Silver-Studdied Blues at Prees Heathl Shropshire

I am spending a couple of nights with Jane and Peter near Church Stretton in Shropshire; many thanks for sharing your home and area with me. This morning we were up early to visit Prees Heath, a reserve near Whitchurch . The speciality there is the Silver-studded Blue and indeed we saw dozens of these beautiful little blues roosting in the heather. The males are browner on the underside and irridescent brown, purple and orange on the upper side. The males are blue washed on the bodies and the undersides. We also saw Small and Large Heaths and Ringlet.

Ladybird Larvae and Aphids

The apple trees in Sheila's garden are full of Greenfly and Whitefly, a great diet for the many ladybird larvae in the apple trees. Jane and I attempted to photograph them in Sheila's garden room.The first image shows the aphid consuming a greenfly. Then the larva shedding its skin - coming out without pigmentation on head. When full grown, the larvae pupate and finally the adult ladybird emerges         

Visit to Shrewsbury Area

Jane and I made a sunset visit to Stiperstones and Lyth Hill  (after sun had gone down). Beautiful skies and clear air. Many thanks to Sheila and Jane for their hospitality - wish I could have stayed longer.

BT Tower, London

I was fortunate enough to visit the restaurant on the 34th floor of the 189 foot high BT Tower to photograph a charitable event hosted by Emer Timmons, President of Global Services’ UK on behalf of Addenbrookes' Charitable Trust. 

A nostalgic trip for me as my father was working in the Post Office under Tony Benn when the Tower was first opened in 1965. My father was directing the set-up of the National Giro, a project that was a lot less long-lived than the BT Tower. 

Unfortunately, I don't have any images of London from that time but it has certainly changed a lot since then. 

Poppies and Dragons at Burwash Farm Cambridgeshire

Lucky to have caught a bee in flight on my first poppy shot. Lovely display in the fields leading to the dragonfly pools. Plenty of Four-spot chasers, Emperor Dragonflies and Black-Tailed Skimmers. There were also hundreds of small long-legged bright metallic green flies on the mud and some Whirligig beetles on the water surface.

Marbled Whites are Emerging

 A handful of Marbled Whites were on the wing in Toft Wood this afternoon along with Ringlets, Small Heaths, Meadow Browns and Narrow-Bordered five-Spot Burnet Moths