Out & About …

… on the North York Moors, or wherever I happen to be.

Tag: Natural history

  • King George on Blackthorn

    King George on Blackthorn

    The flowers of the Blackthorn are, I think, past their prime by now, but this Peacock, one of the aristocrat butterflies according to early entomologists, is feeding on any remaining nectar. In keeping with this blue-blooded theme, the fenmen of Norfolk called the butterfly ‘King George‘. On the other hand, another long-lost dialect name for…

  • Scarlet Elfcup

    Scarlet Elfcup

    What do the woodland elves use to drink their morning dew? Why, elfcups of course. On the damp floor of the wooded Slacks Quarry, the vivid red of the Scarlet Elfcups are in sharp contrast to the greens of the mosses. Sarcoscypha austriaca is its scientific name, meaning from Austria, although this fungus is found…

  • Grey seals, Horsecastle Bay

    Grey seals, Horsecastle Bay

    Stopped off for a run around St. Abb’s Head to break the journey up to Edinburgh and surprised to come across several seals hauled up on the beach with their pups. They were Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus), and were seemingly unperturbed by the closeness of the popular footpath. The pups were no longer cuddly fluffy…

  • The one that got away

    The one that got away

    I nearly ran over a fish today. It was massive. This big — hands held wide apart. There I was, cycling down Hob Hole and this ginormous fish was wriggling across the ford. Its dorsal fin and back were clear of the water which was about two to three inches deep. By the time I…