As promised, I've got a little more to give you this week. Although Monday and Tuesday were a bit depressing weather wise, the rest of the week has been a lot more pleasant, if a tad chilly in the mornings. Indeed, on Wednesday you could have been forgiven for thinking we were back in the summer (almost), as this view out over the blue skies above the moor shows.
I was working with my volunteers finishing tidying up the brash on Red Hill. And brash isn't a typo, as my parents thought. For anyone who isn't familiar with the term, it's the branches of trees that have been cut, as well as bits of hedge and bramble and stuff. Basically all the messy bits that aren't suitable as firewood logs.
It was warm enough on Wednesday to bring out almost every dragonfly still alive at this time of year. They were everywhere. Indeed at one point one of the vols had at least four perched on him. For some reason none of them wanted to land on me.
Most of them were either a dull colour like this or a dullish red colour and I'm pretty sure they are common darters, this one being a female. It is known that they get darker with age.
Some mornings on the moor can be fairly atmospheric, and Friday morning was a perfect example. The sun was behind some clouds but the light was streaming down and silhouetting the hillside.
I also find that on slightly misty mornings, a dead tree can add to the atmosphere. Mind you, I think they can look pretty cool at any time.
It's clear now that autumn is taking hold, whether the weather is grey and drizzly or clear and chill, the signs are increasing. I've started to spot more fungi, the ground is starting to get a leafy carpet, and I see those splashes of colour amongst the trees.
Although most of the trees are still fairly green, if a bit dull, more and more are starting to turn. Those species that turn bright orange or red provide the most spectacle, like this one.
Friday morning also provided some birds for me to enjoy. I've spotted lapwing on the moor a few times now, but this time I had my camera. There's no real cover out there so it's hard to get close, but I did my best.
I zoomed in once I'd uploaded the picture onto my laptop, hoping for a better shot. Unfortunately it wasn't sharp enough for that, but I thought it looked a bit like an impressionist painting instead.
I'd certainly be pretty proud if I could paint that.
The lapwing were part of a mixed flock with a few hundred starlings. They were less wary so I got a better photo.
I also saw this small bird perched on a gate. I've identified it as a meadow pipit, so I hope you all agree.
I also had a slightly interesting wildlife encounter at home this week. I noticed something a bit odd under one of the shelves in my bedroom and took a closer look. At first I thought it was two spiders, but I quickly realised it was only one that was moulting.
It's a little hard to see because I used the camera flash, which caused a shadow on the wall, making it look like there's hundreds of legs. But the top, darker, part, is the old 'skin', while the pale part is the new spider emerging. Once the 'skin' hardened the following day it turned darker and the husk shrivelled up, looking much like a dead spider. Cellar spiders, which this is, will go through several moults before reaching maturity, as their bodies outgrow their old 'skin'. Anyway, I thought it was interesting to see.
That's it for this week.
Take care,
Kathryn
West Sedgemoor Residential Volunteering team