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Image-of-the-Day by Subject

Image Taken on 12 Feb 2008 at 14:29    Image of day on 12 Mar 2008

The handful of surviving alder trees are producing some attractive tracery against the sky. What we call 'cones' seem to be officially 'corky outgrowths to keep the seeds afloat in water'. Cones seems easier!


Ref: 20080312_p34_20080212_1429_815 alder cones & catkins(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 29 Sep 2011 at 13:33    Image of day on 13 Nov 2011

The Angle Shades Moth is very common, but doesn't normally oblige with flying on request for the camera!


Ref: 20111113_da1_20110929_1333_100+1447_246_ft1 angle shades moth (phlogophora meticulosa) in flight with autumn hawthorn leaves (montage)(r+mb id@768).jpg

Image Taken on 18 Aug 2009 at 09:29    Image of day on 26 Sep 2009

A few days later we put out the moth trap & one of the hundreds of moths was this Angle Shades moth that flew off right by these Woody Nightshade berries that grow over the heating oil tank.


Ref: 20090926_da1_20090818_0929_137+1027_277_ft1 angle shades moth in flight with woody nightshade berries (aka bittersweet) (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 23 Jul 2011 at 18:31    Image of day on 28 Aug 2011

Our usual crop of Arum lilies is not in evidence this year, but we found some deep in the mature hedge along the trackside in the ditch edge, presumably finding a little more moisture than the other sites.


Ref: 20110828_p10_20110723_1831_046 arum lily berries along west of track lords-and-ladies (arum maculatum) (crop)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 04 Jun 2010 at 12:32    Image of day on 13 Jul 2010

Azure damselflies are mating and laying in all the warm ponds. Here a pair 'in wheel' on an Flag iris frond - the dominant marginal plant in the main pond.


Ref: 20100713_df1_20100604_1232_010 azure damselflies mating on flag iris frond (crop)(r+mb id@768).jpg

Image Taken on 25 May 2009 at 16:13    Image of day on 23 Jun 2009

Most blue damselflies here are the Azure species - a beautiful rich blue.


Ref: 20090623_d01_20090525_1613_175+1631_209 ft1 azure damselfly in flight with willow sapling (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 01 Sep 2009 at 13:12    Image of day on 17 Oct 2009

What seems to be a new emergence Azure Damselfly was flying along the bank of the pond and 'came in' for a 10 minute photo shoot.


Ref: 20091017_da1_20090901_1312_006+1327_024_ft1 azure damselfly male in flight with grass seed head (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 01 Jun 2009 at 14:41    Image of day on 06 Jul 2009

A common site at almost any decent wildlife pond is pairs of Azure Azure Damselflies mating.
In August 2007 we pictured them in 'Wheel' position as the male transfers his sperm to the female (male to the left arching over the female):-

This year we picture them in 'Tandem'. The male is on the right and they can fly in this position.


Ref: 20090706_db1_20090601_1441_140 azure damselfly pair in tandem on lily frond(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 29 Jun 2009 at 11:24    Image of day on 03 Aug 2009

The female Banded Demoiselle does not have the band on her wings that her mate does. The sheen on the abdomen is exquisite with a greener tinge than the males. In the recent warm days a 25m grass strip between hedges has become a wonderland of these beauties - about 4 males and a couple of females flutter gently around you as you walk slowly along the path.


Ref: 20090803_da1_20090629_1124_038+1136_082 ft1 banded demoiselle female in flight with blackthorn leaves (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 29 Jun 2009 at 11:41    Image of day on 03 Aug 2009

The edges of the 4 wings are so nearly aligned that they almost look like shadows.


Ref: 20090803_da1_20090629_1141_099 ft1 banded demoiselle female on blackthorn leaf (web crop)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 23 Jun 2009 at 14:35    Image of day on 30 Jul 2009

The Banded Demoiselle is quite one of the most beautiful damselflies we know of. This is the male - the female has no band on different coloured wings. See in a few days.


Ref: 20090730_da1_20090623_1435_104+1516_194 ft1 banded demoiselle male in flight with grass head (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 14 Mar 2010 at 17:53    Image of day on 20 Apr 2010

Two minutes after the sunset lit flyby (yesterdays image) the bird had perched on this post about 20m from us, then dived down to the base but came up with nothing and flew off to some more distant posts.
From the right read the sequence as: Post, Up, down, down, (lost in the grass not shown), takeoff (too confused to include) wings up & surprisingly bright (no flash) to left and fly off to left.


Ref: 20100420_df1_20100314_1753_255-281 barn owl diving into long grass from post then flying off 3+6+10+21+26+29 of 32 (acc montage)(r+mb id@768).jpg

Image Taken on 28 Apr 2010 at 20:49    Image of day on 02 Jun 2010

After quietly opening the window the bird was on the wing away from the house. It was not necessarily the window disturbed it - we rarely see them hunt from one perch for more than 3 minutes. Fortunately it perched in a willow tree behind 'Duck' pond were we could get this last image of the day. This is the first time we have seen one in a tree - we usually see them using fence posts and power poles as a hunting perches.


Ref: 20100602_d01_20100428_2049_030 barn owl hunting from willow behind duck pond (crop)(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 29 Sep 2011 at 13:23    Image of day on 13 Nov 2011

An atypically very warm few days in Autumn brought out some moths. This is a Barred Sallow Moth which we haven't identified before.


Ref: 20111113_da1_20110929_1323_061+1447_250_ft1 barred sallow moth (xanthia aurago) in flight with autumn hawthorn leaves (montage)(r+mb id@768).jpg

Image of day on 30 Mar 2005

Particularly relieved this year by the return of hundreds of honey bees after a few years of seeing only a few at any time


Ref: 20050330_d12_02301 bee collecting pollen on blackthorn flowers 2005mar19_13-58-00(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 25 May 2011 at 14:09    Image of day on 24 Jun 2011

Yellow Flag Iris is designed to use bees for pollination. The sexual organs are beneath the upper petal which presses down on the bee as it enters leaving or picking up pollen on its back that you can see as yellow specks on the last image. Bees always go in the 'front' pushing up the upper petal, but exit out of the side.


Ref: 20110624_db1_20110525_1409_042+047+051 bee entering yellow flag iris flower and exiting through side 03+08+12 of 13 (montage)(r+mb id@1024).jpg

Image Taken on 24 Apr 2010 at 14:50    Image of day on 30 May 2010

This might be a 'common' bee-fly (one of 12 or 15 species according to which book you look in but neither has any detail) now seen here in Spring for the last 3 years. This year we got the 'Flight Tunnel' out of its winter hibernation early and made this one one of the subjects.


Ref: 20100530_da1_20100424_1450_117+1612_208_ft1 bee-fly in flight and red campion flowers (montage)(r+mb id@768).jpg

Image of day on 29 Nov 2005

This very exposed beech leaf has its edge thick with frost.


Ref: 20051129_p20_1040443 frosted autumn beech leaf 2005nov20_09-56-32(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image of day on 26 Oct 2005

A beech twig with leaves all the way from green to brown.


Ref: 20051026_p20_1040135 beech leaf sprig in various colours 2005oct10_16-47-18(r+mb id@576).jpg

Image Taken on 13 Oct 2006 at 15:03    Image of day on 26 Oct 2006

A Beech tree we photograph every few days had this one leaf near the top back-lit like a golden coin.


Ref: 20061026_p34_20061013_1503_285 beech n of round autumn leaf detail(r+mb id@576).jpg

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