Close-up Photography Hardwick Wood

I was a bit late to capture the beautiful frost this morning which rapidly melted in the sunshine but the latter allowed some detailed and colourful close-ups of mosses, lichens and fungi in Hardwick Woods. The birds obviously thought spring might be on the way with Mistle Thrush, Woodpeckers, Nuthatch, and Tits all singing and even a Tawny Owl decided to add to the woodland sound track.

 

More Paxton Lichens

I did a short walk to the edge of Redlands on Saturday to photograph a few more of Paxton's lichens - these on the twigs and fallen branches of the Oaks, Hawthorn, Field Maple etc  and the very sandy dry soils. The most interesting find was the first photo a lichenocolus fungus species (Zygzygomyces physciacearum) - the brown blobs!- which grows specifically on Physcia adscendens, (Lichens themselves are a symbiosis between fungi and lichens where the fungus partner becomes lichenised.) The various Cladonia lichens I photographed are definetly the most attractive genus

Some of Paxton Pits Lichens

Lichens are one group that I haven't attempted to survey at Paxton Pits so 2026 is their year! 

Here are the lichens we found in a group of Hawthorn bushes at the end of Heronry North with preliminary identifications. It will take some attempts to even decide which are different species or different stages.

Toft Wood After the Snow

Yesterday, as soon as the sun was high enough to thaw the icy bit of Miller's Road for walking, I headed down to Toft Wood with my camera. There was a combination of a light layer of snow on the grounds and trees augmented by frost in the damper parts by the Bourn Brook - a very magical look with the reds of the berries and autumn oak leaves. After half an hour exploring, I headed out of the wood and round to the allotments via the Badger Sett. Very pleased to see plenty of characteristic very broad flat badger footprints at the entrance to the hole (with Rabbit and Pheasant)

Great Crested Grebes

 Very pleased to see two Great Crested Grebes at Paxton Pits already paired up and performing mini displays. Beautiful light yesterday afternoon to birdwatch but difficult for photographs.with so much contrast and reflections. One of the pair came quite close and caught a very large fish which it eventually managed to swallow.