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”
Tag Archives: #Ecology
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 Globeflower
The Globeflower, Trollius europaeus, Trollius coming from the German Trollblume, meaning ‘round flower’, is a large member of the buttercup family and flowers from May to July, producing lemon- coloured, round-shaped flowers around 4cm in diameter on top of tall, slender stems. It grows in damp soils such as can be found in meadows and alongContinue reading “The Globeflower”
Northwest Recipes; Dandelion Syrup
Recently I published an article about Dandelions, in which we looked at the roles this wildflower plays in nature and its general, all-round usefulness. Included in the article were several of the plant’s medicinal and culinary uses and a promise to publish a recipe for Dandelion Syrup, here it is! Dandelion Syrup This is aContinue reading “Northwest Recipes; Dandelion Syrup”
The Hebrew Character Moth, and a few notes about moth migration
Appearance The Hebrew Character, Orthosia gothica, is a member of the Noctuidae family and named after the prominent mark on each of its wings which resembles the character ‘nun’ in the Hebrew alphabet or the form of a gothic arch (hence the scientific name gothica). It is a medium sized moth about 3.5cm long withContinue reading “The Hebrew Character Moth, and a few notes about moth migration”
Little Owls in Lancashire
In Lancashire’s rolling green countryside you can find every species of owl that is native to the British isles, even one species which some might argue isn’t technically native yet, despite having successfully bred here, the Eagle Owl. So far I’ve written about the Tawny Owl, the Short-eared Owl and I’ll get around to sharingContinue reading “Little Owls in Lancashire”
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”
Wood Sorrel, the original Shamrock
Wood Sorrel is one of the earliest spring-flowering plants of the woodland floor, along with Wood Anenome, Bluebell and Wild Garlic and is characteristic of old woodland, forestry plantations and shaded hedgerows. It only feels at home in moist, shady areas and no other native flowering plant thrives on as little light as this speciesContinue reading “Wood Sorrel, the original Shamrock”
Northwest Nature and History 