Rhododendron may look pretty this time of year but when you've spent half the winter try to remove massive tangly messes of the stuff and burning it you do struggle a little to fully appreciate it. It's horribly invasive and a bit of a conservation nightmare but I know some of my followers (the 3 sisters) love a bit of Rhody - just keep it in the garden! This little bee at Buchan obviously likes it as well so it cant be all bad. Not much else to report from BCP today as I was building benches and eating lots of donuts (3 today - my personal best!).
Did a bit scoping out yesterday on the downs in anticipation of our grassland survey we're doing on Monday, its gonna be a big one, eep. Feel free to let me know any downland key species we should expect to find! Whilst out we got a couple of pleasant visitors in butterfly form - the Common Blue and what I believe is a Small Heath:
Also, another gem discovery to me, like the Pineappleweed, this White Bryony - its a climber with amazing spirally-coiled tendrils which you can pull like elastic and they ping back - brilliant!
If you're bored on Saturday between 10 and 4, come down to Plumpton College. Its our Open Day and my group are doing owl pellet dissection all day in the countryside marquee. So feel free to come along and fish through yukky remains of little voles and mice! Also, its a great day with loads of other stuff going on!
Too bad it's a bit far from my house that meeting, because I have really interested in knowing what mysteries contain the pellets, I own only one and I dare to dissect. Moreover, in our area, invasive species are a major problem and although containment actions are taken are not enough, too bad. Salutations.
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