Cold Lovers

Cold days and nights are no deterrent to some cold lovers around. During the evenings, attracted by light from the room small winter moths gather on the opposite side of the glass.

Winter moths (Operophtera brumata)

They are classed as pests by many, especially apple growers who spray their trees with regularity when the small looper caterpillars start munching holes in the foliage and sometimes small fruitlets. The caterpillars can it seems go so far as to defoliate trees, although the tree usually overcomes this to regrow new leaves.

We never see much damage to our Apple trees, and take little notice of what their is. Granted we are surrounded by other trees that the moths show a liking to such as Oak, Ash and Sycamore, so maybe it spreads the numbers over other trees. The caterpillars are in fact a very valuable source of food just at the right time for nesting birds to feed their young. So for us we are glad to see there are an abundance of these little moths around to feed our bird population. We turned the light off and within seconds there was not a moth to be seen.

Delicate Flower

Flowering in spite of all the cold weather, this small Helleborus is a welcome sight throughout winter.

Helleborus 'Silver Lace'

A small plant when I first bought it and now bulking up quite nicely in the garden, giving some lovely welcome flowers in the dark Winter days.

Fungi

It was quite surprising to find this small cluster of fungi growing on a stump in the hedge. Most have long disappeared, yet these appear after the really cold weather and deep freeze that we have just had.

The last of our visitors?

Two days back I had to release two more voles caught under the kitchen sink. This time I released them a good distance away, well over three times the minimum distance that is needed for small rodents, just in case we are getting revisits from previous releases.

This morning there was yet another captured, this means there have been twelve in total. So the traps will have to be reprimed and set once more.