Thursday
21st April part 2
There
is a pregnant wood mouse by the RSPB's solitary wasp tower at the
visitor's centre and people gather to watch her as she walks and
bounds around our feet before disappearing into some leaf litter.
It
is late afternoon. I walk through the large woodland area marvelling
at the amount of fallen trees and dead wood. The woodland though is
silent and I spend the time looking at the wonderful variety of
patterns on the trunks and stumps.
Another
reason to enjoy the walk is the total lack of anyone else around.
Don't get me wrong, I love people but sometimes I just want to be
alone.
The
trail takes me towards Dunwich Heath and along a sandy track I come
across a wasp species creating a circular hole. I sit down to watch.
Must look up the species and find out what it was actually up to.
Is
it a parasitic wasp that has buried a paralysed prey item and lays an
egg on it whereupon the poor creature waits knowing that upon the
hatching of the egg it is on the menu? Always fascinating, I find
parasitism one of the most incredible things in nature. Now what's
the name of the worm that lives in our eyelashes?
A
sandy area on the heath has evidence of another interesting creature,
the capture pits of the antlion. Like the sandy hole that so many are
thrown into by Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars, The Return of the Jedi, the antlion has made a pit
into which an insect might fall into. If one does the antlion grabs
it for a tasty meal.
Down
to the shore with not a bird to be seen out at sea. Minsmere at the
moment is definitely not the place for a protracted seawatch. Once on
the north wall path to enter the RSPB reserve there are birds as
bearded tits ping and fly.
Back
in the shelter of the North Hide overlooking the scrape there are
four Mediterranean gulls to watch with one pair exchanging glances
and green weed.
A male redshank has loving intentions and pipes
whilst moving ever closer to his desired love. He takes off and
whilst hovering lower must be gutted to see the female fly off. It
was ever thus.
Minsmere is my favourite RSPB reserve. I would love to be able spend more than a day there. Great read.
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