Seeds and moths

Seeds are the primary propagation method for many species of plants, and any species has a better chance of survival if its progeny can be distributed as widely as possible. Some seeds, e.g. Sycamore, Thistle and Dandelion, can fly. Others, such as Cleavers, Burdock or Herb Benedict have seeds which are furnished with hooks so that they can hitch a ride to their eventual germination spot. Other plants, however, have seeds which are distributed in more bizarre fashion.

The seeds of Meadowsweet are arranged in tightly coiled balls:

Meadowsweet seeds

When the seeds are mature, they drop off and bounce and roll away to their eventual destination.

The champions of subterfuge, though, are the seeds of Cow Parsley (and other Umbellifers, such as Hogweed). These resemble beetles:

Seeds of Cow Parsley

Notice that the similarity extends to antennae and even to 'eyes'.

When a fast-flying insect-eating bird spots these seeds, it is very easy to mistake them for a beetle at the top of a plant. As a result, many of these seeds are picked up and carried for some distance before the bird has noticed that its juicy beetle dinner is, in fact, a seed. If you're an insectivore, the last thing you want to eat is a seed, so these are very quickly dropped to germinate, but not before they have been carried some distance from the parent plant. Plants 1: Birds 0.

Moth identification continues to vex me, but I do think I'm beginning to make some headway.

This is the second specimen of Dotted Clay that I have seen:

Dotted Clay moth

These have a fairly short season, and the first one I saw was on 1st August 2009: exactly 3 years ago to the day. Dotted Clay uses a wide range of herbaceous foodplants, preferring Nettle and (in winter) Willows and other trees.

As usual, this Pug took a little time to identify:

Double-striped Pug

Larvae of the Double-striped Pug can be found on almost any flower. (Pug larvae tend to eat flowers, rather than leaves).

Life goes on

I've been following the progress of the larvae, parasites and pupae of the Large White butterfly around my front door. Today one of the adults emerged unscathed and proceeded to inflate its wings:

It was still there five hours later.

Wood Anemones are well-named: I usually find them in woodland. Occasionally I find a few hanging on in unexpected places, which is probably an indication of what the environment must once have been like.

Some fungi are like that, too: Amanita sp. can sometimes be found in fields or hedgerows, rather than in the deciduous woodland that they normally require.

One thing that continuously amazes me is the desire and urge for species to survive. I suppose it's an essential trait for something that has lasted for millennia. This Common Dog Violet is growing in the middle of a tarred roadway. The flower is about half the normal size and the leaves are 5mm long, rather than the 25mm to 35mm that I'd expect.

This same 'survival at all costs' attitude is evident in species like leaf miners and parasitic fungi. They appear almost as soon as the leaves have opened. No time or opportunity is ever wasted.

My heart sank when I saw this Pug moth: they are the most difficult of moths to separate, I think, and I knew I was in for a while with the books. It's also very worn, but I think it's Double-Striped Pug, which I've had here a few times before.

If you think it isn't that species, then I'll be glad to fix it.

Late update: a Great Tit had the butterfly for breakfast this morning:

Like I said: Life must go on.