Thursday, 23 February 2012

Lurganboy

Dipper (Cinclus cinclus), a resident of the river Bonnet.
Photo taken on 10/11/11
Today I went for a walk to Miltown Woods and I finally managed to get some shots of frogs, although not very good ones since the dogs were after scaring them.
There were lots of Lords-and-ladies (Arum maculatum) growing near the entrance, and the Hazels were covered in catkins.



Male and female Hazel flowers

Wednesday, 22 February 2012

Lesser Celandine

Last Sunday I spotted the first Lesser Celandine this year in the Claddagh  Glen (Co. Fermanagh). Today I saw four more plants around the Star Fort in Manorhamilton, see photo below. I also took a photo of some Willow flowers, they were covered in droplets from the rain and looked particularly pretty.
Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria)

Saturday, 18 February 2012

Frog spawn and Primroses

( This post follows from my previous post on 15/02/2012 ) 
I came back to the pond with my camera today. Due to the frosty conditions there was no frogs to be seen, although I could still hear them.
Primrose (Primula vulgaris) surrounded by hail stones 

Thursday, 16 February 2012

First signs of spring



Today I came across a pond with a lot of frog activity, this were the first frogs I saw this year. There was about a dozen frogs mating and a large amount of frog spawn, suggesting that they had been active for some time.
Primroses, some of which had remain in flower through the year in a particular bank, had now blossomed in two other locations.
I will be returning to the forest with my camera to take some photos.