Swift half news - 27th June 2010

• The heatwave continues - set to go to 31c today.
• The swifts are getting bigger and bigger (as you'll see if you've been watching the live feed on this blog) - both parents are feeding them as many flies as they can -returning to the nest with swollen crops full of flies rolled into a "bolus".
• The entrance hole to the swift nest is coming in for a lot of attention not only from the sparrows (who have a nest in the same bit of roof remember) but also juvenile starlings and raiding parties of yearling male swifts - I watched a dozen or so swifts for a few hours today, all from the garden. (see my swift photos on flickr).
  
  
• You'll also have noticed that the swiftlets in the nest are panting heavily - their huge gapes wide open - it must be incredibly hot under those tiles. We really could do with a little rain and a few cooler nights -if only for the little swifts!
• I cleared out the pond yesterday (well got rid of a barrel-load of blanket weed anyway) - we have a water lily bud under the water -maybe now it'll have the space to get to the pond surface and flower.
• No dragonflies over the pond this year yet - not even common darters.
• All the rose and cockchafers are "eclosing" from the lawn - Yala and Malu (our kits) like them a lot!
• A few moths in the trap -buff ermines, green pug, heart and club - nothing really spectacular though.
• The young woodpeckers (and parents) are still returning to the woodpecker - attractor for their grub.
• Two young robins in the garden also, and a new woodpigeon nest in one of the damson trees.
• One of our home-made elderflower champagne bottles exploded in the privy this week - come round to ablute and you can also get drunk at the same time, just by using our outside lav!
• Yala has had a major scuffle last night - at least two nasty cuts under her fur and she is acting very strangely today -almost looks drunk - very slow, very unfriendly -she's obviously in a bit of pain - does another trip to the vets beckon?
• Loads of strawberries in garden
• First red runner bean flowers appearing
• Sunflower growing nicely

General (county) news - 27th June 2010

• I haven't posted a general news update for some time now, so thought I'd briefly do just that...
• All the dragonflies are on the wing now - including Emperors - though I've yet to photograph (or even try to) those huge odonates this year.
• The hot weather continues - we may get a few clouds and a little light rain midweek this week, but thats all. Its set to top 30c today, after another sunny, hot week.
• Demoiselles are out in force on the Thames and little froglets are in thick waterside grass everywhere.
• The otter that is well known (but never seen) on our local river is next on my hit list - but that may take a LOT of time to stalk out!
• The marbled white butterflies are out, even though their main food source (thistle flowers) are still hardly in evidence. Large skippers out also as are ringlets, red-eyed damselflies and cinnabar moths.