Blooming Butterbur!

 Walking down the Weymouth Road last Sunday I was amazed to see three spikes of Butterbur by the Sewage Pumping Station.

              

   Butterbur. Photo. John Elliott

 

 

 

 

 

This is one of the earliest of flowers to bloom, usually in the spring, preceeded only by the snowdrops of which there is no sign yet. To see it before Christmas is most unusual. It will be interesting to see if the large leaves which follow the flowers appear early or linger into Febuary or so.

Its Dorset name of 'Early Mushroom' arises from the flowering stems as they push thrtough the soil looking like 'small button mushrooms of a livid and unusual colour' (Gerard).

My Cuckoo.

 The latest bulletin from the BTO:-

Dear John,

 

The last month has been, as expected, a relatively quiet time on the Cuckoo front. Most of our tagged birds had already reached their destinations, where they are likely to stay until January at least.

 

When I last updated you, Irish Cuckoo Cuach Torc had just reached southern Niger. Since then he progressed south via Cameroon to Gabon, where he has remained. He is now in the rainforests of north eastern Gabon, approximately 68 km (42 miles) north east of the city of Makokou.

New bird for the garden.

With the snow last Thursday there came a new bird for the garden, a Grey Wagtail, which has appeared several times since.  This bird is often seen along the stream, frequently diving through the tunnel by the pub, but doesn't usually stray far from water.

I have been recording my garden birds on the BTO website for 14 years now, with weekly maxima seen.

House Sparrow is unsurprisingly the most frequent visitor, with 913 recorded. The rarest, with only one record each, are Yellowhammer, Mallard, Spotted Flycatcher, Turtle Dove and Willow Warbler.  Perhaps the most unexpected are the two views of Ring Necked Parakeet in 2008.

My Cuckoo crosses the Sahara.

The latest bulletin from the BTO.

 Irish Cuckoo Cuach Torc, has finally crossed the Sahara and is now in southern Niger, the last of our tagged Cuckoos to cross the desert. Scottish Cuckoo George 2 is also in Niger, but is 600 miles (966 km) west of Cuach Torc, in the south western corner of Niger.

 

 

The latest bulletin from BTO on my Cuckoo

 

Dear John,

Irish Cuckoo Cuach Torc's journey has been particularly interesting (and nerve-wracking) to follow this year. Having reached southern Greece, he turned back north, travelling all the way back to Germany before heading south west again into France. Torc was tagged in 2023 so we know that last year he crossed to Africa in late July, arriving in northern Libya on 29 July. He then spent several weeks in Sudan before moving down into the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by mid-September and remaining there for the winter. This year he is clearly well behind schedule but it is a relief to report that he has finally crossed the Mediterranean and is now in northern Tunisia. He is close to a reservoir on the Mellegue River. It'll be interesting to see whether he presses on south now so that by the time he arrives at his wintering grounds he is not so far behind last year's schedule.

More autumn fungi.

    Shaggy Inkcaps. Photo. John Elliott

 Shaggy Inkcap, Coprinus comatus, a common species, has occured for a second year on the way down to Ashton. This is regarded as one of the most edible species while the gills are still young and white. However it can be confused with the very similar Common Inkcap, Coprinus altramentarius which must never be consumed with a meal accompanied by alcohol, as it will cause vomiting and palpitations. The fruit bodies contain a substance similar to Antabuse, a drug used in aversion therapy for alcoholics.

My Cuckoo.

   Cuach Torc.

  The latest bulletin from BTO gives disturbing and puzzling news of my Cuckoo, Cuach Torc.

" By mid July Cuach Torc had made good progress south east to the Peloponnese region of Greece. However after a couple of weeks here, he turned north again, and spent August in Albania. His next move took us completely by surprise as he flew almost 1,000 Km north to Germany! After a week in the Düben Heath in eastern Saxony-Anhalt, Torc has once again set off. Over the last week he has flown 900 Km south west from Germany into France and is now close to the town of Saint-Bonnet in south-western France. What will Torc's next move be?"

 

 

Chicken of the Woods.

 Glowing bright orange on the Church Green today I noticed one of our most attractive bracket fungi, a Sulphur Polypore, Laetiporus sulphurus. otherwise known as  the 'Chicken of the Woods'

   Chicken of the Woods       Photo: John Elliott.

 

 

 

 

 

This fungus is said to grow on living trees, so presumably there is a bit of life left in the old tree stump.
 Classified as edible, it is said to taste like chicken, hence the name.

Poison Risk.

 

  Hemlock Water Dropwort Roots.

A considerable amount of Hemlock Water Dropwort has been cleared from the stream and left on the road side opposite. This is Britain's most poisones plant, and has recently proved fatal to a dog in Lyme Regis. A lamb was poisoned in the village last year, but thankfully survived. 

The roots have led to human deaths elsewhere, it being mistaken for wild parsnip which it closely resembles.

Do not let your dog eat the roots

My Hedgehogs.

 Last Wednesday evening all three of my known hedgehogs arrived together to feed. Sorry about the watering can spout and the Promenade concert in the background.

                                                    Hedgehogs feeding. Video. John Elliott. Click to enlarge.

Cuach Torc goes north!

 The latest bulletin from BTO on my Cuckoo.

 

 

Dear John,

Irish Cuckoo Cuach Torc continues to defy us by not only not getting on with his journey south but instead actually moving north again! He has now left Greece and is back in Albania, having flown 383 km (238 miles) north-west from his last location in Greece. He is currently 23 km (12 miles) west of the Albanian city of Korçë. He is in a river valley close to the village of Marjan in Korçë Province, southern Albania. Last year Torc arrived in north Africa on 29 July and by 3 August had crossed the Sahara. How much longer will he wait before tackling the desert this year?