Cyprus: 20th November 2012

One last day in the Cypriot sun, walking down from the ridge at Smygies, via a nice array of endemics and a rather wonderful taverna lunch... The trip report for this trip is now up on our website.

 Carlina pygmaea

 Hyacinthella millingenii

Odontites cypria

Cyprus: 19th November 2012

Lots of history, an endemic dandelion, a wintering Greater Sandplover and at long, long last, my very first Red-throated Pipit, in all its red-throated glory. And the forecast rain failed to arrive. A good day.

 Taraxacum aphrogenes, the sea spray dandelion, endemic to the cliffs between Paphos and Akamas, and a surprisingly good looking plant!

Cyprus, November 2012

Cyprus Nov 2012, a set on Flickr.

Photos from our November trip to Cyprus

Cyprus: 18th November 2012

Today we found enough Narcissus tazetta to keep even the most avid Narcissophile happy, some wonderful vernal pools crammed full of Zannichelia (always one of my favourite plants), a handful of early Crown Anemones and yet another new location for Ophioglossum lusitanicum. And all in warm sunshine: so much for the forecast morning of thunder storms! (ok, so the storms arrived just after lunch, but by that time most of us were mid-nap already!)

But for me, there can only ever be one highlight from today...

Clathrus ruber the Latticed Stinkhorn. Have you ever seen a cooler fungus?

Cyprus: 17th November 2012

Today we enjoyed the sunshine in the Pegeia Forest, with yet more bulbs in profusion, a hungry female Red-backed Shrike and a rather tatty but very friendly Cyprus Grayling.

 Colchicum pusillum, a tiny little Colchicum

 Muscari parviflorum

 Narcissus serotinus

 Ophioglossum lusitanicum

 Ranunculus bullatus

Autumn Lady's Tresses Spiranthes spiralis

Cyprus: 16th November 2012

 Crocus veneris thousands upon thousands of these lovely white stars were covering the rocky terraced hillsides. An amazing sight...

Cyclamen cyprium, the autumn-flowering endemic Cyclamen: yesterday, very unseasonally, we also found Cyclamen persicum in flower.

Cyprus: 15th November 2012

So, for the second time this year, I find myself 'back home' in the Aphrodite Beach Hotel on the Akamas Peninsula, in western Cyprus.

At this time of the year we are focussing not on orchids, but on the autumn flowering bulbs of the area: some nice endemics are lined up for the week, but today we started gently with a wander along past the Baths of Aphrodite, bumping into these two delicate little Narcissus along the way.

 Narcissus serotinus: a very delicate looking plant, with relatively narrow petals and a very short yellow 'trumpet'

Narcissus tazetta: more robust, with broader petals and an obvious, yellow 'trumpet'

Aside from the flowers, we also had a very successful morning for butterflies, with the sun out and plenty on the wing. The highlight was found at the bizarre gardens down the road, where the farmer is growing a weird and wonderful variety of 'herbal ingredients', notably some very toxic plants, including the Nipple Fruit (Solanum mammosum: google it to see the crazy fruit!) and Bristle-fruited Silkweed. Flying around the bushes of this latter, a member of the Milkweed family, were three large orange butterflies with black and white markings on the wings: Plain Tiger, a regular migrant to the island but not a common breeding species at all. Later in the day we also had a brief fly-past by the spectacular (but, on this occasion, far too shy) Two-tailed Pasha.

Norfolk, 1st November 2012

1st November... how did that happen??

So our last day in Norfolk. A day that started at Salthouse with a Shorelark shuffling across the shingle, carried on with a couple of juvenile White-rumped Sandpipers on Pat's Pool at Cley and a couple of obligatorily elegant Avocets, and finished up at Holkham where the sky was filled with the cackles of innumerable Pink-footed Geese, a trio of hunting Barn Owls put on a show, and yet another gorgeous sunset (I'm a sucker for a good sunset) made a pretty fitting finale to what has been a really rather good trip!

For those who like that kind of thing, the trip report is available to download on our website.