In the garden

The trees are weighed down with cherries. Birds are gobbling them up and a family of foxes is enjoying what falls to the ground.



There are two young foxes...



They seem pretty happy wandering around in daylight.
 

Meanwhile, birds are coming to the pond for water.



I was surprised to see such a nice-looking Broad-bodied Chaser in July

Early-nesting Bumblebees went mad for the thyme flowers.

 

Lodgetime

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Insectorama

Bumbling bees

Silver-Y (check out the curly tongue)

Large Red Damselflies

Broad-bodied Chaser

Four-spotted Chaser

Red-eyed Damselflies

Azure Damselflies

Ichneumon wasp with scary-looking ovipositor (not a sting)

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Good evening in the garden

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM or Canon Powershot A640

Buddleia + butterflies

Loads of fantastic butterflies in the garden this morning. I am smitten with Painted Ladies. Most around now are of the generation that hatched in the UK/northern Europe, the offspring of the North African immigrants which themselves emerged in the Atlas mountains. The newer ones are in pristine condition. I could almost... eat one!

Peacock and Painted Lady


Peacock basking on a dead tree stump

Painted Lady (see a bit of a theme here?) and Large White

Painted Lady...

Meadow Brown has its own subtle charms

Teasels are fabulous wildlife garden plants. Insects go mad for the purple flowers and later on, Goldfinches can't get enough of the seeds. Well, male Goldfinches do, anyway. I think the females have thicker bills which don't let them get the seeds! Must check...

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

And in the garden

This Six-spot Burnet moth was a garden tick. Which reminds me, really must get mothtrapping started again.





A male Green Woodpecker brought his fledgling offspring to the garden yesterday (excuse the fuzzy images, they were taken through the window)


Bumblebees are lapping up nectar at the moment

The Badger has been back every night so far since we first noticed it on Tuesday.

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

The bees have it

The bees certainly seem to like these blue flowers. I'm starting to look more closely at bees. I think the second one might be an Early-nesting Bumblebee, Bombus pratorum, and maybe the first one is another Buff-tailed Bumblebee, B. terrestris. Of course, feel free to tell me I'm wrong...

The Natural History Museum bumblebee page is very helpful for bee ID.

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Bzzzzz

Purple/blue flower with...


... and without honeybee

Found this dead bumblebee by the wisteria (overdose?), then a helpful page on the Natural History Museum website to identify it as a female Buff-tailed Bumblebee

photos taken with Canon Powershot A640

Hedgerow

Bumblebee at take-off, with a shower of pollen grains




Brown Hawker


Common Darter


blackberries


acorns

At lunchtime I went for a walk down to Stratford Road, which runs along the foot of the hill. It's south-facing so tends to be a good place for insects with a good bank of bramble bushes. I couldn't resist helping myself to a few ripe blackberries, and while I did, a squirrel dropped bits of discarded acorn husk on my head.

The blackberries (and blossom) attract butterflies, with dragonflies presumably enticed by the smaller insects on the plants. I had to wade through some nettles to get close to the beautiful Brown Hawker above. The bumblebee was in the garden on my way to the lane.

More photos available on Flickr

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D + EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Sunshine!

Red Admiral


Peacock


Hoverfly Volucella pellucens


Brown Argus


Small Red-eyed Damselfly


Common Darter


Bumblebee on Water Mint

Seven-spot Ladybird on blackberries. I haven't seen a proper ladybird at The Lodge for ages!

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM, Extender EF 1.4x II