I took a different approach on this morning’s dog walk and followed my nose. Starting at Gresty’s Waste, we headed towards Old Pale, encountering a couple of stinkhorn fungi just before we crossed the A56. We smelled them before we saw them, a peppery stench of rotting flesh. The latin name Phallus impudicus means ‘shameless penis’ and a common name is deadman’s cock. This is presumably because it is bone… Read More »The scent of summer
The winter festival of 2020/2021 is officially coming to a close tonight. We’ve packed away the decorations, though I’m not sure I want to let it go just yet. The increasing grip of lockdown has had little impact here, as we’re keeping to ourselves in advance of some hospital treatment (pandemic permitting). It’s felt a bit like being encased in our own little snow globe, albeit without much snow. For… Read More »Ending festivities, beginning the year
One of the highlights of my summer is usually Birdfair – a festival of talks, workshops, art, books, travel inspiration, fundraising, socialising, cheese straws and a celebration of all wildlife (winged and otherwise) hosted at Rutland Water. Sadly, the real-life experience was cancelled this year but the organisers pulled off an excellent virtual version. You can read articles, enjoy the art gallery, watch video lectures on the website, donate to… Read More »Virtual Birdfair Reading List
For reasons personal, political and pandemic I have found myself struggling to write anything meaningful in recent weeks. Instead I have been seeking out different perspectives; reading and listening to experiences that differ from my own. It is heart-breaking to know people of colour and LGBTQ+ people struggle to access and connect with the natural world when it’s obvious to me, and there’s a growing body of evidence, that it’s… Read More »Bio-diversity
I’m sure you’re all sick of the word ‘lockdown’, and the virus that shall not speak its name, so I’ll keep any references brief. I just wanted to record how things are going here ‘in the current crisis’ (sorry, I’ll start a buzzword bingo for the blog so I can’t use an irritating term more than once.) These are extraordinary times, but I’m trying not to put extra pressure on… Read More »What’s up in lockdown