Another of Hebden Bridge’s resident birds makes a reappearance on the blog — 8/11/15 was the same Muscovy duck, for instance. Not that it looks very happy about it today. Perhaps it’s just glum about the gloomy weather, the same as the rest of us.
It’s always good when one of the local heron population is posing in the morning on an otherwise photographically inert day.
Who knows for sure whether this is the same specific bird I’ve pictured before but (allowing for the foreshortening effect of me having taken today’s shot from about 30 feet above the heron’s head) the markings certainly look indistinguishable from those of our old friend Humph, as seen on 25/5/16 for example. How long do herons live, I wonder?
There are over 3,000 species of dragonfly in the world, and they’re probably all a bugger to photograph. But this one sat still just for long enough, in the woods of Agii Deka (‘Ten Saints’), somewhere in the middle of Corfu. They are voracious predators, and this one does seem to have a ‘what are you looking at, asshole’ kind of stance. And yet, so beautiful.
After last year’s glut, our plums are going to have one of their years off, this is obvious already. But there are dozens of these little babies on the branches of the apple tree. Come back to us in September for the harvest.
These seeds are ready to fly; the next windy day, they’ll be gone. You have to admire the simple efficiency of the pattern. The seeds remain individual and can all escape, but no space is wasted, no more could be fitted on. Like so many other things in nature, the perfect match of form and function.
It’s gosling season… the parents programmed to keep a close eye on the brood. There were at least three substantial goose families on the Rochdale Canal this afternoon.
A day working at home, but it was grey and chilly and there was little motivation to head outside. I did poke my head through the skylight though, to see how things were getting on with the roof garden. It’s coming along nicely.
Another day for spring foliage to fill up the bandwidth. 2,803 days in and there are still some corners of the home town worth depicting. The bridge has been here since 1510, or thereabouts, and seems good for a while yet. Whether the same is true of the photographer, who knows…?
The blossom came out in force over the hot Easter weekend…. and a good chunk of it came down again during the last couple of less clement days. This ephemerality is why people like the Japanese get all sentimental about it, I guess.
This tulip is open and ready for business. Come and get it with those hairy stamens right now baby. Or so to speak.
