Beautiful Butterflies

Last summer I couldn't help but notice the lack of butterflies fluttering around the garden, which was probably due to some pretty miserable weather. luckily, this year could not be any more different. The sun has been shining (ok, it rained today but shh), and there are butterflies everywhere! The flowers in my garden and the surrounding marsh are absolutely covered in them, and I decided to take my camera on a walk with me and take some photos. Butterflies make the prettiest pictures!

walking onto the marsh on a beautiful day. All the nettles at the side of the track definitely helped the surge in numbers, providing food for the caterpillars. 

The flowers on the marsh were completely covered in butterflies. 

Peacock butterflies seem to be everywhere at the moment!

Nettles are still covered in caterpillars, so hopefully there are even more butterflies to come this year.

Below are some pictures of the different butterfly species that I managed to find (all in one afternoon).

Peacock butterfly (Inachis io)

Small blue (Cupido minimus)

A pair of cabbage whites (Pieris rapae) on budliea.

The butterflies go crazy for budliea flowers. If you want to encourage them in your garden this is definitely the thing to plant.

Painted lady (Vanessa cardui)

Meadow brown (Maniola jurtina)

Small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) 

I was impressed at the number of species I found just on one walk around the marsh and the garden. I was really pleased to find a small skipper, I have never seen a butterfly like it before. It was tiny and it was only with the help of google that I realised it wasn't a moth.

I hope that you are all enjoying the large number of beautiful butterflies this year (unless you are like my friend who is absolutely terrified of them. In which case you probably shouldn't have read this. Sorry). If you want to encourage more butterflies into your garden, then this website gives some really good tips, including which plants butterflies love best and how to plant them. Enjoy!

(Not) Coping With the Heat

I am currently melting. This is a state in which I have been trapped for the past few weeks, as the UK is gripped with a crazy heatwave which means that we are actually finally having a summer. Now don’t get me wrong, I love hot summers. I love the ability to wear summer clothes every day and actually venture outside without an umbrella constantly on standby. But at the moment it is so hot that my lovely summer clothes are sticky with sweat (mmm sexy), and I am really reluctant to move from my shady spot under the oak tree in my garden.

Luckily I have yet to overheat and pass out, and this is probably due to my complaints. Awful as sweat is, it is evaporating water which carries heat away from my body (not that I am going to give up the antiperspirant any time soon, don’t worry). Loose clothing allows air to get close to the skin and carry the water vapour away, so I have been wearing a lot of floaty skirts recently!   I also have a lovely tan coming on, which is protecting my skin cells from the damaging effects of sunlight (wear suncream too though!!).

I like wearing loose skirts in hot weather to help keep cool

Relaxing outside with a good book is one of my favourite things to do when its hot

So we have established that I am actually coping fine with the heat, I just love to complain. After all, come winter I will be grateful for all the sunny memories and my dose of vitamin D. However, I always look at my pets in weather like this and feel really sorry for them. How do they cope with the heat with all their feathers and fur?

My rabbit Sirius was obviously not designed for hot weather. His thick black fur and lopped ears really hindered any heat loss and he could often be found stretched out to expose any thinner patches of fur. He especially liked lying on cool surfaces and a tile soaked in water really relieved his discomfort.

My chickens on the other hand, do not seem bothered by the heat. They continue to wander round the garden, foraging for insects and  (in fact, its when it snows that you have to force them outside to eat. They hate snow). Their bare feet give them a good surface to cool down from, they can stay in the shade, have a good dust bath, and as long as there is a source of water for them they are fine.  In fact, they probably prefer the hot weather because it means that there will be more insects around for them to eat and they can forage for longer as it gets dark later. Also, it means we eat dinner outside and feed them scraps from the table, making them into very spoilt chickens!

My cockerel Cyrus is as proud as ever in the sunshine

My last pet doesn't even notice the changes in weather. Monty is content in his tank of water away from direct sunlight, and as long as there is a regular supply of worms he floats around happily, checking out everyone who wanders past him.

My axolotl Monty doesn't really notice the change in temperature

So in actual fact, all this hot weather is suiting me and my pets just fine. If you are out enjoying the sun remember to wear suncream and drink plenty of water. And embrace the sweat, its just trying to help you out.

My Summer Migration

I am currently travelling through the rolling green fields on my journey south for the summer. This is the opposite direction to most summer migrations, and the only preparation I had to make was packing my stuff up. Migrating birds, on the other hand, have to go through a lot more preparation, including building up flight muscles and fat reserves. 

Birds migrate to avoid harsh weather and move to areas with plenty of food (this is also one of my motivations, thanks mum!) Migration is dangerous, exhaustion and predators ready to take advantage of the large numbers of animals all in one place mean that surviving can be a challenge. There is also the possibility that the place the birds are migrating to may not be able to support them. This is an increasing problem with climate change, as insects emerge earlier than they used to and so are not at their peak when the birds arrive. The benefits of migration must be huge for the birds to take all of these risks. My train journey on the other hand, contained no such risks. Aside from the extortionate ticket price and the chance of sitting next to someone a bit weird, of course.

My migration was triggered by the end of my third year at university, and so I have three months to relax before I get back to work. I guess the benefits will be seeing my lovely family and friends. And the free food. Definitely worth the cost of a ticket and nine hours of boredom! 

My navigation home was pretty simple (which is just as well because geography was never my strong subject). I just bought the right tickets, got on a train and hoped for the best. Navigation for migrating birds is much more challenging. They use the sun as a compass alongside an internal clock, which guides them towards their destination. Some birds also use magnetic fields to guide them (it is useful to have more than one method of navigation in case the sun goes in and that method cannot be used). The magnetic field of the earth is stronger towards the north and south poles, and by sensing it using specialised molecules the birds can navigate.

Obviously, all of these methods only work if you know where you are going. So birds need maps, compasses and clocks to find their way to their destination. Much more impressive than me trying to catch a train!!

So now that I am in Norfolk for the summer this blog will hopefully become more frequent. I have swapped the rugged cliffs and mountains of Scotland for the pretty river and marshes of Norfolk, so let the summer commence!