Sustead
Early Purple Orchid - Orchis mascula
Superb hedge laying
Red Campion - Silene dioica
White Dead Nettle - Lamium album
Hanworth
Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes
Singing gustily in the cold and wind of the morning.
Jackdaw - Corvus monedula
Field Woodrush - Luzula campestris
Bulbous Buttercup - Ranunculus bulbous
Common Cornsalad - Valerianella locusta
Early Purple Orchid - Orchis mascula
Sustead
Red Campion - Silene dioica
Early Purple Orchid - Orchis mascula
Cow Parsley - Anthriscus sylvestris
Prickly Sowthistle - Sonchus asper
Wayland Wood
Oaks just coming into leaf and flower
Hazel coppice stool
Bird Cherry - Prunus padus
Bluebell - Hyacinthoides non - scripta just beginning to unfurl.
The flowers are really flat and distinctly horizontal which caught my eye.
Lesser Celandine - Ficaria verna
?
?
?
Hornbeam - Carpinus betulus
Early Purple Orchid - Orchis mascula
A pink shade of Wood Anemone - Anemone nemorosa
Couldn't get over the long legs and how the fly can angle them to get at the different plants of the flower.
The angled knee in the lower picture is extraordinary, particularly with the laid back stretch as well..
Two above that show how high it can project itself. A bit like a cat stretching or an old citroen safari with the air suspension.
Just managed a picture of the back legs extended. They are very quick to tuck them in when they land on something.
Large Bee-fly - Bombylius major supping on the Celandines.
Bee-fly life cycle form the Dipterists forum
Most amazing the way the females load the eggs with dirt to camouflage the eggs and make them heavier.
This allows the female to flick them into the burrows of Solitary Mining bees.
The hatched Bee-fly larva then eat the larva of the Mining bees
Water Avens - Geum rivale
Nodding avens, cure all, drooping avens, water flower, indian chocolate
Orange Ladybird - Halyzia sedecimguttata
Apparently closely associated with Ancient Woodland in the past. Likes to feed on the mildew associated with Sycamores. But it's range is increasing as it has adapted to feed on Ash.
Orange Tip
Brimstone
Comma
Holly Blue