A couple of days of sunshine gave an opportunity to venture out along oozing mud, once recognised as footpaths. I went to Foxholes yesterday, a BBOWT reserve near Bledington and Kingham, and mercifully was only hassled by one uncontrolled dog charging along despite the vain and pitiful cries of its owner to heel. There are several signs asking for dogs to be kept on a short leash.
Despite the dog, I saw two muntjac deer, a hare and a short-tailed vole; primroses were in flower and the rosettes of early purple orchids were showing. These were on bare ground except for a moss, which I think was Rhytidelphus loreus. There were a few scarlet elf caps nearby. One of the things I want to do this summer is identify plants and mosses in close association with orchids to get a feel for the extent of plant competition, aggressive or otherwise/
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| Primrose |
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| Early purple orchid rosette |
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| Moss, Rhytidelphus loreus (I think) |
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Scarlet elf cap
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The previous day I went to Harvest Hill, a Warwickshre Wildlife Trust reserve near Coventry. This is a small meadow, which at this time of year has flowering wild daffodils (Narcissus pseudonarcissus) which have none of the coarse, brashness of daffodil cultivars.
It's definitely spring.
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| Wild daffodil |
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| Wild daffodil |
