The Large Heath Butterfly, Coenonympha tullia, also known as the Common Ringlet and, locally, as the Manchester Argus, is mainly found in wet boggy moorland areas of northern England and Scotland, with a few isolated colonies in Ireland, Wales and Southern England. They can be found at a few spots in the Northwest; Winmarleigh nearContinue reading “The Large Heath Butterfly”
Tag Archives: #Caterpillars
Bird’s Foot Trefoil
Bird’s foot trefoil, Lotus corniculatus, (corniculatus coming from the Latin for ‘with small horns’), is a common flowering plant throughout the British isles that has accumulated quite a collection of common names; ‘crow’s toes’, lady’s slippers’, ‘hen and chickens’ and ‘bacon and eggs’ being just a few that are still in regular use, most ofContinue reading “Bird’s Foot Trefoil”
The Green Hairstreak
As some of you might know I’m on Twitter quite a lot, mainly following other people who post about nature and history here in the north of England. Today I saw the following video of a kaleidoscope of Green Hairstreak butterflies filmed by Dinesh Patel (@lancsgp) and was inspired to write about this beautiful species,Continue reading “The Green Hairstreak”
The Comma
The Comma, Polygonia c-album, named after the comma shaped mark on its white underwings, is a very striking butterfly in appearance and can be found in large numbers at the right time of year on its favourite plants. They are orange and black with ragged looking wings which break up their outline and make themContinue reading “The Comma”
The Dandelion, and why you should leave it be!
The Dandelion, Taraxacum officinale, is found all over the British isles and one of our most widespread and successful wildflowers. The first part of its scientific name, Taraxos, derives from the Ancient Greek word for ‘chaos’, and akos meaning ‘remedy’, and it is does indeed grow chaotically almost everywhere and, as will be covered laterContinue reading “The Dandelion, and why you should leave it be!”
The Meadow Pipit
The Meadow Pipit, Anthus pratensis, is a small, flighty songbird which birdwatchers often put in the class of LBJ’s or ‘Little Brown Jobbies’, as they are sometimes hard to distinguish from other songbirds that can be found in the British isles. Their scientific name comes from the Greek word anthus, meaning ‘bloom’ or ‘flower’ andContinue reading “The Meadow Pipit”
Catching moths in winter
As winter is slowly waning, the days getting longer and the nights milder, it becomes a bit more pleasant to leave the house and see what wildlife might be around in the neighbourhood, also tentatively poking its head out from hibernation and eager to get out and about. One way of doing this is mothContinue reading “Catching moths in winter”
Cotton Grass
Cotton Grass Eriophorum angustifolium, is a perennial (meaning re-occuring year after year) plant native to the blanket bogs of the British isles and found all over the northern fells. It often covers large expanses of moorland turning them white with its characteristically cotton-like seed heads, which can be an amazing sight in the height ofContinue reading “Cotton Grass”
Northwest Nature and History 