Category Archives: Flora/Fauna

Grasshopper, not on grass

Sunday 10th August 2025, 12.40pm (day 5,099)

Grasshopper on stone, 10/8/25

It’s a shame its head is slightly out of focus but otherwise I like this portrait of this little creature that decided to join me for a while, sitting on a wall. Not its natural habitat, but like me, perhaps it was just enjoying the sunshine.

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Propped up plums

Friday 8th August 2025, 4.55pm (day 5,097)

Propped up plums, 8/8/25

Time for the annual update on the plum tree, which shed one of its limbs a couple of weeks ago, though we did save most of the fruit, currently ripening (but obviously not still growing) on windowsills at home. Had I not made efforts to prop up this big branch it would also, surely, have fallen by now, but those efforts seem to have been successful. There are a lot of insects around this year, so we are in a war of attrition as to who gets the bounty first, but we’re working on it.

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Avenue, Savile Park

Thursday 7th August 2025, 8.30am (day 5,096)

Avenue, Savile Park, 7/8/25

Back to work, so technically this was the first day of my 25-26 academic year. It will be a year of transition, if things pan out: but all that is to come. See this as a possibly symbolic shot, perhaps. Taken in Savile Park, Halifax, after I’d taken the car back to the hire depot. Not symmetrical, but that’s too much to ask.

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Local jungle

Wednesday 23rd July 2025, 2.10pm (day 5,081)

Nutclough woods, 23/7/25

“Green” is definitely the dominant theme on this shot, and the general soft-focus vibe also in evidence has been applying to all shots taken since my most recent attempt to stop the zoom lens from conking out saw me bring some WD-40 to bear on it two days ago. It’ll dry out eventually. The combination seems to work for this shot; the whole place feels very lush at the moment, alternating bouts of sun and shower are making everything grow most enthusiastically. Which is a good thing, I guess.

Anyway that’s enough Hebden Bridge, for now. Time to go somewhere else.

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Get out of my way

Tuesday 22nd July 2025, 11.10am (day 5,080)

Ladybird, 22/7/25

This little creature definitely wanted to continue its forward trajectory, only at this point the lens of my camera was less than an inch from its nose (do insects have noses? Anyway you know what I mean). Doesn’t it look just that tiny bit annoyed about the situation? On the other hand, I am satisfied that the focus is correct.

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Early fruit

Thursday 3rd July 2025, 2.40pm (day 5,061)

Early blackberry, 3/7/25

Fairly warm and dry the weather has been — and this is a spot that catches the sun. All the same, surely that can’t be a fully ripe blackberry in the first week of July? But it is. Or was, as shortly after taking the shot I ate the fruit, and very nice it was.

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Fulfilling its bee-ing

Sunday 29th June 2025, 1.40pm (day 5,057)

Bumblebee, 28/6/25

Must have had at least a dozen attempts at capturing this example of insectile wiggliness. Don’t know why we call them ‘bumblebees’ though — they don’t seem to bumble to me, they are very systematic. Just this much time at each flower. Which is why, once I finally got the rhythm of it, I got the shot.

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Duck pose

Tuesday 24th June 2025, 3.50pm (day 5,052)

Duck, 24/6/25

“OK, are you ready? I want you to get my best side…. THAT’S the one. Send me a copy….”

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Homage to ‘Power Corruption and Lies'(or, random flowerpot)

Wednesday 18th June 2025, 3.50pm (day 5,046)

A still life. Those who know New Order may see my point with the title of this post. But it is just a random flowerpot, really.

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Morning meal

Saturday 14th June 2025, 11.05am (day 5,042)

Spider's louse meal, 14/6/25

I don’t think the woodlouse is getting the best of this encounter. I’m no psychic but whatever thoughts might be going through its little brain at the moment, probably they could be summed up by the word on the poster behind.

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