Moving
This blog has moved from WordPress.com to Blogger:
http://alancann.blogspot.co.uk/
I finally got fed up with not being able to find a template that does just what I want – simplicity (with a grey background!).
Wood Anemone
The Wood Anemones are past their best here now. Spring marches on, but slowly this year – our annual butterflies (that don’t overwinter as adults) are a month late – no County records for Orange Tip or Holly Blue yet.
Anemone nemorosa.
Nikon D7200 Tokina 100mm f16 1/400 ISO 400
Winter Colours
The green lacewings are quite difficult to tell apart. Fortunately, Chrysoperla carnea still in its subdued winter colours is reasonably easy to spot (much harder later in the year when it’s green like all the others), especially if you get close enough to see the hairy veins on the wings.
Early Doors
Frosty pre-dawn start this morning for a dawn chorus walk with the local wildlife group.
Nikon D7200 Tamron 17-50mm f11 17mm 1/160 ISO 100.
How did you spend your day?
Too wet to do much outside today and there were a few domestic tasks that needed attention, so in the end I spent much of the morning counting the pores on the hind leg of a centipede. Heaven!
The Western Yellow Centipede is an interesting beastie, the UK’s longest at up to 70mm.
Western Yellow Centipede, Stigmatogaster subterranea.
Nikon D7200 Tokina 100mm f16 1/250 ISO 100
Field Wood-rush
There seems to be a growing trend on Instagram for hi-key minimalism, including some rather nice arty “botanical” shots, so I thought I’d have a go. In the end, this macro image won out though, and my hi-key effort turned out to be not that hi-key after all. That’s OK, I’ll filter the s**t out of it on Instagram. Also known as “Good Friday Grass”, Luzula campestris was a week late around these parts this year, needing the first warm weather on Good Friday to get it going. Or maybe, Easter was too early… Anyhow, here comes the botany bit. How do I know this 10cm plant nodding at me from my sodden lawn and giving me another excellent reason not to mow it is a rush? Because:
Sedges have edges and
Rushes are round and
Grasses have nodes
all the way to the ground.
Field Wood-rush – Luzula campestris.
Nikon D7200 EL Nikkor 50mm f2.8 N f5.6 1/80 ISO 800, 5 image focus stack.