ED Nature Watch

[IlonaM]

Saw two swifts over the junction of Underhill & Barry Rd the other day - first time I've seen them locally. Never see them near me at the other end of Underhill.

[heartblock]

Wildflower meadow is past the children?s playground Peckham side nearer the road. Lots of butterflies. Also pair over Sparrowhawks in flight over the Rye yesterday, calling to each other:)

[Nigello]

I saw two swifts on Landells near Sylvester around 7am Saturday.

[AylwardS]

Thank you Heartblock.

[heartblock]

My pleasure AylwardS, weirdly my partner has just alerted me to a piece in the Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jul/10/went-to-mow-but-stopped-how-uk-cities-embraced-meadows-revolution-aoe

It's across the little road and slightly uphill towards the back of the Rye..if you walk towards that crazy modern build of greenish flats.

It looks like a bit of scrub, but on a sunny day, it smells wonderful and is full of life.

[Lynne]

Just had a stag beetle land on our sitting room carpet.Came as a bit of a shock till we realised what it was.

[Nigello]

I saw a damselfly that fluttered like a butterfly, seemingly far from the fast-flowing water it usually hangs around. The nearest would be the Peck on the Rye. It was on Darrell Road, near to Underhill https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/species/banded-demoiselle/ . I had never seen one before.

[RichH]

Spotted these two this afternoon. Are they looking pretty fed up by being kept awake with the relentless thud thud thud thud from the Gala Festival before having to embark on a busy night shift? ;)

[Nigello]

I saw my first Jersey tiger moth yesterday morning, on Darrell Road, from afar and I wasn't sure until I saw another near the girls' school on Colyton Road this morning. Is this early or late for first appearances?

[heartblock]

Please do the butterfly count. https://bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=Orlo&utm_content=Awareness+Days

I love the tiger moth, saw one when walking to Greendale, then also spotted a peacock butterfly on the buddleia that grows in the corner and lots of gatekeepers.

Tiger moth caterpillars are amazing too...hairy bears!

[BrandNewGuy]

Nigello Wrote:

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> I saw my first Jersey tiger moth yesterday

> morning, on Darrell Road, from afar and I wasn't

> sure until I saw another near the girls' school on

> Colyton Road this morning. Is this early or late

> for first appearances?

They're probably this year's "offpring" of the moths that hibernated last winter and laid their eggs in the spring. Beautiful creatures!

[malumbu]

I've been murdering slugs, squashing them, drowning them in beer traps and cutting them in half. Then I find out that many of them do not feed on fresh leaves, rather eat mouldy old ones. Help. How can I distinguish. Stuff on line isn't that clear - I think the leopard ones are friends not pests, but not so sure about the others.

[yeknomyeknom]

The Italian Sparrows have arrived for their annual holiday near Peckham Rye.

Also, can I recommend the app Seek by iNaturist as a site I have been using that is really good for identifying plants AND bugs or animals. It?s free (which is rare), easy to use and owned by the national geographic, set up to register sightings for their scientists to analyse. It?s much better than apps I?ve paid for previously.

[Zig-Zag]

yeknomyeknom Wrote:

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> The Italian Sparrows have arrived for their annual

> holiday near Peckham Rye.

>

> Also, can I recommend the app Seek by iNaturist as

> a site I have been using that is really good for

> identifying plants AND bugs or animals. It?s free

> (which is rare), easy to use and owned by the

> national geographic, set up to register sightings

> for their scientists to analyse. It?s much better

> than apps I?ve paid for previously.

Great thanks for that app..very useful. I don't know what an Italalian sparrow is though!!

[offspinner]

yeknomyeknom Wrote:

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> can I recommend the app Seek by iNaturist

It's iNaturalist. Not the same thing at all!

Looks like a useful app.

[civilservant]

malumbu Wrote:

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> I've been murdering slugs, ... Then I find out that many of them do not feed on fresh leaves, rather eat mouldy old ones.

Malumbu, direct your wrath away from the poor hard-working but plug-ugly slugs at those cute little snail chappies, the ones that stick their little horns out and look at you so innocently after lunching heartily on your hollyhocks and hostas. Gather them up into a doggy poo bag and stick them in your blue garden bin. Leave your slugs be!

edited to add - the BBC says that the big spotty leopard slugs eat other slugs and doggy poo too, which is probably why i've got spare doggy poo bags for dealing with the snails. The BBC also has some other information about their mating habits, but i'll let you look that up for yourself.

[yeknomyeknom]

Oops. That will explain why it was so good at identifying worms. Lol.

offspinner Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> yeknomyeknom Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > can I recommend the app Seek by iNaturist

>

> It's iNaturalist. Not the same thing at all!

>

> Looks like a useful app.

[Nigello]

A cormorant - maybe the same one as before - is in the lake/pond at Peckham Rye Park.

[Sue]

Hooray!

The heron is back too, haven't seen it for ages!

[Sally Eva]

An unseen bird croaking in Nunhead Cemetery -- could this be a Raven?

answer: definitely a Raven. I found a site with recorded bird calls and it's either a Raven or a giant frog. I'm tending towards the Raven

[Nigello]

On two days on the trot I have seen what I think were clumps of (I guess) pigeon feathers on the ground at two different locations near the lake in Peckham Rye Park. I have seen them nearby on other occasions. What, do you think, could have caused the birds to shed their feathers? Is it possible a fox could have got them or a bird of prey?

[malumbu]

We've had pigeon feathers in the garden. One time was a young fox (most can't be assessed to chase wild life as they get their food for free) so I expect this will be the usual cause. Friends at a nature reserve did see a sparrow hawk take out a pigeon and bring it to the ground so this is a possibility. I doubt if they are endangered!

[heartblock]

There is often two sparrow hawks circling high above the Rye....I imagine a nice fat pigeon is just the thing for tea. If you can?t see the hawks you can hear them calling.

[RichH]

Never witnessed this before and sorry for the rubbish photo, but what I think we have here is an amorous male Garden Spider (right) making his intentions clear to a female Garden Spider (left). He's been rebuffed several times, runs away along a strand of web to the right but keeps coming back for more. I reckon she's going to get fed up (literally) soon and eat him alive :))

[Sue]

I can only see one spider, a very large one in the middle. Is that the male?