industrial Archaeology and cow pat mushrooms

WHAT IS THIS ?

This is about 3.5 foot diameter.

yellow cow pat mushroom

 Industrial archaeology ie  Farming before Tractors? Is it part of a churning machine? It appeared as we were working on a hedge on the farm. How long it has been there we have no idea. It is very heavy.

 

 

 

 

The yellow cow pat mushroom is quite attractive and appeared this week in a good area for wild flowers and butterflies in the summer.

 

Autumn Moths

Mervielle du jour moth in Co. Cavan

 

 

 

Angle shades moth

I have been pleased with the  moth trapping this week . Lots of unidentified november moth type sitting all over the trap when I went out and inside these two in the photos and a couple of feathered thorn and chestnut .

 

Another late Dragon

Resting in hedge, Moorland Hawker

On a dull day this week , I found this in a  hedge well away from Patterson’s lake.

 

Wood mouse in Cavan

wood mouse from a longworth live trap

I managed to trap this fellow, using hazel nuts as the bait, in the wood behind the house.  It is distinguished from the unwelcome visitors in the house  by the bigger ears, longer tail  and big back legs.

Amazing number of predators after this fellow, I imagine :  long eared owls, foxes ,kestrel,stoats, pine martin , badger, magpies,

 

national moth night

Pink Barred Sallow

National moth night has been and gone, 18th and 19 th September, but I thought I would put up some pictures I got that weekend from the trap.

August Thorn moth

 

Late Dragons

blackdarter at drumard bog

 

We have not had a lot of sunshine but I was out on the 25th at drumard bog near Farnham Cavan and found black darters.

 

Fritillary butterfly

silverwash fritillary co. cavan

Brief chance to get the picture before the battery in the camera went.

This is why the rough parts of the farm with the wild flowers are so important. Also feeding on the knapweed was 2 painted lady butterflies ringlet, large white and green veined white.

So now the question is do they breed on the farm or has this individual just flown in from else where?Anyway great delight in getting it on the butterfly survey and a small copper.

 

Heritage and discovery days

In conjunction with the heritage office in cavan and Bear essentials I will be  running a discovery day in BawnBoy, west cavan on the 22nd August. This aims to be a family day  with lots of activities come rain or shine . To book contact heritage office.

How to catch lots of little insects on a summers day. A malaise trap

 

Canoe birding paddle on lough oughter

cavan lakes have lots of shoreline and scrub

Recent paddle on the lakes from carrawtraw got the following bird list.

Sand martins.   ;  Nesting in masonry under Carratraw bridge
House Martin
Swallow
Meadow pipit   ;singing outside center
Pied Wagtail   ; feeding on grass outside center  
4 Hooded crows ; possibly this years young
10 (Approx) Lapwing   ;migratory ( finished breeding elsewhere )
3 young great crested grebes  and two adults
chaffinch
greenfinch
heron  1 young  and1 adult
coot probably about 4
9 mute swans non breeding adults
little grebe
dunnock
reed bunting
sedge warbler
water rail
4 buzzard ; likely to have been newly fledged young and adults.

 

Next Paddle is on 15th  August see ecotrails  

 

 

Grasshoppers

This is not a part of the world you would associate with grasshoppers ( too wet) but they are singing away on the farm notably in the areas that have not been “improved”, and get no fertiliser. I also had a grasshopper warbler on the farm this week  which I don’t think breeds on the farm although we do have suitable habitat. Will have to get up early next year in May or June to double check. I only got them in one tetrad  of the eight I did a timed Tetrad in this 10km square last year for the Atlas, but obviously there could be some breeding not too far away.

Grasshopper photographed in July, co. Cavan