Local Patch -29th August. Pictures include: Wild Hop, Swan, Shaggy Inkcap Fungi

Well we are making up for the dry weather at the beginning of the summer! It has been raining hard nearly every day. The gravel pits that were drying out are now beginning to fill with water again and it shows just how dangerously soggy that ground must be even when dry because puddles are appearing everywhere very quickly. The pair of Green Sandpipers seem to have set up residence and are seen daily, they seem to be welcoming the rain as are the Little Grebes. During the spring there were two pairs of Little Grebes arguing intensely over their territories now there are at least 8 birds hanging around, so we either have some juvenile birds or some that have migrated in. To be honest the weather has been so awful I have not been able to tell if these are adult birds or not. Walking through the lanes the other morning I came round the corner and surprised two birds that turned out to be woodpeckers. Not just any woodpeckers..Lesser Spot! Over the years I have seen them from time to time flicking through the tops of the trees. These two seemed as surprised to see me as I was to come across them so low down in the hedgerow. They flew up into the old Damson tree, a relic from the days of the Old House, one of them clearly showing the back stripes that are characteristic of this pecker. The Kingfishers are really back on the canal! Hopeless for photos as they see me long before I see them! One of them in particular seems to play a game with me, waiting until I almost knock it off its perch before flying. It tantalizes me by perching on branches that make pictures impossible, waits for me to get almost close enough ..then flies off at that fantastic speed that means you only catch a glimpse of the electric blue sheen. Found a great clump of Shaggy Inkcap fungi! I have only ever found one isolated specimen before and that was years ago. Obviously conditions are just right for it this year as this clump just appeared! And another plant for the patch that I have not noticed before is wild Hop..fancy some beer? There are so many of them I reckon you could make a pint or two!