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22 September 2013 was the first day I've ever seen an Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus). I was walking along the River Thames in Buckinghamshire, and there were a few on the river, and then this was posed quite nicely at the water's edge. I've since seen this species in London, near Osterley.
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This Lime-speck Pug (Eupithecia centaureata) was in my house (possibly in my bathroom) on 21 August 2013. I rescued it and it landed on a plant in the garden, giving me time to fetch my camera and take photos in the daylight.
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Apologies for the delay, I shall hopefully be blogging more regularly from now on, and for now, posting some of the things I missed!
I photographed thisw Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis) near Hitchin, Hertfordshire, on 3 August 2013. I had actually walked straight past it, and a friend stopped me and pointed it out. It was the first time I've seen a reptile in the wild, but I knew straight away what it was. I was very happy! I was able to get nice and close, and I even touched it to see what it felt like!
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I see Skylarks (Alauda arvensis) a lot. Usually in the sky, as fairly faint dots, singing their pretty song. I usually hear them before I can see them. Occasionally, I see a blur of one taking off from a field I'm waking past. On 16 June 2013, I visited Heartwood Forest, Sandridge, Hertfordshire, I saw lots of Skylarks in flight and wondered if I went slowly and scanned the tops of the grass and tree saplings, I might see one at rest. I was lucky enough to spot this one and I took a series of shots. It was quite far away but I was very happy.
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I saw this Grass Vetchling (Lathyrus nissolia) in Shackledell Grassland, Stevenage, on 31 May 2013. I've done some volunteer work in Shackledell in the winter time, and had only heard about the wide range of flowers that grow there, so I decided to pay it a spring-time visit. This is a flower I'd never seen before, but I just thought it was one of the prettiest flowers I've ever seen. In fact, the pea family (Fabaceae), of which this is a member, is my favourite flower family.
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I spotted this Muntjac Deer (Muntiacus reevesi) in a field between Holwell, Hertfordshire and Lower Stondon, Bedfordshire on 27 May 2013. At first, it was quite far away but it didn't run when it saw it. It just calmly walked along its path while we stayed completely still and I took photos. It didn't seem at all bothered and it walked by fairly closely. It wasn't until it had fully passed that it (probably) caught a smell of human in the wind and ran away! A bit late! But I think I have the wind direction to thank for this amazing shot, only my second of a Muntjac.
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I was photographing some Speedwells in District Park, Great Ashby, Hertfordshire, on 26 May 2013, when I got up to look at a Scorpion Fly. As I stood up, I saw this Jay (Garrulus glandarius) and then spent a good six minutes photographing it. I was so pleased to get a shot of a Jay because I think they tend to be quite shy. My book says they're "wary" and they are more often heard than seen. I was surprised by how close I could get.
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This year I signed up to survey butterflies at two sites in Stevenage for the local council and the Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust. These butterflies were seen on one of my sites on 25 May 2013. Above is the Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria), which flew into trees where I was able to get this shot.
Here is a Large White (Pieris brassicae) that was feeding on some Hawthorn. I was able to get closer to this one.
And this one is the Green-veined White (Pieris napi).
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I've had a Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) visiting my garden since February 2013 (at least that's the first time I ever saw it), and it has become a semi-regular visitor. On 16 May 2013, this one was spreading its wings on the fence and also when I saw it on the ground. Someone on Twitter suggested it might be a juvenile.
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I am sure that this is Early Forget-me-not (Myosotis ramosissima). I think Forget-me-nots can be tricky to identify unless you look at the right part of the plant, which I did not do, but I can go back and check. I thought the hairiness of this plant was quite distinctive anyway. I found this on 13 May 2013 in Six Hills Common, Stevenage, while undertaking my butterfly surveys for the council. I still haven't seen any butterflies on this site, but I'm putting that down to the current lack of larger flowers on the site—they will appear soon enough.
Via Flickr:
I think the Field Pansy (Viola arvensis) is one of the prettiest flowers I've seen. I first saw one in 2011, and was amazed at how small it was and how delicate it looked. But I knew straight away what it was, because I'd seen pictures in my books. I saw this one on 6 May 2013.
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These two Peacocks (Inachis io) were seen by me in District Park, Great Ashby, Hertfordshire, on 2 May 2013. One was chasing the other quite a lot and for a lot of the time they were just settled together like this. One seems well past its best and I actually wondered if it was making an attempt to mate before it dies, but it turns out they are probably both males and were being territorial.
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I spotted this Muntjac Deer (Muntiacus reevesi) on 3 May 2013. It was a big surprise because it was on a bridleway in a mostly built-up area, with houses on one side and industrial units on the other, just a bunch of trees and wild flowers on either side of the bridleway. I turned a corner onto the bridleway and it was standing there. It looked at me and stayed still, while I did the same and slowly got my camera. I was able to get this shot and one other before it casually walked into the trees and out of view.
