Having been locked down in Crete for three and a half months, I have finally made it to my new summer location, Cockermouth in Cumbria. So, welcome to the all new Crete & Cumbria Nature Blog, in which we’ll be comparing and contrasting the state of nature between southern and northern Europe. Although a lot of my time is being spent house hunting at the moment, I’m still managing to escape to the countryside, so join me if you will, as we take the local bus to the village of Embleton.
The
bus has dropped us at a convenient wayside inn and we’ll start by
following this lane down the hill, signposted Wythop Mill. This
yellow roadside plant is Jacobaea [Ragwort], which spreads
rapidly. In Europe, it has a natural control in Tyria jacobaeae
[Cinnabar Moth], a brightly coloured day flying moth who’s
larvae are voracious feeders. I can see at least three of the
caterpillars on this plant. So hungry are these particular
caterpillars, that if they run out of plant, they’re not above
eating each other. They have been introduced into New Zealand,
Australia and North America where Ragwort has become a problem.
The
third marked footpath on the right takes us over Wythop Beck and onto
a bridleway heading in the direction of an abbey, according to the
map. Where there is water, there are dragonflies (their larvae are
aquatic). I thought
that Anax imperator, [Emperor Dragonfly], that are
common in Crete, were big at 78mm in length, but the females of this
species, Cordulegaster boltonii, [Golden Ringed Dragonfly] can
reach a whopping 84mm. This one doesn’t have an ovipositor (egg
laying tube) on the back end, so it’s a male. Still very impressive though.
The
bridleway is now delving between high banks of hawthorn, oak,
blackberry and birch and down at root level, the shade loving plants
grow. I’m going to stick my neck out here, as my familiarity with
British plants has waned somewhat over the past sixteen years, but I
think that this is Circaea
[Enchanter’s
Nightshade]. I want it to be, anyway, because the enchanter in
question, after which the plant gets its scientific name, is the
Greek goddess Circe. She
was Helios, the sun god’s daughter, and had a tendency to get a
bit stroppy. She was also a bit handy with the old magic potions as
the Italian king, Picus, found out when he rejected her advances –
she turned him into a woodpecker. She also turned all of Odysseus’
crew into swine, but whether that was because they all rejected her
advances, I’m not sure.
Out
of the dark and into the light and
the world of domestic livestock. Don’t worry about the cows, they
won’t come too close. Oh, they have. Ignore them. What? Well, it’s
your own fault, I’ve told you before: if you must go commando in
the countryside, wear trousers. Scotsmen, what can you do with them?
Meanwhile, back with the natural world, busy
pollinating this thistle, is a Bombus
lucorum [White-tailed
Bumblebee] (or to be more accurate for the hymenopterists; a member
of the B. lucorum complex). Now, we are particularly interested in
Bumblebees at the moment because The
Cumbria Wildlife Trust
is counting them, and each time we photograph a bumblebee and upload
it to the iNaturalist
app. It
is automatically
included
in
the Get
Cumbria Buzzing Project. For
those outside Cumbria, other county wildlife trusts are available.
This is one of the many citizen science projects you can enjoy
getting involved with in the UK, but sadly, not yet in Crete. And if
that doesn’t whet your whistle, I spy the pub over there where we
can certainly do some serious wetting.
But
first, a little bit of work. If
I have read the map correctly, then we should come out onto the lane
at the second footpath sign that we passed, where I happened to
notice a whole
bank
of Chamerion
angustiflorum [Rosebay
Willow Herb], or Fireweed, as it is called in some parts of the
world.
Those
of you who know me of old, know that I can never resist a bit of
Fieldcraft
& Foraging
on our little expeditions, and today is no exception. We’re going
to pick some flowers. The flower head is a bit like Dickens’ ghosts
of Christmas; at the top you have flowers past, then flowers
present, then flowers yet to come. We want to pinch the stem just
below the bottommost flower and gently strip off the past and present
flowers. We’ll leave the plants
at the back
for the insects to enjoy this afternoon and evening. We’ll collect
a small
bag
and
later, together with a few sprigs of peppermint that I found in that
swampy bit about half an hour ago, we’ll take them over to Steve's Wild Kitchen and
turn them into a yummy, and vitamin rich, dessert sauce that transforms simple
vanilla ice cream into a dessert to die for.
B
Apologies, the link to Steve's Wild Kitchen has hit a technical glitch. I'll try to sort it, but please call back later if you want the recipe for a sublime summer dessert. All the best, Steve.
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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.
Yvonne:
This
was a gift for a family so that the children can understand what
they see on days out. The second was for me. Logical and easy to
use. If you know anyone who likes nature you can be confident that
gifting this book will give years of pleasure.
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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).
Too
new for reviews yet!
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A
light-hearted look at life through the eyes of the fairer sex.
Janet:
If
you are short on time but enjoy reading and are maybe not into
long extended novels then Not Just For... Twisted Women provides
readers with concise stories that stand alone and most certainly
entertain with their ultimate twists. Loved it.
Helen:
A
very good read! Well written and entertaining!
Margaret:
Each
quick tale gives a glimpse into a character's life and has an
often humorous twist at the end. I would love to read more.
Yvonne:
These
days many people find it hard to find the time to read a novel, so
this book of short stories is ideal to dip into. It is also makes
a good gift.
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See
sample pages of all my books and latest blogs, and keep abreast of
latest publications here:
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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
Great start, Steve. Looking forward to your compare and contrast reports. X
ReplyDeleteThanks Yvonne, blog posts will be a bit sporadic over the summer as I get settled in, but back in the autumn on a weekly basis. It really is lovely up here. Can't wait to show it off to you and Alan.
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