Arger Fen bluebells and more

Arger Fen and Spouse's Vale is a fascinating mosaic of ancient woodland alongside fen meadow and regenerating woodland. The interesting mix of trees at Arger Fen includes oak, ash, field maple, holly, crab apple, superb large alder, hazel stools and wild cherry. The reserve's contrasting habitats of dry wooded hillside and damp valley floor create a rich environment for wildlife and visitors alike. Many rare and declining species find refuge here including the scarce hazel dormouse and the barbastelle bat. Common lizards and grass snakes bask in woodland glades in summer, butterflies to look out for include speckled wood, meadow brown, orange tip, holly blue and comma... and bluebells! 
It is maintained by Suffolk Wildlife Trust who do a great job maintaining this beautiful area

Carpets of bluebell, one of the nations favourites I am sure. Maybe because they herald spring at last.

Bluebell with tree as a background

Yellow Archangel (Lamiastrum galeobdolon) - also with a tree trunk backdrop.

Marsh Horse Tails

A slime mould - Enteridium lycoperdon

Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

Bluebells

Brimstone moth spotted as it sunned itself in the warm morning sunlight

Cuckoo flower (Cardamine pratensis) 

Wood Spurge (euphorbia amygdaloides) All green it might be, but still rather pretty I think

Primroses 

All seen on the same wood,s on the same day - spring is definitely here! 

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Two weeks in the life of Izobelle

Izobelle is growing fast, and these are a few images over a two week period in the second half of March 2014.

A watchful, or dreaming Izobelle

Let's kick the ball 

Am I putting enough soil in Nanna? 

Look Grandad! 

Watching Grandad trying to photograph me. 

Like this? 

Time for a snack on the trampoline. 

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Bittern at Minsmere

One of the birds that is on the hit list of possible the majority of people interested in the natural world, is the Bittern.

On 4th March 2014 we visited RSPB Minsmere, one of our favourite sites because of its diversity (the Scrape to the sea front). One particular hide, which is on the edge of the reed beds, is known as the bittern hide, and for good reason.

We had not been there very long when our bird appeared really close to the hide and we were able to get a few images - magic!

A description by the RSPB: `The bittern is a thickset heron with all-over bright, pale, buffy-brown plumage covered with dark streaks and bars. It flies on broad, rounded, bowed wings. A secretive bird, very difficult to see, as it moves silently through reeds at water's edge, looking for fish. The males make a remarkable far-carrying, booming sound in spring. It's very small, reedbed-dependent population make it an Amber List species. It is also a Schedule 1 species.`

Read more 

Populations of the bittern, a wetland bird that was facing extinction in the UK in the late 1990s, are at a record high, conservationists report.Resident numbers of “Britain’s loudest bird” increased in 2017, and experts – using the foghorn-like booming call of the males to survey the species – have counted at least 164 birds at 71 sites.

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What can be seen at Walton on the Naze?

Walton is a traditional seaside town on the east coast, unique in that it is surrounded on three sides by the sea. Its three miles of gently shelving sandy beaches facing south-east stretch from Frinton to the Naze. To the north, the sea sweeps round the Naze into the backwaters, known as Hamford Water, and the Walton Channel stretches right down to Walton Mere, only 300 yards from the main beach. The Naze, as well as being a natural open space, is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) famed for its fossils found in the Red Crag cliffs.

As well as these glorious natural features, Walton is known for its pier – the second-longest in the country – its yacht club and marina, and its iconic tower at The Naze from where panoramic views can be enjoyed of the Walton backwaters, Harwich and Felixstowe and the Suffolk coast. 

The coast of East Anglia is always subject to erosion and the day of our visit to Walton demonstrated the effects which a stormy period on the North sea can have on the area 

These beach huts would normally have a bit more sand in front, but it has been washed away leaving a nasty gap between bottom step and the beach! 

Another view of an area normally deep in sand. 

One has to wonder haw many years before the famous tower is in danger? Built in 1720 by Trinity House as a navigational aid for ships making for Harwich Harbour – is now an art gallery and tea rooms 

More of the cliff has slid toward the sea

Somehow, there is always an odd shoe.

.... or a glove! 

So to some wildlife. In a row - shame about the empty end posts! 

Sanderling seen on the beach 

What are you doing down there? 

Three is a crowd. 

These swirls are the “castings” of a worm. Various species of lugworms are found in sandy marine mud all over the world. They ingest the sandy mud at one end, and excrete digested sand at the other. They can process a cubic centimeter or more of sand every hour. The worms digest the bacteria and other microorganism in the sand, in much the same way that earthworms process soil. So, some images of worm poo! 

Patterns in the sand 

The colour green. Seaweed coating the steps to the beach.

Under the pier. A view toward the sea as the tide retreats

Colours

Gulls inviting themselves to lunch 

The remains of a WW2 pillbox on the beach. The Walton of today is a somewhat different place to that of WW2 due to it`s proximity to the entrance to Harwich . A good taster of how the area was in that period can be found here.

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A winters day in January

We expect to have January as a cold, sometimes snowy, month. There are things to photograph which are interesting, and often just eye catching, such as these cobwebs in fences and railings. 

Cobwebs adorn the railings and nearby fences 

The first showing of snowdrops on the roadside 

Believe it or not, these Velvet Shank Fungi (Flammulina velutipes), spotted on a nearby tree. 

And an image of a tree in the mist. First image in the mist, second one on a sunny day with a NIk Effex filter applied. 

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