Ranmore Common

I spent five hours meandering over the not insignificant Ranmore Common, as much as to get a bit of fresh air and exercise as it was to hoover up the wildlife set before me. The wooded areas were quiet, although I recorded a minimum of eight Marsh Tits. The open chalk downland was quieter still and teased me with the promise of all of those Chalkhill Blues, Adonis Blues and Silver-spotted Skippers to come. I even stood at the edge of the field at the base of the slope that harbours a fine array of so-called 'arable weeds' - but not today. That is all for later...

Fungi was not hard to come by, although I do shy away from anything that looks as if it has gone over. Fungi can be difficult enough to identify without putrefecation thrown in as an added obstacle. Turkeytail (above) was common and I came across Yellow Brain (below) to add a splash of colour to the day.

I saw an awful lot of moss. It was everywhere. I was tempted, I really was, but I reminded myself not to get involved, there's too much to do without adding mosses to my list of 'things to take up my time'. But there would have been a fine pan-species haul had I collected it, picked up a hand lens and consulted my field guide... no, don't tempt me.