Some sun again

Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage has turned the back walls of ditches yellow. The actual flowers are tiny.

Right next to the Saxifrage, we find Primroses:

Coltsfoot is also fairly obvious in drier places:

Wood Sorrel is just about on schedule:

But this Cow Parsley is ridiculously early:

Catkins and thrushes

My garden Willow has flowered:-


This is the time of year to keep an eye out for the solitary bee Andrena clarkella, since it feeds its young entirely on Willow pollen. The pollen is available for perhaps 6 weeks of the year, so the bee is rarely seen since it spends 46 weeks of the year underground. Look for bees that look like shrunken and skinny Carder Bumblebees.

http://www.tcd.ie/Zoology/research/Bees/display_record.php?id=6#Andrena_clarkella

A pair of Mistle Thrushes have chosen my garden as their foraging spot, although I don't have suitable trees for them to nest in. I always think they look very elegant.

A little sun

The first frogspawn is about 3 weeks later than it was in the last couple of years. What amazes me is that the first spawn is always in this high exposed area.

Lesser Celandine - Ranunculus ficaria - has been budding for about 4 weeks, but this is the first open one I found:

As soon as the leaves develop, the fungal rust Puccinia ranunculi appears:


Staying with fungi, Tubaria furfuracea is to be found under Hawthorns for much of the year:


And the fungus Milesina scolopendrii has been attacking leaves of Hart's tongue fern.

Hartstongue fern spider fungus

I was investigating Hartstongue Fern for micromoth activity today, and I was moderately successful, finding some inconclusive micromoth damage to some spore sori (the moth larva had left the scene, so no id was possible).

I did find, however, the following item growing between two sori:

Instinct tells me it's fungal. I then examined it more closely and found that the white fungus is surrounding what looks like the corpse of a spider:


I brought it back to the study, so I'll get it under magnification tomorrow. Early research shows that there are some species of Entomophthora that attack spiders, so I'll check that line of reasoning, too.

(The spider is the pink bit with the black dots.)

The fungus is about 6 mm. across.

First Moth of 2009

My first moth of 2009 is a Dotted Border - Agriopis marginaria - right on season. It's amazing that any flying insect should choose to brave these frozen days and nights, but I suppose there are fewer parasites around.

Guess where it got its common name from.

Liverwort solved

On 5th February I showed Conocephalum conicum growing over the top of another, smaller, liverwort. After some microscopy I have now identifed the small liverwort as Pellia epiphylla. Here's a closer shot:

Sample shown is about 6 cm. across. (Note the female reproductive structure to the extreme right, just above centre:)


Here's one of the photomicrographs that I took as part of the identification process. It shows a darker area to the left which is actually a thickening along the midrib:

Magnification is x 40.

Mosses

Mosses are good at the moment, with many showing spore capsules which can often aid identification. Mosses require close attention to detail, with microscopic analysis generally being required for a first identification. Once you have your eye in, though, many can be identified readily in the field.

First, I have Bryum capillare, which I find mostly on wall tops, although it can also be found on verges:
Next, the capsule of Tortula muralis which is another wall-top moss:

Hookeria lucens is very easily recognised, and always grows on the walls of ditches.

The individual leaf-cells are huge, and can almost be seen with the naked eye. The top shoot here is about 6 mm. across.

Fissidens cristatus has fascinating leaves arranged in an overlapping fan:

Notice the darker portion to one half of each leaf. This is a double layer of cells that form a pocket, presumably for water retention. Individual leaves about 3 mm. long:

Thiudium tamariscinum grows on the trunks of trees:

Plagiomnium undulatum grows on the rear of ditches:

Mosses can be very beautiful and will repay your attention and research. As a man once said to me: "You have to get down to their level". How true.