Ladybird 1 – Ants 3
I saw this 7 spot ladybird making it’s slow way along a plant stem. Minding it’s own business.
As it made his way down the stalk it didn’t know it was being watched – and not only by me:
The Ladybird was quickly surrounded by three ants:
Who harrassed it:
The ants kept this up for quite a while and all the ladybird could do was put up with it.
I eventually felt sorry for it and allowed it to escape by brushing it off the stalk.
All heart you see, that’s me!
Mind you, I could have done it much earlier but I wouldn’t have got these photographs if I had – would I!
Filed under In The Garden, Insects, Photography | Comment (0)Holy Blooms
St. Nicholas Church at Wade in Thanet held a Flower Festival over the weekend.
Church Entrance and Interior:
We went along. The show was entitled ‘The Fragrance of Jesus’ and each display was accompanied by words from the New Testament.
Taking photographs proved a bit of a challenge as I didn’t want to use a flash but for a couple I had to use my ring flash because of the low lighting. The light from the stained glass windows made an interesting background to the displays.
Bridge Chapel:
This little area of the church is where ancestors of Sir Robert Bridges (Poet Laureate) are interred.
Here are a few of the displays
Display Number 14:
Display 2:
Display 3 – Allium:
Allium close-up:
Star Gazer Lily:
Gerbera:
A lovely display that I enjoyed looking at and photographing.
I trust you enjoy them as well.
Filed under Around Thanet, Photography | Comment (0)Counting the Early Birds
I was up early this morning to take part in the RSPB (Royal Society for Protection of Birds) Nature Count.
The object of the exercise is to spend an hour watching and recording all birds in your garden (if you don’t have a garden then a park or other likewise area will do).
I was up at 6.15am and was sat in my hide from 7am to 8am. The light wasn’t too good for photography but I did manage to get a photograph of a Jay. They are very skittish and quickly fly off especially when they spot movement.
A Jay helps himself to a peanut:
I also had four Magpies in the trees at the bottom of our garden:
Collared Dove and Three of the Magpies:
I counted:
Magpies – 4
Robin – 1
Great Tit – 1
Dunnock – 1
Collared Dove – 1
Feral Pigeons – 1
Black Bird – 1
Not too bad a number.
Our Squirrel also spent time feeding heartily on the bird seed. The Jay had already taken the peanuts I put out for him.
Squirrel on bird feeder tray:
It was a pleasant hour although the bird count was low.
There is something about getting up early. The peace and quiet, the morning dew and the gradual warming from the sun accompanied by a cheerful blackbird singing in it’s rays . . . . . . . . well, you get the idea!
A Flower Festival was next on the agenda – thats for my next post.
Filed under Birds, In The Garden, Photography | Comment (1)Busy, Busy, Busy.
I have been fairly busy lately what with sorting out the photographs I took at a recent wedding and playing the flute for Pfizer Wind Orchestra and Knyghtryders Folk Group plus the gardening, croquet, housework and all other things Mae wants doing. All this means that, although I have been taking photographs in the garden, I haven’t had the time to look through them or sort them out.
I have now put other tasks to one side to do just that. Here are some of my favourite images of visitors to and residents in our garden in recent weeks. (Click on an image to view it full size – it’s worth it!).
There are a few I haven’t seen in the garden before.
It is fascinating to wander around the garden and see the variety of insects, bugs and other creatures that come and go and photograph them.
One of my projects is to catalogue them and identify them correctly (I am not the worlds best at identification) and put them on the www in some form or another.
When that happens I’ll let you know.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)