Growing on roadside verge - Yellow Vetchling (Lathyrus aphaca) - a single plant scrambling over horsetails, cleavers and hairy tare, using its tendrils. This is well away from its south-easterly English distribution, and should probably be regarded as a casual or garden escape/cast-off. It is sometimes referred to as yellow-flowered pea.
I spoke to a local who said she thought she had thrown some seeds on the verge a while back. Unfortunately, she was very vague. Maybe it was a wildflower seed mix?
Kingway Business Park, 12th July
One patch of goat's rue.
There are still areas with plants such as marsh ragwort, marsh woundwort, meadow vetchling, meadowsweet, etc. However, large parts of the 'park' are disappearing (at a considerable pace it seems) under distribution centres and other buildings and car parks. This includes the wetland area, by Sir Isaac Newton Way, popular with birdwatchers for its passage and breeding birds. Very sad.
Cobolt Crust (Terana caerulea) growing on an Ash in the roch Valley. I know many on here won't appreciate the world of crust fungi but this is one of the prettiest crust fungi around. Pic attached to illustrate.
84 in one fairly small area. ( There were only 6 here on 10th Oct. 2013. Presumably others had 'gone over' by that date). Sorry not to be more specific about the site but there are those who would dig the bulbs up for their gardens. Note: North-west England is the national stronghold for this species.
Humming Bird Hawk Moth in my Norden garden this afternoon - on catmint (nepeta) flowers. I note on the Butterfly Conservation website that 914 sitings have been logged with them so far this year.
-- Edited by Colin Ramsden on Thursday 26th of June 2014 07:15:08 PM
I have been looking for various mammal species across Rochdale (specifically west Rochdale) this year and thought I would share some observations;
I have been using camera traps as well as tracking and have had;
Foxes (27 records), Roe Deer (7 records), Wood Mouse (23 records), Rabbit (9 records), Grey Squirrel (32 records) and Mink (2 records), BUT I am yet to encounter Mole (even hills), Rat, Hare and Hedgehog, still I will keep trying
It is sometimes interesting to see what is not there as well as what is.
