Peterstone Super Ely

The 25th of May turned out to be a wonderful day for a walk with friends

We went on a route picked out by Rob and Linda Nottage around Peterstone Super Ely

The wildlife abounded in the late spring sun and we were treated to a nice selection of habitats to wander through

The birders amongst us watched out for life as we crossed the river, but I failed to spot anything moving that fast. However I did find some Green Dock Leaved Beetles (Gastrophysa viridula) so engrossed that they did not care when I turned their leaf over.

She's heavily expecting so soon the  larvae will be turning the leaves into something that looks like a fine lace doily. I suspect the small brown pile behind them is exactly what it looks like - frass is the technical term

 

We wandered along the riverbank and spotted this nice mature Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) or conker tree to the young at heart. This part is overhanging the river so whoever collects these will need to be careful

Oh well when they've had enough exercise collecting the conkers they can rest on this well placed bench 

No good for us though, so we headed from the riverbank into meadows and were soon admiding many wildflowers. Whilst the rest of the team were marvelling at Monkshood I was admiring this Comfrey (Symphytum officinale)

 And a nice yellow Flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus) looking cheerful in the sunshine

And on to open landscapes where we hunted in vain for Sand Martins. not a good show this year, we hope they all found somewhere nice to nest. 

The whole of this flood plane is covered in the most wonderful meanders. Its not possible to do them justice in a picture taken at ground level.  Hmmm  I wonder if can I get permission to drive my land Rover here as a photo platform?

Others were making proper records of what they saw, but I hope some like this simple photo diary of my day out

Excellent company, excellent wildlife, excellent landscapes

Regards
Andy