Darting Visitor

Common darter is a reddish dragonfly that's been coming to our pond, but never staying still long enough to get digitally captured. I stalked it this time, and waited patiently at a frequently used landing spot - success at last! And then I read on Wikipedia that its 'habit of repeatedly returning to a sunny spot allows you to easily predict where they are going to land, which is why it is one of the easiest dragonflies to photograph.' Harumph ... it has taken me a few weeks to nail this one down (shh, don't tell anybody).

Prickly Visitor

Our resident hedgehog has been partaking of the food we've been putting out almost daily, and certainly very regularly. Since they're nocturnal, we don't always get a chance to see them ourselves, but we got lucky one evening when it came earlier than usual - Dale took this pic from the living room window when the camera spotlight turned on. 

Our feed station has to be cat proof, otherwise they'd munch all the food before the hedgehog got there. So, we've made a maze of bricks inside an overturned tote bin, forcing the animal to weave and turn inside the tote in order to reach the food bowl.

and we've cut a small entranceway into the plastic tote. Though we've seen cats peek inside this entrance, they're nervous about the interior labyrinth that doesn't lend itself to a quick escape. This way, only the dim, adorable hedgehog gets to eat the food!

Bore Da

Good morning from Wales, or bor-eh dah!

This was earlier than my normal wake up, so took advantage of the opportunity

This appearance of the sun was a false promise though

It's became grey and colorless from 9AM, so I'm glad I got to see this.

Overnight Slime

 This slime mould appeared overnight on our new pond log

The next day it looked like this

and it became more pink as the hours went by (this is 2 hours later). This apparently happens as its reproductive structures mature.

Slime moulds! Phenomenal things - they can move as a creeping mass to hunt for food, consuming yeasts, bacteria, and fungal spores. They're not fungi, plant or animal - they're classified as protists.

Incy Wincy Spider

This helpful house spider does a good job of making itself look fearsome - total bluff, though, it's harmless. I love seeing the sparse hairs on its legs at (safe) close range. There are some beautiful markings on its abdomen too, and its arm-like mouthparts look like eyes on stalks.

Singing Praise

Yay! I have a working sewing machine again! And this modern one is for old people - it has an auto needle threader. I never knew there was such a thing, but man is it useful.

Torn towels have been strengthened, jeans have been patched and t-shirt holes fixed. Pity I had to do my curtains by hand, but never mind, it gave me something to do inside when it was raining back in May and June.

A Visit to Holyhead

Last week we took a scenic, rainy drive to 'kair-guh-bee,' (Caergybi, aka Cybi's fort), better known in the English-speaking world as Holyhead. In Roman times the town was called Sacrum Promentarium, which means ... Holyhead. It's perched off the Isle of Anglesey in the far northwest corner of Wales.

We didn't stop to do much sightseeing along the way because it looked like this:

The remains of the fort up on the hill

Typical Victorian era train station with a beautiful clock tower off to its left.

As you can see, it was a grey day

Ancient castellated wall

 

Modern castellated wall

The secret is out - I saw my Christmas presents on their way! 

Pheasants

We had great views of this beautiful non-native male game bird (originally from Asia), Phasianus colchicus or common pheasant, as it strutted atop our pergola, annoyed at a neighborhood cat's encroachment into our garden.

Photo: D.Schultz

These beautiful creatures replaced the native grouse which were decimated when game bird shooting became a popular sport in the 19th century. Pheasants were imported and raised specifically for the shoot. Young birds were kept en masse in enclosures on an estate by a gamekeeper until the shooting season began, at which point they were driven through the valleys, undergrowth and steep terrain by beaters and dogs to flush them into the air to be killed.

Those not shot got to live another day, this time unfenced and free to roam and breed. And so these birds have spread and multiplied in the wild, their numbers being supplemented each year with the next 'lucky' escapees.

Today Dale saw a flock of 13 land in the field above our house.

Outstanding Tree

Look at this outstanding tree that has been left on the hillside, and how different the vegetation is directly beneath and around it. It ... stands out!

Footbridge

This wooden footbridge over the River Banwy (Afon Banwy) in Llanfair-Caereinion is pretty impressive

It leads to the town center, where there is a stone monument to the Welsh bard Taliesin, so I'll be back to explore this legend further. The Banwy was full, yet many reservoirs are still showing a deficit from the recent drought.

The Pond Log

Here's more on what we're doing in our efforts to restore our pond - we sourced some logs 'with character' from a friend's fallen tree (foreground), and

packed them into the back of the car with the trunk unlatched (a saga of its own in a car full of electronic beeping sounds and ultra-safety concerns that involved an automated, unnecessary use of the emergency brake at a most inappropriate time).

We strapped them onto our 'dolly'/sack cart, and then Dale wheeled them around the house to the pond area.

 He expertly placed them exactly where they 'spoke' to him. Since then, we've been harvesting moss fragments wherever it's not wanted, and we're slowly disguising the edges of the pond liner with it.

And, of course, our wildlife visitor's book for the pond has grown since then too

Photo: D Schultz

Poisonous Delights

These gorgeous blooms in my garden are commonly known as autumn crocuses or meadow saffron, though they aren't actually true crocuses, and are also not related to saffron plants. These little beauties belong to a whole different family than their common names suggest (Cochinas speciosum) and are toxic if ingested.

Interestingly (to me anyway), the ovary is below ground, so pollen tubes must grow downwards (almost 3 inches) to complete the fertilization process. Fascinating!

As you can see, they have certainly added a lot of color to the garden at this time of year.

Train Yard Sights

There was a lovely tea-room (café) selling delicious bacon and cheese pastries (as well as ... coffee) at the second station.

Was this guy sitting on a heap of coal? And did the man next to Dale start crying?

What a lovely vintage open goods wagon

Ooh, these nuts are lovely

Fire buckets

Train Spotting

We decided against riding the train between the two stations this time around so that we could observe it running 'in the wild,' and indulging in some trainspotting. Dale had selected a perfect spot en route that gave us quick and easy access to the railway line, including a parking spot that wasn't in the way of traffic. For most of our time there, this is what we saw as we waited,

and waited,

and waited. At least we had time to test out the best vantage point.

Eventually an elderly 'Farmer Giles'-type bloke pulled up, parked in front of a nearby gate and then started yakking incessantly to us. When we realized he was the local landowner, I offered to close the gate for him so he could continue on his way. "Oh, no thank," he said, "I've been doing this as part of my life for umpteen years. I've got it." This was his opportunity to do some socializing, and he wasn't going to skimp! Aargh! his thick Welsh accent made it so difficult to follow what he was saying. I gave some appropriately interjected responses (I hoped), and then eventually had to shut him up by shouting "Here it comes!" Look at this magnificent sight - it was well worth the wait - so beautiful!

And then it was back into the car to await its arrival at the other end.

People Playing With Steam

We had a full and fun day watching people operate steam trains and tractors at the Welshpool & Llanfair light railway last week. Live steam always adds more interest and drama to the experience. The volunteers running this heritage railway put on a fantastic show - all volunteers were dressed in 'costume' and performed all the manual train running duties of the period confidently and skillfully.

I was pleased to have inadvertently captured the moment of passing the baton from the driver to the signalman, as performed in days of yore.

Operating these steam tractors was an exercise in athleticism! The active labor involved in steering and maneuvering these beauts was unbelievable.

There was a real carnival, festive atmosphere to the entire display, especially seeing as a fairground organ was playing at the destination station, seen here between two steam tractors.