July 2016 – Grantham Ecology

For the last month, all through June, I’ve been taking part in #30dayswild. Now that June has come to an end, I am looking back on the activities which kept me feeling connected to nature through the month. The following post summarises Week 2 – feel free to click through the links to read more about any of these activities!

Weeks 3-4 summaries will follow!

Day 8 – Invertebrates and helleborines

I write this post from the shelter of the car as the rain hammers down outside – fingers crossed it passes in time for tonight’s bat survey! I was lucky enough to spend a good portion o…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 8

Day 9 – Insects on hogweed

Today began with a bat survey, where there was little to be seen in the way of bats activity but plenty of swallows who started chirping away a good 90 minutes before sunrise and taking to the wing…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 9

Day 10 – Wildflowers along the Grantham Canal

I left early this morning to give me chance to walk along the Grantham Canal before work – I love the stretch between Grantham and Harlaxton which runs in a cutting, the habitat shifting from…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 10

Day 11 – Painted Lady Butterfly

We took a walk out around home this afternoon and spotted this very tattered painted lady butterfly feeding on the hogweed flowers. It had lost chunks from its wings and was far from a pristine spe…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 11

Day 12 – Urban Botany

I think one of the single best things about botany is the ability to enjoy it just about anywhere. As Sunday was so overcast and rainy, I decided to head off to the Depot Climbing Centre in Notting…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 12

Day 13 – Orchids

Day 13 of 30 Days Wild is pretty grim and overcast here in the midlands, but don’t let that put you off getting out and about! The rain awakens so many scents from the earth and vegetation th…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 13

Day 14 – Moorhens along the River Wytham

A dawn bat survey started the day, followed by a morning in the office so my attention was starting to flag a little by lunchtime. Luckily, our office is only 5 minutes walk from the River Witham w…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 14

For the last month, all through June, I’ve been taking part in #30dayswild. Now that June has come to an end, I am looking back on the activities which kept me feeling connected to nature through the month. The following post summarises Week 1 – feel free to click through the links to read more about any of these activities!

Weeks 2-4 summaries will follow!

Day 1 – Bat Survey

I started Day 1 of 30 Days Wild at 2:30am when I set a very early alarm to carry out a bat survey. Despite the murky conditions, the night had been damp but without rain, and the dawn temperature o…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 1

Day 2 – Meeting a Mayfly

The arrival of the mayflies – those famously short-lived river dwellers – is one of the most dramatic events in early summer. Their appearance is of interest to many more species than j…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 2

Day 3 – Common Blue Butterflies
I called in at a Warwickshire Wildlife Trust site on my way home from site survey to see whether the butterfly orchids were yet in flower. I found several spikes where the first flowers were openin…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 3

Day 4 – Wildflowers in the Garden
It is often said that a weed is simply a flower in the wrong place. I would consider that any flower which adds life and colour to a drab lawn has found it’s right place, and so I went out in…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 4

Day 5 – Sunset in a Wildflower Meadow
For Day 5 of 30 Days Wild, I walked out to a local National Nature REserve (NNR) called Muston Meadows to watch the sun go down. As I spend much of the summer doing bat surveys, I do get to see my …

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 5

Day 6 – Recording a Cuckoo Bee on iRecord
The blue skies and sunshine first thing this morning made a walk around the garden a must-do before heading into work. I spotted a bumblebee on one of the ornamental garden shrubs which looked rath…

Source: 30 Days Wild – Day 6

Day 7 – Orange -tip Butterflies along the Viking Way
Taking the time to watch nature, rather than simply notice it and keep on walking, is an immensely rewarding experience. There is much information available on so many species, but sometimes it is …