Shady

I met up with Kathryn Parsons in Stamford at 7.30 for a morning scouting out routes for two of the Noticing Nature Walkshops we're presenting in September. Once again, we found plenty of material in the urban environment, including a community orchard and a rather overlooked area of green space with some wonderful trees and wild flowers.

By eleven it was becoming rather hot, so we called it a day. On my way home I dropped in to Collyweston Quarries, where I'm supposed to be leading a walk next Saturday afternoon, when temperatures are expected to be above 30C. I walked all round the site and it was just about tolerable (at 27C with a decent breeze), but flowers and insects were very sparse, and there was little shade available - I think I'll need to rethink how I lead. It was sufficiently hot that even this thermophilic Migrant Hawker dragonfly was enjoying a rest in a shady bush!