Here
I am, still locked down in Crete, and somehow, I don’t think I’ll
be selling the house this year. In fact, now that I’ve started
doing the old place up a bit, I may not sell it at all. I might just
buy a small place in Cumbria for Spring, Summer and Autumn, then
overwinter here, like a migrating bird. This week, I’ve been
tidying up the summer kitchen. This is a feature of Greek houses: a
shady spot where you can cook and eat in the hot summer months. In
the course of sweeping and swabbing, I inevitably disturbed some
resident wildlife, much to their chagrin.
Plenty
of insect life, but this week I thought we’d have a look at some of
the creepy-crawlies other than insects. This jumping spider, having
eight legs, is an Arachnid. Spiders, Scorpions, Harvestmen,
Solifuges, Mites and Ticks are all in this group.
Millipedes,
who’s name means ‘a thousand legs’ are Myriapods, as are
centipedes, who’s name means ‘a hundred legs’. Myriapod means
‘ten thousand legs’ and all of the names are technically
inaccurate. The leggiest millipede tops out at around 750
and centipedes average around 70. To tell the difference between a
millipede and a centipede, without having to count up to more than
two, centipedes have one pair of legs per body segment, whereas
millipedes have two
pairs.
Seeing
as I have a wood pile
just around the corner, it’s not surprising that there are a number
of woodlice about, (although
they like any moist, dark
environment, not just wood
piles).
These have 14 legs, so you would think that they would be called
decatesserapods, but that is a bit of a mouthful, so they’re just
called Isopods,
which means ‘an equal number of legs’. Not very helpful as all
animals have an equal number of legs.
Fieldcraft
& Foraging
Talking
of ‘a bit of a mouthful’, a couple of weeks ago, when we were
exploring the Hinterland,
I mentioned that I had a little project involving snails. The
project involved keeping them, and feeding them on choice morsels for
a week, as I wished them to star in a new recipe for Steve's
Wild Kitchen.
It
is vitally important, when cooking wild snails, to feed them for a
week, on plants that we consider edible. Otherwise,
you may find yourself ingesting substances that are fine for snails,
but poisonous to us.
They were absolutely delicious, simmered in ouzo, flambéed
at the table, and served in a nest of fennel. Pictures
and recipe
here.
Just
a reminder, that The
Quick Guide to Creepy-Crawlies
is
still on offer until the end of April, complete with Arachnids,
Myriapods and Isopods, and how to tell them all apart. An
#inspirationalpresent
for any youngster with a birthday coming up.
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See sample pages of all my books and latest
blogs, and keep abreast of current publications, here:
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All
you need to know to identify any type of insect, spider, worm or
snail, very simply, and find out more about it.
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The
Eggs of Saramova
A
science fiction novella for those who don't like science fiction.
A fast-paced thriller that is, literally, out of this world (and
it starts right here in Crete).
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A
light-hearted look at life through the eyes of the fairer sex.
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Crete
Nature Catch-up
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LINKS:
Share
your nature thoughts, photos and comments on Naturalists
(the
facebook page that accompanies this blog)
Explore
the region with the #CreteNature interactive Hiking
and Nature Map
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