or dehydration, where moisture content is decreased to reduce microbial activity. 

Hay is an example of forage that is conserved using dehydration – the main challenge with preserving forage in this way being that it requires a longer period of dry weather to produce, whereas haylage is an example of grass preserved using controlled fermentation (and so is silage).

As a rule, when considering the digestibility of a forage, the more mature a grass becomes, the higher the potential yield, but the lower the digestibility (as it has higher levels of lignin). While very young grass in a growing state is much more digestible, if hay or haylage were to be harvested at this point, yields would be very low. There is however a point in between these two stages where a balance can be struck between digestibility and yield.‘ (haygain.co.uk)

Barry said that horses can eat hay and haylage, whereas cattle and sheep , and eat hay, haylage and silage.

Rowed up and nearly ready

The rake’s progress

21st July

While on his photography walks, John discovered deep excavations just below the west end of the Crag. There were bumble bees flying around the newly dug out earth, so the likely explanation is a badger in search of a bees’ nest.

22nd July

Clare discovered a pair of ichneumonid wasps inside the shepherd’s hut. It was difficult to photograph them because of their position on the window, however the shot of the underside from outside the hut proved more successful. Apparently they forage on Hogweed which is abundant in the strip behind the hut but not evident inside. Without going through all of the 2,500 UK species, Clare’s best guess is that this is Alomya debellator.

‘Ichneumon wasps are solitary insects which are closely related to bees and ants. Most ichneumons are parasitoids. The females lay their eggs into, or onto, the young of other insects and spiders, and the young which hatch out feed on that host insect. The host is eventually killed and consumed by the larva just before it pupates.’ (uksafari.com)

John and Clare are pleased to have the trail camera back and working. The young buck seen earlier in the summer, is still around although seems to have incurred some damage. John suspects this buck will have been in a fight with the older one. As the older one has not been seen for a while, it would seem that on this occasion youth has triumphed, which gives the lie to John’s father’s belief that, in sport at any rate, ‘a good old ‘un will beat a good young ‘un’.

24th July

John and Clare were delighted to discover that the roe deer have bred successfully. The mother is likely to be the oldest of the three does seen regularly, the two younger would not have been mature for mating until this year. It so happens that this is the time for the roe deer rut, which may account for the young buck’s presence.

25th July

Sally visited Liddells to see the Wildflower Meadow and sent some of her photographs. Her artistic way of seeing always results in beautiful shots. John is pleased she sent images of Valerian as he was finding the whiteness of this flower hard to capture in close-up.

Valerian Valeriana officinalis: ‘Sleeping potions known as Valerian were derived from this plant; they were used not only as a treatment for insomnia but also reputedly by thieves who spiked the drinks of intended victims. Valerian is still used as the source of sedatives for relaxing the central nervous system… The generic botanical name Valeriana comes from the Latin verb valere, meaning 'to be healthy'. In similar vein the specific epithet officinalis, literally meaning official, indicates that this plant was recognised as having valuable pharmaceutical /medicinal properties.’ (firstnature.com)

Hal, Beth, Juno and Juno’s cousins Charlie and Jonny visited today. As well as enjoying the hay bales as an outdoor gym, they amassed quite a collection of feathers for Mathilda’s cat - Buzzard, male and female Pheasant, Rook, Wood pigeon and Greenfinch. Charlie and Jonny’s eagle eyes also spotted a fox making its way across the Crag.

26th July

John set out to record more wildlife before the end of the month. (Clare realised she had forgotten to ask for an image of Yarrow, so took one on her phone. She would not like readers to think that John’s standards had slipped).

Yarrow Achillea millefolium : ‘Centuries ago, Yarrow was used as a charm against bad luck and illness. Although it was also used to stop wounds from bleeding, it was believed to cause nosebleeds if put up the nose.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Sneezewort Achillea ptarmica (also known as Batchelors’ Buttons)‘: The strongly pungent smell is said to induce sneezing, indeed the dried and powdered leaves have been used as a sneezing powder. An essential oil can be extracted which is used medicinally (although your author has yet been unable to track down the chemical ingredients of this oil). Although its bitter tasting leaves have been used in salads, the plant is poisonous to some farm animals like horses and cows, with symptoms slow to develop, which include fever, tachycardia, difficulty breathing, weight loss, drooling, spasms, and convulsions.’ (wildflowerfinder.org)

Betony Stachys officinalis (also known as Common Hedgenettle): ‘Betony is first referred to in a work by the Roman physician Antonius Musa. He claimed it was effective against sorcery.It was one of the great ‘all-heals’ of medieval herbalists.Betony is commonly found in old country churchyards, where it was planted in the past for its medicinal value and in the belief that it had powers that would ward off ghosts, goblins and other unwelcome spirits.’ (plantlife.org.uk)English botanist and herbalist Nicholas Culpeper, writing in the early 1600s, said that Betony (a Stachys species) '... preserves the liver and bodies of men from the danger of epidemical diseases...' which sounds credible until you read on '... and from witchcraft also.' (first-nature.com)

Betony Stachys officinalis (also known as Common Hedgenettle): ‘Betony is first referred to in a work by the Roman physician Antonius Musa. He claimed it was effective against sorcery.It was one of the great ‘all-heals’ of medieval herbalists.Betony is commonly found in old country churchyards, where it was planted in the past for its medicinal value and in the belief that it had powers that would ward off ghosts, goblins and other unwelcome spirits.’ (plantlife.org.uk)

English botanist and herbalist Nicholas Culpeper, writing in the early 1600s, said that Betony (a Stachys species) '... preserves the liver and bodies of men from the danger of epidemical diseases...' which sounds credible until you read on '... and from witchcraft also.' (first-nature.com)

Marsh Woundwort Stachys palustris: ‘This wildflower has a long history of use in herbalism, and as its common name implies it was used for dressing cuts and other wounds, and it is reputed to cure aching joints when made into an ointment and to have antispasmodic and sedative properties when taken internally.’ (first-nature.com)

Wild parsnip pastinaca sativa and Bluebottle Calliphora vomitoria

‘Wild parsnip is the progenitor of the cultivated parsnip.

Despite its, to humans, unpleasant habits, feeding largely on decaying meat, rubbish and faeces, the Bluebottle has its uses - ‘females deposit their eggs on rotting corpses, making them important forensic insects, as their eggs and timing of oviposition can be used to estimate time of death.’ (wikipedia.org). This one appears to be a vegetarian.

Great Burnet Sanguisorba officinalis: ‘The crimson heads of Great burnet were once used to make wine in Cumbria, and herbalists used them to stop bleeding.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Common or Black Knapweed Centaurea nigra: ‘Common knapweed is a huge favourite of all kinds of butterflies, including Common blues, Marbled whites and Meadow browns, and is sometimes covered in these species.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

‘In days gone by eligible young women would play a love-divination game by pulling out the rays and putting the plucked knapweed flower in their blouse. When as-yet unopened florets began to bloom it would tell her the man of her dreams was near. This game to foretell the future of love is also played with Broadleaf Plantain Plantago major.

Most of the local names including Bachelor's buttons [see also Sneezewort above , though note the difference in the placement of the apostrophe. Only one bachelor benefitted from Knapweed], Blue bottle and Iron knobs are explained by the hard, knobby heads, the bottle-shaped involucre and the toughness of the plant.

Knapweed was used for ruptures and wounds, bruises, sores, scabs and sore throat, etc.’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Field Scabious Knautia arvensis: ‘Field Scabious has a rough and hairy stem similar in texture to scabby skin. According to the 'Doctrine of Signatures' - where herbalists treated illnesses with plants that resembled the body part associated with illness - this association probably led to it being used as a herb to treat scabies, mange and itches.

The juice of 'scabiosa herba' (from whence its common name derives) was given to alleviate plague sores.

In Belgium a girl would pick Scabious "buttons", give each a lover's name, and then choose her husband by the one that flowered best…

The 'pom-pom' like nature of its flower has also given rise to alternative names such as Lady's pincushion, bachelor's buttons and blue bonnets.’ (plantlife.org.uk)

Bachelors sure had a lot of buttons.

Meadow Brown on Greater Knapweed Centaurea scabiosa

Meadow Brown in full view

Small Tortoiseshell on Marsh thistle

Small Skipper: ‘The Small Skipper almost exclusively uses Yorkshire-fog (Holcus lanatus), although several other grasses have been recorded as foodplants, for example, Timothy (Phleum pratense), Creeping Soft-grass (H.mollis), False Brome (Brachypodium sylvaticum), Meadow Foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis), and Cock’s-foot (Dactylis glomerata). (butterfly-conservation.org)

This above information has reinforced Clare’s desire to know more about the different kinds of grasses seen on Liddells. As far as she can tell, this grass is none of the above!

And lest readers think that dragonflies have been forgotten this year - Common Darter

While looking at the ponds…

Upright water millefoil Myriophyllum crispatum

29th July

Mel walked around Liddells this morning and noted 71 plants in flower (Clare walks regularly back from Liddells and often makes a similar count along her route. The highest number she has seen yet this year is 63, so Liddells would seem to be doing well. Mel noticed the Water Figwort that Sue D had donated and planted, and also Enchanters Nightshade Circaea lutetiana, which is another newly seen species on the site. (Photograph to follow)

Spiked water millefoil Myriophyllum spicatum: ‘The closely related Parrot's Feather was introduced into the UK in the 1960s as a garden pond plant, but soon escaped into the countryside, probably as a result of garden waste containing fragments of it. It is now an invasive weed.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

Water figwort Scrophularia auriculata: ‘Many emergent wetland plants, such as Water Figwort, provide resting places for aquatic insects, such as Caddis flies and Alder flies.’ (wildlifetrusts.org)

June - flowering

1st - 6th June

John flailed more paths and in the time saved from strimming, took more photographs. The first dragonflies and damselflies of the year are appearing on the ponds, and the first of the fledglings are appearing at the feeders, Dave tackled strimming the paths that are too narrow for the flail mower. John saw the first swallows of the year flying around the Top Grazing and near the sheds, however as yet they resist the temptation of the new shelf on the shepherd’s hut. John and Clare have decided to install a composting lavatory on site and the splendidly named Little John, made from recycled materials, arrived.

Orange Hawkweed, also known as Fox and Cubs, Grim the Collier and the Devil’s Paintbrush. This perennial was introduced to Britain from Europe in the seventeenth century, so not strictly native however it adds bright spots of colour in the Meadow.

Silverweed

A Coal tit feeding its young

Coal tit juvenile looking remarkably like a Marsh tit, however this is the bird being fed by the adult in the photograph on the left.

Male Broad-bodied chaser

Azure damselfly

Outside lavatory

7th June

The trail camera remains pointing at the Blue tits’ nest. The parent birds are still visiting with the same frequency as last month. Several clips show the adult birds removing either faecal matter or pieces of shell from the nest.

8th June

Clare set about her annual thistle challenge on the Meadow. She pulled out 259, far fewer than in the two previous years. There will be ones she missed that will become apparent as they grow, however it’s an encouraging start. Clare also removed Hogweed and Dock from round the shepherd’s hut. John, not realising what Clare had been doing, was puzzled to find what he thought were deer couches in an unlikely area.

10th June

John and Clare were dismayed to discover that just as they hoped to capture footage of the Blue tits fledging, the trail camera decided to play up and stopped working. Heigh ho. Next year maybe.

13th June

John started work on the shed that will house the Little John.

14th June

More wildflowers are appearing. Yellow Rattle continues its spread across the Meadow and the east end of the Top Grazing. When Clare asked Juno if she remembered the nickname of Bird’s Foot Trefoil, Juno responded with ‘Cheese and Ham’. An intelligent answer and more to her taste.

Meadow Cranesbill

Bird’s Foot Trefoil aka Bacon and Eggs or Cheese and Ham

Yellow Rattle

20th June

The trail camera has abandoned any attempt to take video footage and reverted to still images before giving up altogether. One of the last images was of a young buck in full summer coat in the Pit Wood. This may be the buck that the camera captured in the Scrub last month.

24th June

While Clare was walking through the Pit Wood with Jane B to identify wildflowers, they noticed a large patch of Water mint near the Quadrilateral Bridge that had not been noticed before. In trying to describe its location near the spring stream, Clare decided that said spring stream could be named Bruce.

25th June

A family of six Great Tits and a juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker were using the feeders by the shepherd’s hut. John recorded more wildflowers with his camera.

Common Spotted Orchid

Common Sorrel

Common Sorrel

Common Field Speedwell

Ragged Robin

Red Clover is increasing on both the Meadow and the Top Grazing. Alys Fowler in The Guardian wrote recently about the plant and its benefits. ‘Red Clover photosynthesises constantly, which means it is endlessly filling the root zone in the soil with nutrients…[which] increases microbial activity…[it] is famous for fixing atmospheric nitrogen into the soil via its nodules; this in turn increases the nitrogen available for other plants.’

In spite of its damaged wing, this Red Admiral was able to fly.

27th June

John and Clare are planning an inaugural overnight stay in the shepherd’s hut in July. Much planning is going into this.

30th June

More shepherd’s hut work. Liddells is looking particularly ‘orchidaceous’: of, relating to, or characteristic of the family Orchidaceae, comprising the orchids - OED Word of the Day 02.06.21.

Beginnings of a kitchen…

… and overhead storage

… and overhead storage

The first Willow arbour is doing spectacularly well

John says, “Not everything is black and white…”

Oh yes it is, if you don’t turn off the monochrome setting.

September - log slog

Corrections

Many thanks to Chris Wren for both his support of this blog and for sharing his extensive knowledge of the natural world. Chris noticed that the female ‘Ruddy Darter’ on the July blog was a female Common Darter as it had yellow lines along its legs. Also the insect on Sneezewort in the same blog post was not a wasp as ‘it didn’t have a wasp waist’ - it seems so obvious when pointed out - and likely to be a sawfly, possibly Tenthredo arcuata. If readers haven’t visited Chris’ blog https://trogtrogblog.blogspot.com/ - a name to delight bird lovers, it’s well worth the time. Chris is a naturalist, bee-keeper and superb wildlife photographer, offering still and moving images of the natural world backed by experience, knowledge and statistics. He also has a fondness for the Sparrowhawks that visit his garden.

1st September

John and Clare worked on some wall clearing and repair on the south boundary. While removing some weed from the big pond, Clare inadvertently scooped up a dragonfly which she manipulated onto the net handle as it needed to dry its wings. There was an ideal opportunity for a photograph. It flew off after a few minutes and resumed its habit of frustrating John’s pursuit of a photograph by being constantly darting about, or in this instant, hawking.

Female Southern Hawker

4th September onwards

With the quad bike now a part of the Liddells workforce John set about sawing in the Pit Wood, creating piles of logs both to dry in the log shed and to take home ready for burning this winter.

Logs awaiting transport

4th/5th September

The deer are still favouring the stump circle for their food and make frequent appearances on the trail camera. John was intrigued by footage of the doe behaving warily when the buck appears. He has not seen this behaviour before and can think of no reason why the buck should be a threat to the doe. Suggestions?

6th September

John managed to work out a system to connect guttering on the sheds to the bowser; this will mean that there is rainwater available for the shepherd’s hut when needed. Clare split a clump of Purple Loosestrife in the wet area of the Meadow and replanted it on the banks of the big pond. She also pounced on new mint growth and continued Mel’s eradication work.

Adding to the multifarious uses of duct (or duck) tape

13th September

68 sheep arrived to eat off the Top Grazing. Some of them have used posts placed to alert drivers to the presence of protruding bedrock, as back scratchers.

Aid for sleeplessness

Guess whose backside was itchy

14th September

Friends Chris and Mac visited and Mac’s hat played host to a dragonfly. Frustratingly it was hard to get close enough for a detailed photograph without the probability of scaring it away - the dragonfly not the hat. Later their dog sniffed out a bird carcass, or broken bird as Juno would say. Chris and Mac happened to look up and saw Crow wings in the tree above. Mac thought this might suggest a Peregrine kill although it could have been a female Sparrowhawk. Next day Clare took John to see the wings and noticed below them a twig covered in a black jelly fungus that is known as Witches’ Butter. So raptor or coven. Clare favours the more imaginative explanation.

A death has occurred

Sorcery dairy produce

Clare thinks the dragonfly resembles a raised eyebrow on the hat face

15th and 22nd September

With little opportunity for stand-up comedy at the moment, Hal has generously offered time to help on Liddells, however he revealed his true motivations in a post-script to his offer: ‘Now a cynic might suggest that this coincides suspiciously with the acquisition of your new four-wheeled friend, and to that I’d say, “Yes, yes it does”.’ So everyone’s a winner. Hal has worked phenomenally hard and helped bring large loads of logs out of the Pit Wood and North-east Strip for drying in the log shed at Liddells and stacking at home, and he has moved dumpy bags of chip to the Top Strip for Clare to top up the path. Much as John and Clare miss Paul, they have to admit that Hal power is more productive that one horse power. The sheep proved to be interested in Hal’s activity and so Hal had a go at shepherding.

Transport awaiting logs

A small fraction of the logs carried, stacked and awaiting splitting. (Hal’s next job.)

19th September

Clare bought a broom for the hide. John was proud of his caption choice.

Hide and sweep

20th September

Clare decided it was time to risk checking on supersedure progress in Hive 1. She was surprised to see capped brood that had obviously been there a while and then delighted to realise why - there was the Scarlet Pimpernel queen quietly going about her business. Either the supersedure larva failed, or a new queen hatched and was dispatched by the reigning monarch. Either way, the colony is in a strong state to go into the winter. Clare also decided to begin the process of removing the remaining honey super from Hive 2, which still had some honey not stolen by robber bees. She added a clearer board under the super. The clearer board has two "tunnels" leading to each end and a centre chamber in which the bees gather when initially leaving the super. The bees pass through the opening in the board and into the escape. The tunnels are soon discovered and the bees quickly stampede into the chamber below created by the deep rim and attracted by the scents of the brood body through the latticed structure of the escape. The idea being that the bees descend to the brood chamber but cannot quickly work out how to get back up again. (Thanks to Thorne bee-keeping suppliers for this explanation.) Or so the theory goes. Clare and bee-buddy Barry have had varying degrees of success with the boards.

21st September

Clare returned early in the morning to see if the clearer board had done its job. There were still quite a few bees in the super however they were quite docile (or tired from a night on the honey), and easily brushed off the frames. Clare then had to remove the clearer board and queen excluder - the bees must be left with syrup to replace the removed honey and the queen must have access to this in case there is insufficient for her in the brood chamber. The bees were not quite so docile during this procedure, presumably annoyed that a) they had been woken early on a cool morning b) they were not best pleased that their honey had disappeared and c) they don’t enjoy puzzles, mazes in particular. Fortunately Clare and her assistant John left with no stings.

Concerned that all the logging activity would deter the deer from visiting the stumps, John moved the trail camera to the main path through the Pit Wood.

22nd September

Clare planted Ragged Robin plugs that she had grown on from seedlings Lesley had kindly donated, Lesley having grown them from seed she had collected.

John and Clare finally got round to adding the capping stones to their wall repair. Apparently one of their land neighbours had thought the stones had been stolen and was pleased to see their return.

26th September

A tick for one of the items that has been on the to-do list for a long time. John repurposed another of the insulators from redundant telegraph poles as an outside door handle for the shepherd’s hut. Clare has discovered that not only do people collect these insulators but that there is a Professor of Telegraphpoleology at the Faculty for insulators, crossarms and dropwires at Frome University, whose garden ornamentation is made entirely from scrap telegraph pole parts. A door handle seems quite unimaginative in comparison. Clare thinks it is splendid.

26th - 29th September

The trailer has needed attention for some time and the log loads this month left the base pretty ropey with logs falling down the gap between the floor and the sides. Clare has noticed bits of trailer base and sides strewn on the ground wherever the quad bike has gone. John set about making the trailer sound again after wondering whether he could propose it as a challenge for The Repair Shop.

Meanwhile Clare made progress on her plan to eradicate as many bramble and nettle roots from the south boundary wall as possible, repairing any stonework as necessary and creating a path on the inside of the wall. She was a bit disconcerted to find stones fallen away from the base at one point where the wall was very high and she was working below, however she was able to dig up some uncut stones from near by to fill the gap and shore the wall up. Working on the outside of the wall she discovered that the medieval cross base had not been hewn as she had thought, but the rectangular hole for the cross had simply (or not so simply) been chiselled out of a large lump of bedrock. The base does not extend through the wall, rather the wall has been built to incorporate the bedrock.

For a while John has sensed there have been more deer than he previously thought on Liddells. The trail camera has confirmed his hunch. As far as John can tell, the deer are all does. John and Clare are delighted to see evidence of the hare again though not so happy to see the squirrels. John has ‘broken’ at least twenty in the last few months. There is clearly more work to be done.

All bottomed out. A bottomless pit of work.

Shoring

A section of bramble and nettle free wall with the cross base excavated

30th September

The firm that were due to fit the wood burner in the shepherd’s hut tomorrow asked if they could do the work today. An excellent way to end the month. John occupied himself with trailer improvements while the stove went in. Clare photographed evidence of more digging, this time in the Orchard. Unfortunately the site would mean miles of footage of wavy grass if the trail camera were to be positioned nearby. Although the weather had turned cold overnight, once the stove was lit the hut warmed up very quickly. One of the workers who installed the stove went the extra mile and finished John’s painting on the trailer while John and Clare enjoyed watching the fire in the stove. Superb service!

British Racing Green is John’s colour of choice for the trailer. He likes the irony

Rather than Bentley’s Sand Over Sable, John has gone for Moss Over Leaf

Nearly ready

The chimney has a good view

It works!

There’s no smoke…

August - seven years on

Insect identification update:

Keith (wknean) has come up trumps, though did say I had set him a difficult task. The insect on the Scabious is a Dipteran (a true fly). There are 5500 species in the UK. At least that’s fewer than beetles. Clare wonders what an untrue fly might be; presumably a fly that suffers from impostor syndrome. The creature on the Spear Thistle is a Pine Weevil (congratulations to Barbara for suggesting Weevil), and the insect on the Sneezewort is a Solitary Wasp, possibly a Digger Wasp. According to Keith, Digger Wasps nest in the ground and feed their larvae with paralysed insects -nature yellow in tooth and sting.

1st August

A good start to the Liddells month - John and Clare went to view a second-hand quad bike having decided one would make a significant difference to working on Liddells. A deal was struck. On the way home they called in at Liddells and saw a Spotted Flycatcher on the fence near the big pond. Unfortunately neither Clare nor John had binoculars or camera to hand so decided to return later in the day with the necessary bird-watching and recording equipment. The Flycatcher, inconsiderately in Clare’s view, had not hung around and waited for them, although they could see one from the hide at a great distance high up in an Ash tree. The pursuit of a photograph has begun. Clare also found an addition to the Meadow plants - Agrimony. Clare thinks the name suggests a financial settlement after a particularly hostile divorce, a government subsidy for farmers or the profits from agribusiness.

2nd August

Mysterious holes have appeared in the Pit Wood. Unfortunately setting the trail camera here would result in scores of pictures of waving foliage. The holes look big enough to have been made by a badger. Perhaps an overnight stay in the Pit Wood is called for…

Probably not made by a Digger Wasp

3rd August

While John strimmed to keep paths under control, Clare went round with Mel on his monthly wildflower survey. They found several that had not yet appeared on Mel’s list, bringing the total to 148. Mel has set a challenge to bring the total to 150 before the surveying year is out. Since Mel is determined to identify more of the many grasses on site, he’ll probably get there. Clare learned a new variety of thistle, which she had noticed the day before but wasn’t confident in its difference from a Marsh Thistle. It is a Welted Thistle and clearly an option as a garden plant. Mel confirmed Clare’s identification of the Agrimony, and pointed out differences between Male Fern and Lady Fern. For some of the minute differences between species, a jeweller’s loupe or similar would be needed. Clare has such an object, provided at a conference on wildflower meadows, however she is not sure that she has the patience or the knees for the necessary close examinations. You can see Mel’s survey here.

Another Pit Wood mystery - the trail camera has captured the kid, the doe and…

Is it another kid or the buck?

John thinks the third deer was most likely the buck as another kid hasn’t appeared on any of the other footage. Here the doe is attending to the kid’s hygiene.

4th August

Dave took over strimming duties and worked his way through the Orchard and both paths down to the spring in the Pit Wood. Dave thinks the strimmer and harness make him feel like a rock star -Bruce Springsteen with air strimmer. Meanwhile, Clare and John, both having come a cropper on the muddy dip on the way into the hide, set about making the route safer.

Dave priming the air strimmer - just like a rock star

Assembling the materials

Joining up the pieces

Admiring the result

6th August

Clare’s niece and family came to visit. Tristan was very engaged with pond-dipping and bird-watching, Bron preferred the bridge to the hide. After they had left for Housesteads, John and Clare built the seat for the last Willow Arbour. John tried it out.

Look, there’s a bird

Look, there are baby newts

Look, there’s a bridge

Told you so

Look, here’s a seat

7th August

Stephen has very kindly donated a pair of binoculars to the hide. He was given them for his 21st birthday and they have obviously been treasured.

Tim and Jane had a stroll round Liddells and saw a female Common Darter in the damp part of the Meadow.

John decided to have a day out with his camera. Clare can’t decide whether he was in the pink, in a purple haze or feeling decidedly unwell.

And here’s the male resting on a stone near the big pond

Common Hemp-nettle, also known as Hemp Deadnettle, False Hemp, and because of its popularity with bees, Bee Nettle

Marsh Woundwort ‘has a long history of use in herbalism, and as its common name implies it was used for dressing cuts and other wounds, and it is reputed to cure aching joints when made into an ointment and to have antispasmodic and sedative properties when taken internally…Marsh Woundwort has only a slight smell; nevertheless bees and many other kinds of insects are attracted to the flowers, from which they obtain nectar.’

Herb Robert - traditionally used as an antiseptic, as well as to treat stomach upset and nosebleeds. Its leaves are edible and used by some to make tea. They have also been used crushed and rubbed on the skin as an insect repellent.

Ragged Robin was used in the belief that it would alleviate jaundice and more common illnesses such as headaches and toothaches. The roots and petals were also used, boiled, to wash clothes and hair.

Knapweed was historically used to treat flesh wounds, sore throats, bleeding gums and catarrh. Some physicians mixed it with other herbs to create antidotes for snake bites. The flower head is edible and when taken with pepper, it's said to be a way of restoring lost appetite.

Purple Loosestrife ‘got its name for its similar insect-repelling actions to that of yellow loosestrife. Farmers used to hang the plants around the yokes of their oxen and workhorses to keep biting insects from agitating their animals. Traditionally, the leaves were used as a vulnerary to stop active bleeding either as a poultice or taken as a tea.’ (There is a monograph on this plant from which the quotation is taken.)

Self Heal has a long tradition of being used in herbal medicine for everything from stopping bleeding and healing wounds, to treating heart disease and sore throats; the young leaves and stems can be eaten raw in salads; the plant in whole can be boiled and eaten as a potherb; and the aerial parts of the plant can be powdered and brewed in a cold infusion to make a beverage.

Marsh Thistle - perhaps surprisingly eaves and young shoots an be eaten raw or cooked; the stems also, raw or cooked like asparagus or rhubarb. The flower stalks are peeled and eaten raw or cooked. The seed fluff is used as a tinder. The seed of all species of thistles yields a good oil by expression.

Meadow Cranesbill has stringent, styptic and antiseptic medical properties, Meadow Cranesbill and its close relatives were used to relieve a range of diseases including cholera, diarrhoea and dysentery; to treat nosebleeds, ulcers and haemorrhoids and to staunch bleeding wounds.

Teasel - the root is most known for its use in treating Lyme Disease. It is also used as a stomach aid, an analgesic for pain relief, an anti-inflamatory, and a stimulant for the nervous system.

Foxglove - ‘The Foxglove was employed by the old herbalists for various purposes in medicine, most of them wholly without reference to those valuable properties which render it useful as a remedy in the hands of modern physicians. Gerard recommends it to those 'who have fallen from high places,' and Parkinson speaks highly of the bruised herb or of its expressed juice for scrofulous swellings, when applied outwardly in the form of an ointment, and the bruised leaves for cleansing for old sores and ulcers. Dodoens (1554) prescribed it boiled in wine as an expectorant, and it seems to have been in frequent use in cases in which the practitioners of the present day would consider it highly dangerous. Culpepper says it is of: 'a gentle, cleansing nature and withal very friendly to nature. The Herb is familiarly and frequently used by the Italians to heal any fresh or green wound, the leaves being but bruised and bound thereon and the juice thereof is also used in old sores, to cleanse, dry and heal them. It has been found by experience to be available for the King's evil, the herb bruised and applied, or an ointment made with the juice thereof, and so used.... I am confident that an ointment of it is one of the best remedies for a scabby head that is.' Strangely enough, the Foxglove, so handsome and striking in our landscape, is not mentioned by Shakespeare, or by any of the old English poets. The earliest known descriptions of it are those given about the middle of the sixteenth century by Fuchs and Tragus in their Herbals. According to an old manuscript, the Welsh physicians of the thirteenth century appear to have frequently made use of it in the preparation of external medicines. Gerard and Parkinson advocate its use for a number of complaints, and later Salmon, in the New London Dispensatory, praised the plant. It was introduced into the London Pharmacopoeia in 1650, though it did not come into frequent use until a century later, and was first brought prominently under the notice of the medical profession by Dr. W. Withering, who in his Acount of the Foxglove, 1785, gave details of upwards of 200 cases, chiefly dropsical, in which it was used.’

Bittersweet or Bittersweet Nightshade - the stem is used to make medicine. The leaves and berries are poisonous. People take bittersweet nightshade for skin conditions including eczema, itchy skin, acne, boils, broken skin, and warts. They also take it for joint pain (rheumatism), other types of pain, and fluid retention; and as a calming agent (sedative).

This juvenile wren proved to be irresistible to the photographer. Medicinal uses undocumented but considered to be excellent for mental health

And the Robin is working on his colouration to be ready in time for Christmas

Further fliers - a pair of Emerald Damselflies mating

A sextet of Emerald Damselflies!

Green-veined whites looking rather Art Deco in their mating

10th August

Clare invited Juno to have a look at the bees with her. Juno accepted and was astonishingly calm during their visit. Clare opened one hive to show Juno a frame of brood. They had both been looking at grass seeds in the Wetland earlier so describing the eggs as like looking like grass seed (a commonly used analogy) made perfect sense. Clare was both delighted and a bit envious at how easily Juno saw the seeds! The rewards of bee-keeping are, of course, a taste of honey.

The best use of a hive tool

12th August

Exciting news - while John and friend Mike were out in a patch of woodland less than a mile from Liddells, Mike saw a red squirrel.

Clare added another plant to Mel’s list - Bittersweet is in flower in a Hawthorn in front of the hide.

14th August

Juno has been very keen for her cousins Charlie and Jonny to visit Liddells and today was the day. Juno helped initiate them into the art of bird pizza making.

Pizza triumph

15th - 21st August

Work in progress - strimming the sides of the Top Strip path, high pruning in the Pit Wood, bramble removal from south wall, weeding round tree planting in the Top Strip and the commencement of weed eradication (with Dave’s help) in the ponds. Work progress interruption - John learned that he will have to rethink the stove siting and installation in the shepherd’s hut. Further news when upset subsides. Clare has noticed some of the fungi appearing on the land and that this year the field mushrooms had migrated from the Top Grazing to inside the shelter.

Strimming in progress - please note creative repurposing of John’s homemade marquee for his and Clare’s wedding

Work completed

Stinkhorn or ‘Witch’s Egg’ (Phallus impudicus) ‘edible but not recommended’!

John has generously added his boot to this photograph to reveal just what a large specimen of Meadow Waxcap (Hygrocybe pratensis) this is

You can see the Waxcap gills here

Fly Agaric (Amanita musaria) - its common name is associated with its earlier use as a fly killer; the toadstool of illustrations to fairytales, probably because of its hallucinogenic properties. This one reminded Clare of the poisoned apple given to Sleeping Beauty

Slippery Jack Suillus luteus, apparently edible although ‘with no distinctive smell or taste’ - not a description that stimulates the appetite

22nd August

Dave’s digging has proved to be instantly effective. John and Clare went to see the results of his work and were treated to the sight of a Grey Wagtail feeding in the mud. This is a first for Liddells. Unfortunately John had decided only minutes before, to leave his camera in the car as the weather was poor. It was there again the next day but flew off the minute it saw John’s camera.

Pond waiting for water and Grey Wagtail

27th August

Mel arrived plus waders and set about the unwanted weed in the big pond. He pulled out several sackfuls of weed, including Bulrush and Branched Burr Weed, neither of which have been planted but simply arrived,

Mel contemplating the enormity of the task

Branched Bur-weed

Mel, as ever, has worked phenomenally hard and the pond is transformed

28th-30th August

While John reinstated the broken rainwater collection system, Clare made progress on her chosen task of tackling the bramble through the roadside wall, making a path inside the wall at the same time. It is hard going with opposition from brambles and gorse, however she has completed about thirty metres so far although there will be some wall repair to carry out - not as a result of her efforts. Eating the ripe blackberries helps as she works. She has found a Robin’s nest, a creative repurposing of a Soda Stream bottle, and an example of inosculation - two branches of a tree rub against each other so that their bark is worn away and they unite in a natural graft. The word derives from Latin osculari: to kiss.

Ready for the rain again

Inosculation in a Hawthorn

Should this be included in the social history of Liddells

Clare has down-tooled and left her gloves as an eerie reminder of her presence

Looking east, the path has nearly reached the Medieval cross base

29th August

John and Clare discovered the answer to the question posed by trail camera footage on 3rd August. The doe has had twins. After seeing the following footage, John lowered the camera in the hope of better footage with which to end the blog. Needless to say, the deer went nowhere near the camera. Maybe they will reappear for next month.

31st August

A Bank Holiday visit revealed that John is not the only person to enjoy his new motorised helper. Juno gets to grips with her new swing.

August - an open invitation, shut and reopened

1st - 8th August

John and Clare decided to celebrate Liddells’ sixth anniversary with an Open Day on August 10th. This turned John and Clare into preppers (OED 4th August: A person who or thing which prepares or readies something; a preparer). John set about strimming heroically to create paths round the site, Clare devised activities to keep visitors entertained, copious lists and notices were created, tables and chairs were imported, the sheds were smartened up and the shepherd’s hut was fitted with its very first furnishings - two book racks. So much more important than beds or heating. There was even a bit of MacGyvering : To construct, fix, or modify (something) in an improvised or inventive way, typically by making use of whatever items are at hand; to adapt expediently or ingeniously.(OED Word of the Day 08.08.19) - see photos below. There had been considerable rain over these few days however Clare and John remained optimistic and dedicated to prepping. The last task was to put up signs and make maps. This all occupied most of their time, however there were still opportunities to enjoy Liddells’ delights. Tim had managed to glimpse a Purple Hairstreak butterfly (first seen on Liddells last year) at the end of last month, on a roadside oak, and told John and Clare that if present, the butterflies were likely to be seen at around five in the afternoon on a sunny day at the very top of oak trees. In spite of several attempts and much cricking of necks, Tim and Jane are as yet the only ones to spot the butterfly. Good to know it seems to have returned though. Tim is also on the lookout for White Letter Hairstreaks which feed at the top elms which we have in the north-west corner of the Pit Wood. More neck-cricking involved. New dragon and damselfly species have arrived on the ponds, including Blue-tailed and Emerald damselflies and Common Hawkers.

Priorities

Final shed path weeded and chipped

Common Red Soldier Beetle (PG: only read on if you have permission from an adult) also apparently known as the Hogweed Bonking Beetle

“You’re turning violet, Violet!” This Violet Ground Beetle was trying to evade Clare’s weeding activities

Small Copper on Ragwort. John and Clare remove Ragwort from the Top Grazing and Meadow. Although animals naturally avoid eating it, if it ends up in hay they have no knowledge of its presence and that’s when there is a risk of poisoning. This small patch of the plant is on the Wetland and has been given a stay of execution because it is attracting so many butterflies.

Male Common Darter - even though these dragonflies bask for a few seconds, it is very hard to get a clear photographic image with a phone camera. This is probably the best of several taken.

Here is the female. One wildlife photographer commented that he reckoned to take 250 photographs to get 1 good one, and that’s with state of the art equipment.

Hotel under construction - no planning permission needed. Please note recycled pallets…

…carpet…

…and turves. All ecologically sound…

…and well signposted

This honey bee appeared to be foraging on the tow rope. It spent some time there. Maybe the fibres were similar to stamens…

This is a male Emerald damselfly

9th August

The rain began in the night and continued ceaselessly; the forecast for Saturday was atrocious - thundery storms and heavy rainfall. Clare received an email offering an inflatable kayak and discretion being the better part of most things, John and Clare regretfully cancelled the Open Day. They had lovely messages of support in response including Jane K who was relieved not to have to aquaplane to the event.

10th August

The forecast was right - heavy rain through the night and up till mid-morning then again through the afternoon and all the next day.

12th August

Tim and Jane managed a butterfly transect today and great excitement - a new butterfly for Liddells. Tim said the Dark Green Fritillary was a bit bedraggled. Apparently the caterpillars of this species eat dog violets, of which Liddells has plenty. Jane also found an exceptionally well camouflaged young frog near the Crag pond.

Dark Green Fritillary …

…and the underside

Even with Jane’s guidance, the frog is hard to see

Still hard to see in close up

13th August

John and Clare visited Liddells for the first time since all the rain, expecting to see a lot of standing water where none had stood before. Surprisingly there wasn’t that much, although the spring was running with great force and water was emerging from the original site of the spring and from a different site close by - neither of these have run with water in the last six years. John and Clare spent a long time by the big pond hoping for dragon and damselflies to settle, in particular the Common Hawkers that were around. Frustratingly this particular species seems to the the swift of the dragonfly world and never settles, so we can offer no photographs. Instead there are good images here. There were also Emerald damselflies, several of which were mating. There was a new insect on thistles on the Top Grazing that prompted an enquiry to the Royal Entomological Society; an enquiry that met with another prompt response from Professor Jim Hardie.

Brown-lipped snail on Hogweed

Another of the same, demonstrating how they may vary in colour

According to Professor Jim Hardie, this is a female Great Pied Hoverfly. Apparently they are widespread in the Uk and good pollinators.

A Comma on Creeping Thistle

This is the first time all but one of the stepping stones in the Crag pond have been submerged

John found this owl pellet on a fence post. You can see fragments of shiny beetle cases and at the top, the distinctive colour of a Violet Ground Beetle. Clare is hoping it was not the one she disturbed

Fungi are starting to appear and here is, if not a fairy ring, at least a fairy semi-circle

The trail camera has captured evidence that the roe buck and doe are still around, however there is no footage of the kid during the last three days. Let’s hope it is somewhere dry.

Taking a less explored route through the Pit Wood, John was particularly excited to find evidence of a roe ring. Roe rings provide evidence of repeated chases, the buck chasing the doe, around tree trunks or broken stumps, chases that leave a circle or figure-of-eight of bare earth liberally sprinkled with slots and often remnants of hair. In this instance, there was a figure of eight around two Norway Spruces. Unfortunately the ring would not show up well on a photograph.

17th - 18th August

John and Clare decided to tackle one of the projects that has been on the Liddells to-do list for quite a while - creating a series of steps over a large spoil heap in the Top Strip. It’s a clichéd task - taking flight one step at a time, the only way is up, until of course what goes up must come down while in the meantime trying not to get the hump.

Chips with everything

John at work having just freed the enormous boulder that is in the foreground. It will be incorporated into a cairn nearby

Things are looking up

This is the downside

19th August

Followers of this blog will know that photographs of rainbows have featured before. Here is another. Rainbows help compensate for all the rain and Liddells has good rainbows. This is one of Tim’s pictures and he adds that his kids used to call the road bend between his house and Liddells Rainbow Corner because that was the name of the owners of the house near the bend and because there are often rainbows there.

Tim’s caption - somewhere over the rainbow

20th August

The trail camera has captured evidence that the kid is still around. John thinks it is a buck.

21st August

While watching the big pond for dragonflies, Clare managed to identify another new species - a Brown Hawker (also seen recently in the Pit Wood) and in checking it out on the British Dragonfly Society’s website, realised she had wrongly labelled a photo in the June blog post. The subject in question was a Four-spotted Chaser, not the female Broad-bodied Chaser. This means that to date the ponds have attracted nine species of dragon and damselflies.

24th August - OPEN DAY!

The forecast for today had looked good for a while so John and Clare decided to go ahead with the Open Day and make best use of all John’s path strimming. The shepherd’s hut became a Liddells Information Office for the day with lists of the wildlife recorded thus far and some illustrations; visitors were provided with a map and list of suggested activities and an invitation to discover their inner child. Much fun appeared to be had by all. John and Clare were delighted to let everyone else do the work. Keith identified an additional dragonfly ovipositing- a Southern Hawker - which brings our species total up to ten. Thank you to all photographers for their contributions.

Also on offer was ‘Build a cairn’ to make use of some of the rocks excavated during the step making

Pat and Kate undertaking the challenge. Pat later suggested the provision of a swing for adults as well as children; Kate told a story about ‘a little soggy doggy with a very waggy tale’ - this might have had something to do with Maggie the cocker spaniel who joined in the day

Sabre wasp enjoying the view from inside the hut

Follow the sign…

…and this is part of what you can see

Making seat and orientation board now added to to-do list

Gloves thoughtfully provided

Does anyone use them…

…no

Are they looking for the pond or the pond-dipping equipment?

Here it is

John has found the pond and is looking for dragonflies

Juno and Hal get to have a go a couple of days later

Jane and Gill seem to be looking for the way through the woods

Here’s one…

…and here’s another

Maggie found some textbook examples of Grey Coral Fungus

Kate started to build herself a shelter

Neil and Lesley this Painted Lady on Knapweed in the Meadow

Jane E found another Wolf Spider with egg sac

Follow the sign…

are you sitting comfortably…

…then Mark will begin

Bug hotel building materials…

…building site…

…and instructions

Nathan decorating one of the rooms…

…and within minutes he had spotted our first guest. It’s a Four-banded Longhorn Beetle. We are hoping it gives a good review on TwigAdvisor (thank you Mark!)

It wasn’t all work!

There had been a large number of flying ants around the shepherd’s hut during the day however everyone politely ignored them. Later Kathryn sent a message to say that it had been Flying Ant Day. That wasn’t on either the biodiversity or Open Day plan yet seems wholly appropriate that they shared the celebration.

25th August

After all the enchantments and delights of the Open Day, Clare made her own discoveries. Enchanting? Delightful? All part of nature’s rich pattern.

These are both examples of the slime mould Fuligo Septica, also known as Scrambled Egg Slime Mould…

…and less appealingly as Dog’s Vomit Slime Mould

However she was also able to take a slightly better picture of a Common Darter than previously.

31st August

Clare started the process of removing honey from the bees yesterday. This involves adding a clearer board in the evening. (The board has a rhombus shaped escape insert which has two "tunnels" leading to each end and a centre chamber in which the bees gather when initially leaving the super) The board is positioned between the brood box and the honey super . The bees will naturally cluster in the brood box overnight and if the super is removed early the next morning, they haven’t had a chance to work out how to get back up to the honey. This morning only three bees had to be persuaded to abandon their honey which made the collection quite easy. There’s not as much honey this year as last as the bees needed it during the cold and wet spells when they couldn’t get out to forage. While Clare and John enjoy honey on their toast, they hope the bees will be satisfied with their sugar syrup substitute.