Definition of a naturalist: Someone who has never grown up, and shows no inclination to do so.
That’s
me, at any rate. I still retain the inquisitiveness of a four year
old. The child within is present in all of us, but sometimes the
annual layers of age hide the heartwood like the successive layers of
bark on a tree. So, come with me for a walk by a small stream in the
foothills of the Thriptis mountains, strip away the years, and view
life through the eyes of a child.
What’s
that? Is the first question
that a child asks on seeing something new, and identification is the
first step in looking at the natural world around us. This
flower, for example is a St. John’s Wort, Hypericum
empetrifolium. Why is it called that? Is
the next question that follows rapidly. ‘Wort’ is an old English
word (pronounced wert) used for plants that can be used in cooking or
medicine. St. John’s Wort, particularly the sister to this one,
Hypericum perforatum, is
an anti-depressant, which can be used in place of, but
never together with,
prescription drugs. The red
stain that is released when the plant is crushed is attributed to the
martyr, St. John.
When
it comes to the animal kingdom, another question often crops up. What
are they doing? To dispose of
the what and why regarding names, these are Leaf Beetles (Family
Chrysomelidae), so called because they’re often to be found on
leaves. As for what they are doing, they are mating. This is the
ultimate purpose of any form of life: to propagate the species.
Mating is the obvious first step in this process, but in highly
successful species (like ours), it is often more useful to improve
the survival chances of the
existing individuals, rather than increase the absolute numbers.
Time
to take a little break from the questions
and sit by the stream
awhile. These breaks are important when studying nature for two
reasons. Firstly, it’s amazing what you miss, when you are on the
move. We probably would have missed these seed
heads of a little
parsley-like plant called Orlaya
daucoides, and the shed
skin of a dragonfly (called an exuvium). Dragonflies live their
youthful lives (the larval stage) under water. When they are ready to
become adults, they climb out of the water, shed their adolescent
clothes (leaving them for someone else to pick up, like any
teenager), then sit in the sun to dry and pump up their new wings.
The second reason is that sitting still allows the wildlife
to come to you, like these
little Water Bugs and the Speckled Wood butterfly, Pararge
aegeria, that has just
landed.
Retracing
our steps gives us a chance to spot things that we missed first time
round. Our childish questions are not restricted to what we see, but
also what we can’t see. For instance, who lives in this
hole? A snake, a lizard, maybe
a rat or mouse? The only thing to do is sit and wait (or set up a
camera trap, as many animals are nocturnal and we may have a long
wait). In this case, however, I think that a little patience may be
rewarded.
There’s
our answer, it’s the entrance to a bumble bee’s nest. Unlike
honey bee colonies,
which contain tens of thousands of
individuals, bumble bee colonies usually number less than five
hundred. Here’s another one coming in… and another… and
another.
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| Predators and Prey |
So,
there we have it, all of life just waiting to be discovered.
Everything has to feed and grow, avoid being eaten by somebody else
trying to feed and grow; build a nest to raise the next generation;
and find a mate with which to produce that next generation. Douglas
Adams was almost right when he wrote that the answer to Life, The
Universe and Everything is 42. I
suspect that he meant Fortitude.
Footnote:
The bird in the last picture is a Hobby, Falco
subbuteo. The table
football game, Subbuteo, is named after this bird’s Latin species
name because the Patent Office refused it’s inventor, Peter Adolph,
permission to call it Hobby.
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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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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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Crete
Nature Catch-up
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LINKS:
Share
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(the
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Explore
the region with the #CreteNature interactive Hiking
and Nature Map
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