Green bug, yellow flower
Green bug, yellow flower. It’s interesting in a way that both bug and flower are both somewhat of a pest! The insect can damage fruit crops, and this flowering plant can … Continue Reading Green bug, yellow flower
Green bug, yellow flower
I was fascinated by the individual variation of this flower and took a series of photographs of different flower heads which I thought might make an interesting collage! But when … Continue Reading Green bug, yellow flower
Sea Spurge
Sea Spurge. In the Spring, they produce their remarkable receptacle-like flowers, which in close-up look to me like some sort of decoration for a miniature Christmas tree! The cup-shaped flower heads … Continue Reading Sea Spurge
Sea Spurge
Sea spurge (Euphorbia paralias) is a common plant on dunes and sandy beaches, from the British Isles down to the Mediterranean. The stems are slightly fleshy and glaucous – nice … Continue Reading Sea Spurge
Selecting from Nature’s patterns
Selecting from Nature’s patterns. Walking along a tide line, we might select in our camera lens certain features, patterns or accumulations as our fancy dictates. What drives this selection is a … Continue Reading Selecting from Nature’s patterns
Galician ponies: an ancient breed adapted to life on the hills
It’s hard not to be impressed by the natural, semi-wild lives these animals live in a beautiful countryside. Idyllic when the sun is shining in early June – as in … Continue Reading Galician ponies: an ancient breed adapted to life on the hills
Water pipits like watercress!
Water pipits are strange creatures, in that some of them move north for winter! But places like England and Wales are still presumably warmer in winter than high up a … Continue Reading Water pipits like watercress!
Water pipits like watercress!
I came across some Water pipits (Anthus spinoletta spinoletta) on Serra de Capelada, a mountain near the coast in the north of Galicia, near Cape Ortegal, the second most northerly point in … Continue Reading Water pipits like watercress!
Dartford warblers in Galicia
Dartford warblers in Galicia. I like Dartford Warblers. I like the way pop up for a few seconds, scan the horizon, give a short song, and then disappear again. I like … Continue Reading Dartford warblers in Galicia
Dartford warblers in Galicia
Unlike the UK, where there are only a few thousand pairs of Dartford Warblers – mainly in southern England (1) – this species is quite common on the Iberian peninsula, … Continue Reading Dartford warblers in Galicia
The Chaffinch – lucky to live in Europe
The Chaffinch – lucky to live in Europe. This subspecies, which is resident all year round in Portugal and Spain, can be thankful it is not a migrant; that it … Continue Reading The Chaffinch – lucky to live in Europe
The Chaffinch – lucky to live in Europe
Surprisingly, for such a well-known bird, there are quite a few subspecies, or races of the common Chaffinch, which are based on differences in the pattern and colour of the adult … Continue Reading The Chaffinch – lucky to live in Europe
A splendidly shiny beetle!
A splendidly shiny beetle!.
A splendidly shiny beetle!
I come across this shiny green dung beetle quite often whilst walking on the hills in Galicia, NW Spain. It mainly seems to like horse dung, and I look out … Continue Reading A splendidly shiny beetle!
Feeding on hemlock!
Feeding on hemlock!.
Feeding on hemlock!
There were huge numbers of Marsh Fritillary (Eurodryas aurina) butterflies flying about in Galicia (north-west Spain) when I visited the province in late April. Many of them were feeding on a … Continue Reading Feeding on hemlock!
