Autumn Flowering.

 As the evenings draw in and the days grow colder one of our most important plants for insect life, the Ivy Hedera helix,  will increasingly burst into flower. The summer flowers which provided nectar for numerous butterflies, flies, hoverflies, and bees of all sorts, are now over, and it is left to the Ivy to provide a feed of nectar before many of these valuable insects enter their over-winter stage. Prominent among the Honey Bees Apis melifera, which were feeding in large numbers on my garden Ivy today was a Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta.

Red Admiral on Ivy.   Photo. John Elliott.

 Red Admirals may over-winter in this country if we get a very mild winter, and perhaps will do so increasingly as we fail to deal with climate change, but most of them are now migrating south to Central or Southern Europe where they will mate to produce the first generation of next year's migration northwards and a welcome return to our shores.

Ivy makes a nice hedge and does not damage trees so if you are lucky enough to have it on your land do preserve it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Fungus.

 The permissive path to Ashton has provide several species new to the valley this year. The Pyramidal Orchid which appeared just past the Clandon track perhaps the most exciting, though someone appears to have pulled it up and taken it to die in their garden. Also new were the six or so Common Broomrape plants. These lack chlorophyll, which is what gives plants their green colour, and so are mainly brown with hints of red and other colours, and are often mistaken for dead orchids. There was one single plant of Hop, beer making anyone? 

The most recent arrival, and a first appearance for the valley, was a handful of Shaggy Inkcaps Coprinus comatus   by Four Acres gate.

   Shaggy Inkcaps.   Photo. John Elliott

 

Sometimes known as the Lawyer's Wig from the tiers of shaggy, woolen scales on the cap, this is considered to be one of the best edible species when the gills are still white, but it soon deliquesces into drops of black liquid, a source once of black ink. If you plan to drink alcohol while eating this mushroom make sure not to confuse it with Common Inkcap. Alcohol and Common Inkcaps together cause vomiting and palpitations.

Dragonfly.

The untidy wilderness that is my wildlife garden is beginning to show dividends in  the insect life it supports, none more welcome than the dragonflies and damselflies that are now becoming frequent. However I was not prepared, when testing a new kitchen fluorescent tube, for  the large fluttering insect that attacked it.

Hawker Dragonfly.  Photo. John Elliott

A Hawker of some species, it finally settled and I was able to get a photo, though in silhouette it didn't reveal much. On switching the light off it went to the next best thing, the window and I was able to get a better shot, it was a Southern Hawker.

Southern Hawker. Photo. John Elliott

 

Let out it flew happily round the garden for a while before disappearing over the hedge.