Bees 2020

Bee Species seen during 2020:

Andrena sp. viz.

Andrena nigroaenea viz.

Buff-Tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) viz.

Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum)

Hairy-Footed Flower Bee (Anthophora plumipes) viz.

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) viz.

Nomada fabriciana viz.

Nomada lathburiana viz.

Yellow-Legged Mining Bee (Andrena flavipes) viz.

Records have been submitted to iRecord for: Buff-Tailed Bumblebee, Early Bumblebee, Hairy-Footed Flower-Bee, Honey Bee, Nomada fabriciana, Nomada lathburiana and Yellow-Legged Mining Bee (all seen locally). 

Down to the River for a last time before we are placed under House Arrest?

Down to the Footpath that runs between Norman Road North and the Thames Path: then a few hundred yards upstream before turning round.

Wild Flower' Species seen:

Anemone Blanda
Bristly Oxtongue
Broad-Leaved Dock
Broad-Leaved Everlasting-Pea
Bush Vetch viz.

Cleavers
Common Chickweed
Common Field-Speedwell
Common Knapweed
Common Mallow
Common Vetch viz.

Cowslip
Crown Vetch
Cut-Leaved Crane's-Bill
Daisy
Dandelion
Goat's-Rue
Garden Grape Hyacinth
Green Alkanet
Ground-Ivy viz.

Guelder Rose

Hedgerow Crane's-Bill viz.

Herb Robert viz.

Hoary Cress
Lesser Celandine: including a Double-Flowered version viz.

Narrow-Leaved Ragwort
Nipplewort viz.

Oxeye Daisy
Oxford Ragwort
Petty Spurge
Pot Marigold
Primrose
Purple Toadflax
Red Clover
Red Dead-Nettle: including a White Flowered version viz.

Round-Leaved Crane's-Bill viz.

Sea Aster
Sea Beet
Sow-Thistle
Spanish Stonecrop
Spotted Medick
Spring Starflower
Sticky Mouse-Ear viz.

Stinking Hellebore
Stinking Iris
Sun Spurge
Sweet Violet: including a White Flowered version
Three-Cornered Garlic viz.

White Dead-Nettle
White Ramping-Fumitory viz.

Winter Heliotrope
Yarrow
and Yellow Vetchling

All within Grid Ref. TQ4980

Great Horsetail

A small population grows beside the Footpath that runs between the Crossness Nature Reserve and Bazelgette Way viz.

To Bexley Woods in search of a Cuckoo Flower

A nice idea but it was not to be: we were much, much, much too early.

The Bluebells won't be out for a couple of weeks at least and we were surprised to see so few Wood Anemones. Lots of Lesser Celandines in flower.

Wild Flower' Species seen included:

Bluebell (nowhere near flowering)
Broad-Leaved Dock
Cow Parsley (some flowering)
Early Dog-Violet (flowering)
Hart's-Tongue Fern
Hemlock Water Dropwort viz.

Hogweed
Ivy-Leaved Speedwell
Lesser Celandine (flowering) viz.

Lords-and-Ladies (both Arum italicum and Arum maculatum) viz.

Red Dead-Nettle (flowering)
assumed Sowbread viz.

Sweet Violet (flowering)
Wild Garlic (no sign of any flowers yet)
and Wood Anemone (flowering)

Footnote: we understand that Sanicle grows by the Danson Park Lake' Outfall, where it flows into the River Shuttle. We have a vague idea where that might be and understand it should be flowering from mid-May or so (it looks fairly distinctive). We also need to go back sometime during the next Three/Four Weeks when hopefully we might find a Cuckoo Flower.

A Sunday Morning Stroll in the Bright Sunshine

Not too far since we had a Visitor arriving at Mid-Day.

All seen within Grid Reference: TQ4777.

Wild Flower' Species seen included:

Cock's-Foot
Cow Parsley
Dandelion viz.

Garlic Mustard
Green Alkanet
Henbit Dead-Nettle
Lesser Celandine
Lesser Swine-Cress
Red Dead-Nettle viz.

Shepherd's-Purse viz.

Shining Crane's-Bill
Stinking Iris
and Sweet Violet viz.

What the Heck are these?

There is a small population (twenty/thirty or so Plants) growing on the Thames' Foreshore, close to the Erith Docks. We just cannot remember what they look like:

Something to keep an eye on.

Plants we hope/expect to see on the Thames' Foreshore locally include:

(Common) Cord Grass
English Scurvy-Grass
Hemlock Water-Dropwort
Lesser Sea-Spurry
Marsh Woundwort
Sea Arrowgrass
Sea Aster
Sea Beet
Sea Couch
Sea Club-Rush
Sea Milkwort
Sea Plantain
and Sea Purslane

Plus of course: the Seaweeds.

We take a Stroll around the East Wickham Open Space

The main reason for visting was to see the state of the Spring Blossom in relation to future visits in search of Butterflies. Some Blossom has gone over but some is still to come.

Wild Flower' Species seen included:

Buck's-Horn Plantain 
Cleavers
Common Bramble
Common Chickweed
Common Field-Speedwell
Common Mallow
Common Nettle
Cow Parsley
Common Ragwort
Cowslip (just a single flowering Plant *)
Creeping Thistle
Daisy
Dandelion
Garlic Mustard (just a single flowering Plant *)
Gorse
Groundsel
Herb Robert
Hogweed
Primrose
Red Dead-Nettle
Ribwort Plantain
Small-Flowered Crane's-Bill (just a single flowering Plant *)
Spear Thistle
White Dead-Nettle
and Yarrow

* included in our List for the Spring Week Hunt.

Grid References covered: TQ4577, TQ4676 and TQ4677.

The Wild Flower Society', Spring Week Hunt 2020

The Spring Week Hunt: to identify Wild Flower' Species seen flowering during the first seven days of March.

Wild Flower' Species seen:

Monday 2 March:

Common Chickweed
Common Field-Speedwell
Common Whitlow-Grass
Cow Parsley
Daisy
Dandelion
Early Dog-Violet
Gorse
Garden Grape Hyacinth
Greater Celandine
Green Alkanet
Groundsel
Guernsey Fleabane
Hairy Bittercress
Herb Robert
Ivy-Leaved Toadflax
Jersey Cudweed
Lesser Celandine
Red Dead-Nettle
Rue-Leaved Saxifrage
Shepherd's-Purse
Smooth Sow-Thistle
Sweet Violet
and Thale Cress

Tuesday 3 March:

Annual Mercury
Coltsfoot
Common Fumitory
Common Mouse-Ear
Danish Scurvy-Grass
Oxford Ragwort
Scentless Mayweed
Sun Spurge
and Yarrow

Thursday 5 March:

Bush Vetch
Pot Marigold
Stinking Hellebore
and White Dead-Nettle

Friday 6 March:

Alexanders
Bulbous Buttercup
Dog's Mercury
Goat Willow
Musk Stork's-Bill
Primrose 
Red Campion
Three-Cornered Garlic
Wavy Bittercress
White Comfrey
White Ramping-Fumitory
Wild Daffodil
and Wood Anemone

Saturday 7 March:

Cowslip
Garlic Mustard
Ivy-Leaved Speedwell
and Small-Flowered Crane's-Bill

The Final Total: an amazing fifty-four (54) Species. Since we were actually hoping for thirty-something we are both super-pleased and amazed!

And the Highlight? Probably the Ivy-Leaved Speedwell viz.

And Record Number Fifty-Four!

The Records have been submitted to the Wild Flower Society...

Off to see the Dentist in Thamesmead (the Royal Borough of Greenwich)

Off to see the Dentist in Thamesmead (to sort out a date for the removal of a Tooth) we decided to kill Two Birds with one Stone viz. look for Wild Flowers &c.

Wild Flower' Species seen (Grid Refs. TQ4680 and TQ4681 except for the Danish Scurvy-Grass which TQ4780):

Alexanders (flowering just)
Annual Meadow-Grass
Annual Mercury (flowering)
Buck's-Horn Plantain
Buddleia
Cleavers
Cock's-Foot
Coltsfoot (flowering) viz.

Common Bramble
Common Chickweed (flowering)
Common Field-Speedwell (flowering)
Common Fumitory (flowering) viz.

(an unidentified) Fumitory viz.

Common Mallow
Common Mouse-Ear (flowering)
Common Nettle 
Common Whitlow-Grass (flowering)
Cow Parsley (flowering)
Daisy (flowering)
Dandelion (flowering)
Danish Scurvy-Grass (flowering)viz.

Goat's-Rue
Green Alkanet (flowering)
Groundsel (flowering)
Hairy Bittercress (flowering)
Jersey Cudweed
Lesser Celandine (flowering)
Lesser Swine-Cress
Narrow-Leaved Ragwort
Oxford Ragwort (flowering) viz.

Pearlwort
Pellitory-of-the-Wall
Purple Toadflax
Red Dead-Nettle (flowering) plus a Hairy-Footed Flower-Bee viz.

Round-Leaved Crane's-Bill
Scentless Mayweed (flowering)
Sow-Thistle (flowering)
Spear Thistle
Spotted Medick
Sticky Mouse-Ear
Sun Spurge (flowering) viz.

Sweet Violet (flowering)
and Yarrow (flowering)

We participated in the Wild Flower Society's, Winter Plant Hunt 2019/20

The Winter Plant Hunt viz. for Plants in flower during December, January and February.

Bearing in mind Bexley Council's total lack of interest in Wildlife related matters and their Brutal Strimming/Mowing Regime, we initially decided not to bother but then thought, Why Not?

Sadly: as more and more places have been and are being built on, Wild Corners are disappearing.

Following Hot on the Heels of the Winter Plant Hunt comes the Wild Flower Society's, Spring Plant Hunt, during which we understand, Participants count Plants in flower seen on one day during the First Week in March. We will give it a go.

Plant' Species seen (we have submitted the Records to The Wild Flower Society):

Alexanders
Annual Meadow-Grass
Annual Mercury
Black Medick
Black Nightshade
Borage
Bristly Oxtongue
Cock's-Foot
Common Bramble
Common Chickweed
Common Field-Speedwell
Common Knapweed viz.

Common Toadflax
Common Whitlow-Grass
Coral Spurge (growing on Bostall Heath and mentioned in Kent Botany 2016) viz.

Cow Parsley
Creeping Thistle
Daisy
Dandelion
Dog's Mercury viz.

Early Dog-Violet viz.

Field Forget-me-Not
Garlic Mustard
Gorse
Grape Hyacinth
Groundsel
Hairy Bittercress viz.

Hedgerow Crane's-Bill
Herb Robert
Hogweed
Ivy-Leaved Toadflax
Ivy-Leaved Speedwell
Jersey Cudweed
Lesser Celandine 
Mexican Fleabane
Narrow-Leaved Ragwort
Nipplewort
Oxeye Daisy
Oxford Ragwort
Pellitory-of-the-Wall viz.

Petty Spurge
Pineapple Weed
Pink-Headed Persicaria viz.

Pot Marigold
Primrose
Red Clover
Red Campion
Red Dead-Nettle
Red Valerian
Rue-Leaved Saxifrage
Sea Aster viz.

Scentless Mayweed
Shepherd's-Purse
Small-Flowered Crane's-Bill viz.

Sow-Thistle
Spanish Stonecrop viz.

Stinking Hellebore
Sun Spurge
Sweet Violet (Viola odorata)
Sweet Violet (Viola odorata var. dumetorum)
Wavy Bittercress
White Dead-Nettle
White Ramping-Fumitory viz.

Wild Carrot
Wild Daffodil viz.

Winter Heliotrope viz.

Wood Anemone viz.

Wood Avens viz.

and Yarrow