Voila – Turkish Delight

What a beautiful late Autumn day. Just the sort of day for strolling around an uninhabited historic village and looking for wildlife. This one, called Voila (pronounced Vo-i-la as opposed to the French voilà) is Venetian in origin under the fiefdom of the Salomon family but when Crete was taken over by the Ottoman Empire^[1] in the mid seventeenth century it became the headquarters of one Jen Ali, a famous commander in his day. Nowadays the tower, on which Turkish motifs can be readily discerned, are guarded by a small Cretan frog where armed janissaries once stood. I wonder if there are any bat roosts hidden within?

Unfortunately not, nor anything more remarkable than an old pigeon's nest. It was also rather chilly in there and as the sun is shining down magnificently on the south east side of the village I suggest we make our way over there, nosing through the ruins as we go, and see if we can find some more wildlife. That's better, the ground is covered in lichen covered stones and a host of tiny flowers. These lovely little crocuses, Crocus laevigatus, are particularly attractive I think before they are fully open. Those deep lilac streaks on the underside contrasting strikingly with the snow white petals and then, gradually, the divided orange stigma are revealed. Like a firework in slow motion.

And where we have flowers then of course we have insects and it really is a thriving metropolis down here. Let us repose upon the carpet of Wood Sorrel leaves and observe the action at eye level. There's a small black wasp doing a complicated waggle dance amid an audience of harvester ants here and on one of the crocuses a red and black Soldier Bug nymph is exploring his new world. A few minute black fly-like insects on that Colchicum over there, no bigger than its stamens, require closer inspection and a Marmalade Hoverfly has been attracted to the bright yellow composites that are also dotting the scene like Belisha Beacons along the highways. Sunbathing on the stones a Short-horned grasshopper is looking forward to a light salad lunch whilst nearby an Ameles mantis waits in motionless ambush for a somewhat meatier meal. I could lie here all morning fascinated by this miniature world but there is something I have yet to see this autumn and I wonder if we'll find any examples up by that church up yonder?

This is the church of Agios Giorgos and the last resting place of the Salomon family (they're in the extension apparently if you'd like to go in and say hello). Personally I'm going to do a bit of bird watching. There's a great view of the village, the valley and the windmill dominated hills behind and the first thing I see is a pair of large birds of prey rapidly approaching the spinning blades. A bit distant but I think that the lead bird, at least, may be a Griffon Vulture. There's also a Buzzard on the corner of that building down there. He's spotted something... and he's off. And scanning around to that stand of Weaver's Broom down to our right a Stonechat has just landed. I saw a Black Redstart as we passed through the village of Chandras as well. They started arriving in the second week of November and my own personal lodger has occasionally roosted above my bedroom window when the weather has been less than conducive to spending the night in the open.

Meanwhile I do believe that the items for which I've been looking are lurking alonside the roots of this tree. Our first fungi of the autumn and edible ones at that. These are Mica Caps and if you look closely at the cap you can see the tiny glistening specks that give it the name. A couple of words of warning before you squirrel them away into your bag. Firstly, they must be cooked within the hour or they dissolve into a horrible squidgy inedible mess. Secondly, some related species react with any alcohol in your stomach so it is inadvisable to drink about three hours either side of eating them. Thirdly, they're rather good at picking up heavy metals from the soil so avoid collecting them from roadsides or polluted sites. And finally... I think I see the local priest arriving and he may have something to say about you pinching his breakfast. In all honesty, once you've covered points one to four and checked that there are no fly larvae lurking within, their flavour is so very delicate that you wonder if they were worth the trouble.

The Extra Bit

^[1] If you would like a good read about this period of Cretan history in the east of the island then Yvonne Payne's dramatic account of the Kritsa heroine, Rodanthe is well worth adding to your library. Details here.

Now, cast your mind back two years ago to the day we explored the grounds of the Porto Belissario Hotel. There we found a Western Conifer Seed Bug and I opined that it was the first time that it had been recorded on Crete. It turns out that I was correct and I am most grateful to Torsten van der Heyden for crediting me with its discovery on the island in his paper published on November 20^th in the entomological journal Arquivos Entomoloxicos Galegos

Photographic Bit

Many of you have asked me what photographic equipment I use so here's a quick rundown on the cameras used for each picture. For details of aperture settings, shutter speeds etc. my pictures will be on Flickr within a few days and that has all the geeky stuff.

Picture 1 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Insets 1 Canon EOS 1300D 2,3 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Picture 2 Canon EOS 1300D

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 3 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 4 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Insets 1 Canon EOS 1300D 2,3 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Picture 5 Nikon COOLPIX S33

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Extra Bit Konica Minolta

Pictures were edited with FastStone Image Viewer and combined with Microsoft Paint.

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LINKS:

Share your nature thoughts, photos and comments on Naturalists (the facebook page that accompanies this blog)

See detailed pictures on Flickr

Read more about the flora and flora of the island in The Nature of Crete (Flipboard Magazine)

Explore the region with the #CreteNature interactive Hiking and Nature Map

Cretan Flora

Flowers of Crete;

BIRDS OF CRETE

Crete Birding

Greek Butterflies and Moths

Aquaworld Aquarium

Visit Greece (National Government Tourist Office)

Steve's Nature Quiz #22

Mantis, to most of us, conjures up a picture of the familiar Praying Mantis (Mantis religiosa). In this week's #CreteNature blog I introduced you to another, the Mediterranean Mantis (Iris oratoria) but how many types of Mantis are there in the world?

a) 24

b) 240

c) 2,400

Mediterranean Mantis, Iris oratoria

Somewhat surprisingly there are over 2,400 species of Mantis in the world (and probably many more that we've yet to discover). They are a distinct order of insects (Mantodea) on a par with Flies (Diptera) or Beetles (Coleoptera) and there are fifteen different families of Mantises within the order Mantodea. Here in Greece the ancients believed that Mantises had supernatural powers and could show you the way home. I wouldn't rely upon it; this one is pointing away from my front gate!

More on mantises, as well as frogs, flowers, stone chats and grasshoppers plus a bit of folklore in this week's #CreteNature blog: Skordilo, Where God and the Devil Meet

Steve's nature Quiz #19

Last week's #CreteNature blog featured butterflies, dragonflies and hoverflies but which one of these is really a type of fly?

Butterflies have four wings covered in tiny scales and, together with moths, form the order of insects called the Lepidoptera (originally from the Greek meaning scaly wings). Dragonflies also have four wings and, along with damselflies, form the order Odonata (again, originally from the Greek, this time for tooth - as is dentist - referring to their rather formidable mouth parts). Hoverflies, house flies, mosquitoes, midges and a host of others have only two wings and form the order Diptera (from the Greek again; di + ptera meaning two wings). So, whenever you see an insect with only two wings you can be sure that it is a type of fly.

More insect facts, some beautiful flowers and scenery as well as some rare Cretan frogs as the #CreteNature blog wends it's way up to the mountain village of Orino. http://bit.ly/2xRJuLH

To the Village of Orino

Much as it grieves me to leave Nikki's kafenion in Schinokapsala and all those delicious grapes we shall press onwards and upwards to the village of Orino. As we leave the village, heading east, we are at about 1300 feet (400m). Where we are heading is over 2000 feet up in the Thriptis mountains and there is some pretty spectacular scenery upon the way. 

Ah, there's the turning for Mavros Kolimbos and just past here on the left is a little reservoir that's always worth a visit. No birds today, although a pair of ravens have just cronked overhead, but we have a couple of little friends taking a drink at the water's edge. Firstly we have a Keeled Skimmer of the Orthetrum genus. The males of this genus are easy to recognise by their powder blue colour (as opposed to the metallic blue of the much larger Emperors of the Anax genus). The other fellow taking advantage of the algal mat as a landing stage is an Oriental Hornet. This is an east Asian/north African species that appears to be spreading into southern Europe which is not good news for bee keepers as bee hives appear to be one of it's favourite food sources with the bees and their larvae providing protein and the honey providing carbohydrates. On the other hand, they're great pollinators and they are not aggressive (you can get up close and photograph them) although the sting is painful if you happen to sit on one.

As I promised there are lovely views up through the mountains. This is the top of Red Butterfly Gorge, the lower end of which we visited a few years back and just around the bend is Orino itself with its lovely pergolaed village square. And now I should like to introduce you to my wife Christina who will be my nose and ears for our excursions. I've been virtually anosmic for years and I'm pretty near deaf in one ear so I can never pinpoint where anything is. Christina, on the other hand, is virtually blind but between the two of us we can muster up a good set of senses. Anyhow, we'll leave Christina here chatting to a Chaffinch that she assures me is in that tree to my left and go and investigate the top end of the village square.

A nice little pool before the stream dips under the square with some Maidenhair Fern and what looks to be a little patch of Fleabane growing over there on the left. And right over there at the back, a Marmalade Hoverfly has just landed. Not the most spectacular of insects you may think but hoverflies are important biological control agents (this one's larvae eat aphids) as well as being great pollinators. They also migrate long distances and have their own monitoring scheme at Exeter University in the UK as we try to find out more about these little guys and how they help our agricultural efforts (before we destroy them all with insecticides). What I don't see here are any frogs. Maybe we'll have more luck on the other side of the square where the stream re-emerges.

Now, just across the road I see a little alleyway and with luck it will lead us down to the water's edge. Hmm, a lovely old tree and a lot of concrete. I think that we'll have to try and get further down. Tricky but 'do-able'. 

And worth the effort, no less than five Cretan Frogs taking the morning sun. Yes, I did say Cretan Frogs, you'll find them nowhere else in the world and they have a certificate to prove it. To whit: “The species status of Pelophylax cretensis is "confirmed" by short mtDNA sequences and a large number of private allozyme alleles not found in any other water frog.” so the IUCN Red List tells us. Unfortunately it also tells us that it is an endangered species. Like any species endemic to a particular island it is vulnerable to a major disaster such as Santorini blowing its top but in addition habitats like this are declining. Not only is this part of the island getting drier as the climate warms but what water there is gets forced down these ubiquitous plastic pipes for agricultural use downhill. And there's the rub; the human population of Crete needs agriculture to survive economically, the burgeoning world human population needs more and more agriculture to feed itself and the cost is biodiversity. What is particularly galling is the amount of water that gets wasted through leaky pipes and inefficient watering. The technology exists to ameliorate these problems but agricultural water is still cheap on Crete and technology is expensive. Back to simple economics again. The problem will undoubtedly solve itself. As water becomes scarcer it will necessarily become more expensive and better water control will become a viable option. But why wait until then? Better watering practices now will keep the water prices low as well as saving money in the meantime (water is cheap but not free). Meanwhile we'll enjoy the frogs while we still can and in case anyone is thinking “who needs frogs anyway?” guess who eats the cockroaches that invade the greenhouses, to say nothing of mosquito larvae. If you don't want Crete to be insect heaven then save water and save a frog I say.

The Extra Bit

There's a nice little kafenion in the village but unfortunately it is closed today so we'll mosey on back to Schinokapsala. Meanwhile lets see how Christina is getting on with her chaffinch.

“What have you got there?”

“A sweet lady came and gave me this bag of apples and walnuts to have with my coffee.”

(Cretans are very thoughtful and generous like that).

“How lovely. I wonder what would happen if I sat you outside Lidl's with a hat?”

(Time to go I think).

Photographic Bit

Many of you have asked me what photographic equipment I use so here's a quick rundown on the cameras used for each picture. For details of aperture settings, shutter speeds etc. my pictures will be on Flickr within a few days and that has all the geeky stuff.

Picture 1 Nikon Coolpix S33

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 2 Nikon Coolpix S33

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 3 Canon EOS 1300D

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 4 Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 5 Nikon Coolpix S33

Insets Canon EOS 1300D

Picture 6 Canon EOS 1300D

Pictures were edited with FastStone Image Viewer and combined with Microsoft Paint.

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LINKS:

Share your nature thoughts, photos and comments on Naturalists (the facebook page that accompanies this blog)

See detailed pictures on Flickr

Read more about the flora and flora of the island in The Nature of Crete (Flipboard Magazine)

Explore the region with the #CreteNature interactive Hiking and Nature Map

Cretan Flora

Flowers of Crete;

BIRDS OF CRETE

Crete Birding

Greek Butterflies and Moths

Aquaworld Aquarium

Visit Greece (National Government Tourist Office)

Here Comes Summer!

Ierapetra East Beach

Summer is here at last. It started with the summer solstice on Sunday in this part of the world and yesterday was Midsummer’s Day which always seems odd as by simple mathematical reasoning one could logically deduce that the end of summer must be on Friday (which, if my recollection of English summers of late is correct, may not be far from the truth).  The crux of the matter is that the solstice is an astronomical phenomenon, marking the point when Earth’s tilt is most inclined towards the sun, whereas Midsummer’s Day is a pagan festival celebrating the mid point of the year. Pagans observe the solstice as well of course but this is a solemn occasion so I guess you can think of Midsummer’s Day as a sort of ‘after show party’ but essentially they both mark the same event. 

Yellow Wagtail subspecies

But to return to our Cretan summer: as I’ve mentioned before our Spring has been very cool and wet this year and the little seasonal river to the east of Ierapetra is still running to the sea so I thought we’d head down there and see if there are any wagtails about. We’ve met the White Wagtail (Road to Nowhere) and the Grey Wagtail (Dawn by the Riverside) but today we’re looking for the Yellow Wagtail. I usually see them between March and May but I haven’t seen any this year so maybe they’re running late like the river. He’s a very distinctive bird with his bright yellow colouring and typical wagging tail but he’s a bird of many heads, each pattern denoting a different sub-species. The top one is a Grey-headed, the middle a Blue-headed and the plate at the bottom (from Collins Bird Field guide) shows all of the group. So, keep your peripheral vision on high alert for movement as we’re wandering about and we’ll go and have a look at the plant life.

Beach Flowers

This pink flowered job is Sea Rocket, one of the mustard family and related to the rocket that you put on your salads but I wouldn’t recommend it for human consumption.  The butter coloured lady up by the road is a Yellow Horned Poppy which has spread considerably around here in recent years and this rather inconspicuous plant, down here at our feet, makes good eating. It’s Nettle-leaved Goosefoot and the shoots, stalks, and leaves can be cooked like greens. On the other hand the one with little white flowers on the opposite bank is poisonous. It’s called European Turnsole and horses that eat too much of the stuff have a tendency to walk compulsively and unfortunately there is no known treatment.

Insect inhabitants of the wetland

Where we have plants then of course we have insects and I can see representatives of at least four different families as we push our way intrepidly through the giant reeds like jungle explorers of old. Our old friend the Southern Skimmer dragonfly is taking a breather on a bit of dead cane whilst a rather tatty Wave moth is doing likewise on the Goosefoot. I wonder who’s under this log? That’s a bit of a surprise, an early instar Southern Green Shield Bug. I’d have thought he would have been happier on a living plant – he’s either lost or a slow learner. Still, we’ll put him back as we found him and let him sort it out for himself. But who’s this fellow lunching in the algae? Obviously a large aquatic larva of some sort. Pass him up to me will you and we’ll have a look at him under the field lens. Yes I agree, algae are slimy and smelly, never mind, all part of the fun. Just rub your hands with some hot sand to dry them off – I expect the smell will go in a day or two. Meanwhile look how the head is pointed and sunk back into the thorax. The abdomen tapers to a point as well. This little gentleman is going to be an Aquatic Soldier Fly when he grows up. A bit of a misnomer as it is only the larva that lives in the water but this sort of general habitat will be perfect for him.

The rivulet finally reaches the sea

Shall we follow the stream down to the sea now? Oh dear, a casualty of nature. A little Cretan Water Frog who seems to have resigned from the game of life[1]. Catastrophic amphibian decline is, as you probably know, a worldwide issue of concern for all of us. Since the 1980’s amphibian extinctions have accelerated and are now thought to be running at over two hundred times the background extinction rate. As amphibians occupy both terrestrial and aquatic habitats and because their skins are particularly permeable they are very vulnerable to environmental changes. As such they are a bit like the canary in the coal mine and the implications for other animals (including ourselves) are somewhat dire. However, important as that is, we cannot end the day on such a serious note so let’s go and paddle in the shallows and watch the fish darting around the rocks. [1] A member of the Greek Herpetological Society, who is probably more experienced at identifying dead amphibians than I am, is of the opinion that it was a Green Toad.

Aestivating Snails

There is only one place to be in the height of the Cretan summer and that’s the sea. On land the grasses are turning golden brown, the snails are aestivating on the fence posts in pearly clusters and every other animal with any sense utilises the cool early mornings and late evenings to get their business done. I shall be doing the same – I’ve a host of observations to write up and for those of you who have asked if I have written any books the answer is no, not yet, but I may well do so this summer. What subject should I tackle do you think, a pictorial guide to the flora and fauna of Crete, a month by month country diary or should we all take an imaginary walk together from the mountain tops to the sea taking in the wildlife as we go? Tell you what, have a think about it and drop me a line at steves.summer.book@gmail.com
 

So I shall love you and leave you, here by the sea, and we’ll get back together again sometime in September for more fun and frolics in the Crete countryside.

Until then you can still find me on Facebook (Naturalists) or you can tweet me @cretenaturalist

Enjoy your summer or winter (delete according to hemisphere)

All the best and happy hunting

Steve Daniels

See all the pictures including insets in detail on Flickr

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LINKS:

Naturalists (the facebook page that accompanies this blog)

Cretan Flora

Flowers of Crete;

BIRDS OF CRETE

Crete Birding

Greek Butterflies and Moths

Aquaworld Aquarium

Visit Greece (National Government Tourist Office)