THE FIRST SWALLOW OF SUMMER & OTHER SPRING BIRDS

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THE FIRST SWALLOW OF SUMMER

THE FIRST SWALLOW TO ARRIVE AT OUR HOUSE IN DORSET, APRIL 27 A handful of swallows arrived from Africa on the first day of sunshine for weeks, preened for a while on the wires, then flew round the garden after insects. The next two days have been heavy rain, and they haven’t shown again… We saw the last ones leave last Autumn, so it’s good to have seen them come back. 

PIED WAGTAIL PICKING ITS WAY DELICATELY ALONG THE ROOF RIDGE

GOLDFINCH IN A WEEPING ASH

BLACKBIRD’S NEST

The chicks fledged and flew during the past week, and we missed it… suddenly the nest was empty

BEES BUZZING BUSILY IN THE BIG CITY

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BEES INVESTIGATING FLOWERS AND BLOSSOM IN A LONDON GARDEN

SPRING HONEY BEES IN SUSSEX & EARLY HONEY…

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HONEY BEES, EAST SUSSEX ON 1st APRIL These bees are from four hives, and were thirsty. During the day there were always several drinking in the birdbath. Although the water level was quite low, sadly there had been a couple of casualties early in the day. Adding bits of plant solved the problem. Also shown below is the first honey of the year. 

SPRING – SOMETHING TO SHOUT ABOUT…

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A ROBIN IN FULL SPRING SONG AT THE TOP OF A CHERRY TREE

(for more robins CLICK HERE )

ALPACAS IN DORSET – BEAUTIFUL, YET DIM & PASSIVE AGGRESSIVE

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ALPACAS IN DORSET – THE 3 LAWNMOWERS… 

I realise that these creatures are not strictly – or in any sense – equines [the page where they are kept] , but South American camelids related to llamas. I don’t have a separate category for them, however. Our neighbours keep these 3 in our paddock, where they act as lawnmowers, mobile fertilisers and exotic livestock eye-candy in the Dorset countryside. They are very stupid, and wince-makingly shy – except when they are being violently aggressive…

And here is their modelling portfolio in slideshow format. Some might say the brown one has “IT”, but the white one clearly needs some expensive orthodontistry… 

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HOUSEMARTINS IN WALES

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HOUSEMARTINS – CWMDU, POWYS, WALES These little birds moved too fast and too acrobatically for the small camera I had with me. They were nesting under the eaves of the cottage I was staying in

A SPRING FROG IN THE GARDEN

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A FROG IN THE GARDEN

My reflection can be seen in the frog’s eye (click twice to enlarge image), an unintentional result

THE NEXT GENERATION… We went away for the weekend, and came back to find a bird bath full of fresh frogspawn! I have put some wire over it – the blackbirds use it for their lengthy ablutions, often nearly emptying it. The frogspawn wouldn’t stand a chance… Strangely, there’s also a tiny freshwater shrimp in the bowl. I’ve no idea how that came to be there. Updates will follow 

LES CADRANS SOLAIRES: THE AMAZING CERAMIC TILE SUNDIALS OF COARAZE, PROVENCE

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The sundials shown below are in Coaraze, a small medieval ‘village perché’ (650m) in the Alpes-Maritimes, Provence, north of Nice. They include sundials by artistic polymath Jean Cocteau, novelist, poet, dramatist, designer, artist and filmmaker; Ponce de Leon; and Henri Goetz, among others. They are located in two places in the village (1) on the front and side walls of the Marie (2) at the top of the village on a south-facing walls in the square in front of the church

MONA CRISTIE – LA CHEVAUCHÉE DU TEMPS

GEORGES DOUKING – LES ANIMAUX FABULEUX

JEAN COCTEAU – LES LÉZARDS (lizards are the historic symbol of the village)

GILBERT VALENTIN – LES  TOURNESOLS                     

FABIENNE BARRE (2008) – on the side wall of the Marie, with a view of the village

ANGEL PONCE DE LÉON – BLUE TIME (1961)         

HENRI GOETZ – LE PYTHON ET SA COURONNE EN VERT ET OR (1961)                        

SACHA SOSNO (2007)                        

“BEN” – BENJAMIN VAUTIER (2008)

GOLDEN RETRIEVER ENJOYING AN EVENING SWIM, CAP FERAT

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THIS LOVELY DOG was enjoying a cold early March swim as the sun went down. I started to photograph it while it was still in the sun, then moved round and took some more photos against the light, producing the silhouette effect of the dog and its owner on the rocks

A TINY EARLY SPRING BEE IN THE ALPES-MARITIMES

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A TINY GINGER BEE FORAGING ON A SUNNY MARCH DAY IN THE HILLS OF SE PROVENCE