#CreteNature Almanack 2018 – Late Winter

A little break as we wind towards the end of our East Crete Upland Village Tour. This week sees the true midwinter between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. This is the coldest part of the year here in Crete (as it is in the rest of the northern hemisphere) so I thought I'd compile a little list of some of the things to look out for in the coming weeks. February 1^st was long considered the beginning of the year before Julius Ceasar got his hands on the calendar and it is still celebrated as such in the Pagan wheel of the year as Imbolc. A time for resolutions (in case your January 1^st ones have gone by the board) and for starting the spring cleaning (watch out for the Greek version: Clean Monday on February 19^th which is a national holiday). Or if all that sounds a bit onerous why not have a midwinter party instead and celebrate the oncoming warmer weather?

Flowers

Cretan Sowbread, Cyclamen creticum

This is a lovely little Cyclamen endemic to Crete, where it is widespread, as well as to a couple of locations on Karpathos. Look for it in damp rocky places, such as winter stream gullies, growing in the shade. Keep an eye out also for Iris unguicularis, Almond trees coming into flower (Prunus dulcis) and the first appearance of Cretan Ebony (Ebenus cretica).

Insects

Pine Processionary Caterpillars, Thaumetopoea pityocampa

These are they guys that make the pine trees look as though they are hoarding candyfloss in their branches. They will be leaving their nests in the next few weeks and heading down to the ground, nose to tail, in long columns where they will pupate in the earth, emerging as adult moths in late spring or early summer. Late winter is also a good time to watch for migratory moths taking advantage of the warmer temperatures here in the south. Look out too for the Oil Beetle, Meloe tuccius foraging about in the grasslands, looking as though he is wearing some other beetle's wing cases that are a few sizes too small for him.

Reptiles & Amphibians

Green Toad spawn, Bufotes viridis

Time to be children again and collect a bit of toad spawn. If you haven't got a pond in your garden yet then build one and stock it with a few of these long strands (toads lay spawn in strings, frogs lay spawn in clumps). Not only do they provide hours of interest for all ages as they develop into tadpoles and then toads but as adults they are particularly adept at mollusc management in the garden. Whilst you are out collecting try a bit of rock flipping to look for hibernating Ocellated Bronze Skinks, Chalcides ocellatus, or maybe, if you're exceptionally lucky, a Leopard Snake, Zamenis situla.

Birds

Goldfinch, Carduelis carduelis

Although the Goldfinch is resident all year round here in Crete their numbers are swollen considerably at this time as they migrate down from the colder areas of northern Europe to visit their cousins for a winter warm up. With less vegetation about at this time of year they are also considerably easier to spot. This is also a good time of year to visit your local reservoir as a great variety of waterfowl visit Crete in the winter.

Next week it's back to the tour and I've found an interesting clearing in a pine wood to the west of Agios Stefanos that is just itching to be investigated.

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LINKS:

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Cretan Flora

Flowers of Crete;

BIRDS OF CRETE

Crete Birding

Greek Butterflies and Moths

Aquaworld Aquarium

Visit Greece (National Government Tourist Office)

The Milonas Waterfall of Crete

Cyclamen creticus, Anacamptis collina, Fumana arabica

We seem to have emerged from the woods unscathed and the waterfall now lies directly ahead of us. We’ve had to take quite a detour to get around those imposing cliffs but it should be quite a gentle stroll today (famous last words) with plenty of opportunities to look about us. Let’s start with a few flowers that are heralding the arrival of spring later this month. In the shade of the rocks among the pine litter we have the white nodding heads of the Cretan Sowbread which is a type of Cyclamen; the yellow Fumana, a type of rock rose which we saw budding a few weeks back, is now in full flower; and our first orchid of the season: The Fan Lipped Orchid. 

Lucilia ceasar visiting Euphorbia dendroides

Many flowers have lovely scents to attract insect pollinators which we greatly appreciate but some, like this tree spurge here, have a pungent odour which we find somewhat off-putting. Some people have likened it to a decomposing corpse. Fortunately I have never had the experience of smelling a three day dead body so I can neither confirm nor deny but it certainly seems to be attracting these Greenbottles. Not everybody’s favourite insect but they’re quite beautiful when you look at them closely and useful too. Not only do they help to cleanse the planet of rotting bodies but their maggots (which feed on dead animal tissue) have been, and still are, used medically in maggot therapy. They are dropped into a wound such as an ulcer where they not only remove all the dead tissue but also secrete antimicrobial fluids that sterilise the wound.

Cicindela campestris mating

Have you noticed these little green beetles scurrying around on the sandy ground? They’re Tiger Beetles, so called because of their predatory nature. Notice the way that they sprint and stop in a series of jerky runs. This is because they run too fast to see where they’re going and they have to stop and visually reorient themselves. They hold their antennae straight out in front of them to stop them bumping into things. There’s a pair mating here look (in graphic detail if you look closely). I hope he wasn’t running at full tilt when he commenced – the female would have got the shock of her life.

Chalcides ocellata, Rumina decollata, Julidae family

We’re nearly there now and I see that we’re into stone flipping territory so let’s see if anyone is at home. Now here’s a strange group of bedfellows. An Ocellated skink, still hibernating by the way he’s remaining immobile and blinking at me sleepily, three Decollate snails and a Julid millipede. I say odd bedfellows because a skink’s diet generally includes snails and millipedes although I believe that this particular species prefers spiders and beetles. I wonder if the snails and millipede know that? It still seems like us cuddling up to a hibernating bear but nature is full of surprises.

Veliidae family

Well, here it is at last, the Milonas Waterfall, at 40m vertical drop it is the highest streaming waterfall in Crete. There’s a lovely pool here at the base that looks ripe for a bit of pond dipping so let’s go for a paddle. That’s rather refreshing isn’t it? We seem to have some small bugs swimming on the surface that may be worth a closer look. They’re rather quick and not easy to photograph but the body shape and size, the fact that they’re not doing the backstroke and the plated appearance of the abdomen make me think that they are Riffle Bugs. These are small predatory water striders typical of this sort of habitat but I’m not 100% sure. What do you think?

The Extra Bit

You know, that pool does look rather inviting, did you bring a towel? Come on then. Let’s go for a dip. Don’t be a sissy, the snow’s melted and there’s not even any ice on the surface.

Time for a dip (short video):  https://youtu.be/RUybOxhLqRg