So its only a couple of weeks until the official start of Summer (June 21st) but it is certainly feeling a lot warmer and humid. Trees and plants are growing leaves and flowers are opening. The grass is growing too, something that I don't enjoy as I'm the one who has to cut it!
We have a small pond in our garden in an attempt to attract wildlife, we have a frog which was saved by a neighbour and brought to its new home last year (thanks Steve!). The irises have now flowered and are looking lovely, the flowers are an intense purple and a change from the usual yellow that you see in the wild ponds.
Over the past few weeks I have walked a number of miles and seen some amazing wildlife. The reason I get out into nature is because of struggles with mental illness. The suicidal thoughts have been back with vengeance so walking in nature taking photographs really helps in this respect. If you struggle with your mental health, why not give it a try, go for a wander and use the camera on your phone to take some pics and hopefully, like me, it will give your mind a little break.
One of the places I walked was Tittesworth reservoir, it's a large reservoir in the Staffordshire Moorlands at the small village of Meerbrook. It's owned by Seven Trent water and has a large carpark (charges apply) with a visitor's centre, cafe and playground for the little ones. The walk round the lake is about 5 1/2 miles. The path takes you through farmland and woodland with large pines and of course views of the lake. I was lucky to see a common sandpiper, (although too far away for a good photo). A small wading bird https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/common-sandpiper/ it eats insects, worms and molluscs.
Amongst the pines in one of the many wooded areas you walk through I spotted something that I've never seen before and I had to request help to ID it on Facebook. Although you've probably seen many of these little creatures, it's something that has eluded me.
It's a Lacewing - well named due to its wings that look like they are made of lace. In complete coincidence, that evening it was featured on the BBC's Springwatch programme, which gave a very interesting insight in how they morph into this beautiful little winged insect and how they help the gardener by, as a baby, feeding on aphids. The episode of Springwatch can be viewed here - https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001849j/springwatch-2022-episode-8 approx 17 mins in.
Another place I regularly visit is the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust's headquarters at Wolseley Bridge - https://www.staffs-wildlife.org.uk/explore/our-visitor-centres/wolseley-centre - The Wolseley centre is set in an old private garden with two large pools with boardwalks taking you above the smaller of the two pools. Following the boardwalk beyond the pool it will bring you to a viewing platform alongside the river Trent. On the other side of the river you will see a sand bank which is home to both sand martins and kingfishers. Kingfishers are my no.1, all time favourite bird. You may have seen a blue flash when sitting by a river, thats the kingfisher, a bright blue and orange bird that dives for fish. They sit on branches above the water and dive into the water to catch their meal. You will see them hit the fish on the branch before stalling it whole! Their nest is a small hole in the river bank, in nesting season you will see them constantly come and go, busily providing food for its young. On flying out of the nest you will see the bird dive into the water, this isn't to catch fish but to clean themselves after going into the sandy nest!
The photograph above is a composite image of several shots taken of the kingfisher leaving its nest - something you rarely see as normally you need a licence to photograph kingfishers at their nest site, which is why the Wolsesley Centre is such a great location to visit - what I find interesting is how different the bird looks when it has its wings out to having its wings in, they look a completely different size!
If you can support Staffordshire Wildlife Trust then please do, they are our chosen charity, we donate each month and any sales from the website are subject to a 15% donation from us. They do a marvellous job of looking after wild places across Staffordshire - they have just taken over the running of Biddulph Grange Country Park and some parts of the Biddulph Valley Way, both of which are in my hometown.
If you like what I do then please consider buying me a coffee, (it's like giving me an electronic tip and helps to spur me on to create further content). Thank you.
To order a copy of any of the images in this walk please email me HERE and will get back to you as soon as possible, thank you.
See you next time!
Mark