Fred's Carnivorous Plants and other oddities

[fredg]

Still not getting the rain I need, the main barrel is only at the ¼ mark. I think it's a ploy to try to stop me expanding.

[Maggi Young]

Still not getting the rain I need, the main barrel is only at the ¼ mark. I think it's a ploy to try to stop me expanding.

 Crikey, if I thought that would work I'd have sealed off the rain butts years ago and still be giving Twiggy a run for her money 

[fredg]

Butt then we'd see less of you. 

[Maggi Young]

[fredg]

Here's a few more Liverworts for the Bryologists. Seeing the plants en masse on a vertical bank is impressive, at least to me it is ( MrsG just rolls her eyes when I enthuse  ).

[fredg]

I'll try the orchid post here 

On the 29th I also went to another site to look for Fragrant Orchids. I didn't find any but I did find a group of Pyramidal Orchids and here they are.

[fredg]

I went off today (31st July) to see if I could locate any more Fragrant Orchids and finished up making a sex video.

Warning:- This video has raw footage of a sexual nature.

A pair of Emperor Dragonflies doing things that should be kept private but some nutter with a camera just couldn't leave them in peace.

[Tristan_He]

Filth. Whatever happened to something wholesome, like the humble bee visiting an Ophrys...?

[Maggi Young]

Absolutely shocking - what will people think? 

I hate to tell you, Tristan but there's even talk ( but no moving pictures!!) of sexual deception and Ophrys in the latest  IRG - online here: http://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/logdir/2015Jul301438283975IRG-67.pdf 

[fredg]

Damsels and Dragons

Damselflies and Dragonflies (Darters) at Pleasley Pit Country Park. There were many more but the big Emperors and Hawkers just wouldn't settle.
It was good to just sit and watch for a while as they gave us an aerial display.

[fredg]

Today's peramble was to woodland. I didn't expect to find any liverworts as I'd not seen any there all through spring. Growing next to the path in clay was this little fellow.



Any assistance on ID is most welcome.

[Chris Johnson]

Today's peramble was to woodland. I didn't expect to find any liverworts as I'd not seen any there all through spring. Growing next to the path in clay was this little fellow.



Any assistance on ID is most welcome.

Hi Fred

I wonder if this is a young Marchantia polymorpha not yet showing the typical characteristics of more mature specimens.

Do you know what the black sphere is in the centre of the image? It looks like a fruiting capsule but rather out of context.

[fredg]

I'd forgotten to take my magnifier and lenses Chris, I wasn't expecting to see liverworts in that location. I'm afraid I didn't see that black sphere until I downloaded the images.
It looks like I'll have to make a return trip when the plants will have matured and see if I can get an ID then. They have only just appeared under a full canopy and there are a lot of them.

[brianw]

Did you see this Fred?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33847252

You might be a local saviour.

[fredg]

Yes Brian, the BBC should be ashamed of themselves for such shoddy reporting. The only reason  for

The head of a botanical garden in Nantes, western France, says the pitcher plant Sarracenia devours Asian hornets - but not European hornets. Nor does it eat bees or wasps.

is that the Asian Hornets have already eaten them all.
My comment on another forum was that the BBC should have used an older reporter, one preferably who has already left nursery school.