Today’s top oddity - Red-hot Poker on the edge of a field at least a quarter of a mile from any garden!

Today’s top highlight - Wasp Beetle Clytus arietis, a longhorn and new to me! On comfrey at the yard

Rubbish photos but the teeniest #tinyplants I’ve seen lately: Wall Speedwell Veronica arvensis with my favourite ballpoint for scale #wildflowerhour

Different perspectives on ‘good’ records; Small-flowered Crane’s-bill was my standout Plant Of The Day, being a lifer and all. However it was the Great Lettuce which set excited little coloured text alerts jingling when I entered it on the @bsbibotany.bsky.social app, being apparently new for SJ75!

Meanwhile life goes on 2…

Meanwhile life goes on …

My new favourite circular walk on the south side of Crewe. But this is ‘rescue naturespotting’: all the white on the map east of the railway, between Weston Road to the north and Weston Lane to the south, will soon be covered in housing, commercial units, ‘big box logistics’ and the like.

Froghoppers and fence-hoppers: it’s been that sort of a weekend! More, possibly, later

Vetches outside Crewe yesterday #carrotsandpeas #wildflowerhour

Canis lupus familiaris var.”Ruby”. Synonyms: Roo-roo, Snurgles, The Damned Dog etc. Easily identified by ‘pogoing’ behaviour prior to food, walkies. Obligate kibblevore. Distribution: only known from one location in N.Staffs

‘Feta, Feta and Blame Me’ is apparently a well-known wildflower book, according to the closed captions on a YouTube video I’m watching 😂

The Law of Negative Effort in operation: stuck at the yard for an hour or so this afternoon, mooching about bored in a place I know like the back of my hand and - bingo! Two lifers, how’ve I missed them before? Oh and a soaring Hobby, year tick. Less purposeful naturespotting, more idle mooching!

Library team awayday at Yarnfield conference centre, formerly a Post Office/BT training centre and late 60s gem. Highlight apart from my wife’s yummy chocolate cake was a striking and photogenic water tower

A few more mini-beasts from Newcastle Cemetery the other day

It’s hot in the village, hot in the village tonight….

Bulbous buttercup in hospital grounds Stafford #buttercupchallenge #wildflowerhour

Put last year’s bee hotel out the other day as an afterthought and not sure it was a good idea. Never seen anything like this. I think Osmia bicornis is in the mix but there’s a bigger sp with orange abdomen and smaller black ones with stripy purply-iridescent abdomens. Bees defeat me, let me go

A free Sunday, lovely weather, what to do? Why, prowl a municipal cemetery looking for ladybirds, of course! No luck with Eyed, though. Thanks @sj84turner.bsky.social for the gen!

Toshiyuki Tanaka the Japanese Olympic rider and Jefferson JRA going clear at the water on the 3 star cross-country at Kelsall Hill. Makes it look easy #eventing #crosscountry #itskelsallhill

Zara Tindall and Classicals Euro Star showjumping at Kelsall Hill on Saturday. Not quite perfect - jumping clear but with 0.8 time faults #eventing #showjumping #itskelsallhill

Filling haynets at 06:30, surprised to hear Grasshopper Warbler starting to reel vigorously from nearby hedge. Yard tick! - my first here in 13 years

Hanchurch Woods was a bust this evening despite the lovely weather: found only 1 (Garden Warbler) of my 4 target bird year-ticks. Two Dark-edged Bee-flies (not pictured, flighty beasts) and a False Puffball (my first and hitherto only slime mould) were some compensation

More golden loveliness from the (other) hospital grounds this lunchtime: American Winter-cress and Bulbous Buttercup

Sunken lane next to the hospital offered lots of insects basking on leaves out of the wind this lunchtime. Nomada sp. and host Andrena scotica, at least four species of hoverflies, and three Speckled Woods whirling furiously round including this battered specimen

Very pleased to make it to 1,000 species on PSL, onward and upward! And nice that no.1000 is the handsome hoverfly Epistrophe eligans @panspecieslisting.bsky.social

Belated #WoodlandPlants for #wildflowerhour: Wood Anemone and Wood-sorrel both from Staffs Wildlife Trust reserves @staffswildlife.bsky.social

A good afternoon session from Alsager Mill to Lower Foxley and back. Five year ticks included Wheatears (7), Yellow Wagtail and Willow Warbler. Unexpected Wood Anemones, ubiquitous Greater Stitchwort, and only my second Orange-tailed Mining Bee. Female Dung Flies everywhere on Dandelions.

After work visit to George’s Hayes SWT for the wild daffodils and others on a pleasant grey April evening @staffswildlife.bsky.social

Finally seen my first ever Otter!! At Leighton Moss, swanning around in the midst of the water off Lilian’s Hide. That’s two new mammals for me this year already and not even trying

Belated Christmas gift from my wife which arrived yesterday. A phenomenal and comprehensive achievement, thank you @graemelyons.bsky.social! Recommended to naturalists of any stripe or hue

Picked up usual range of freebies and other bits at the Staffs Invertebrates day 😀

Quick twitch to Westport for the Scoter before heading off to Meir for the inverts bash… Joined the Friends of Lyme Brook and gawped at teeny tiny mayfly larvae and freshwater shrimps

We go again. Eristalis tenax today on dandelion

Starling murmuration over Silverdale this afternoon #staffsbirdnews

Thirty-one years and two months to the day since my last Yellow-browed Warbler (by the Wey Navigation in Guildford), the Westport Lake bird is my third overall and first for Staffordshire. I feel there should be a rubbish record shot to accompany this dull, fact-heavy post, but agile+tiny+iPhone….

Lost a lot of scales in the bathtub poor thing but is this identifiable? ObsID reckons Clepsis consimilana @sj84turner.bsky.social Micro Man and @thevicar70.bsky.social the Clepsis King 😀

One of four Rusty-dot Pearls flushed from a flower tub out front of the house VC39 13/8/2025 #teammoth @migrantmothuk.bsky.social

Moths by day #3 #teammoth IDs open to correction!

Some bits and pieces from the last couple of days

Other random flies from recent walks

Moths by day #2 #teammoth

Moths by day #1 #teammoth

Beetles of Audley

Sawflies - from along the old railway line in Audley

Some recent sightings round the village: Hoverflies #2

Some recent sightings round the village: Hoverflies #1

Bryotropha affinis on the inside of my cardboard recycling bag this morning #teammoth

Saturday morning dogwalk naturespotting

The obligatory HMHM video. Garden tick ✅

Small Blood-vein accidentally flushed from our bamboo thicket and obligingly posing on fence. This takes the garden list I don’t keep to about six…