The move to Tuscany : Overdue catch-up part 3: wildlife

Living in harmony with nature can be a challenge at times. I'm sorry to say that gone are the days when we were enthralled and excited beyond belief to hear the sound of an owl, a deer or a buzzard. These things are now so common to us that the thrill has subsided. That's not to say that we don't still appreciate the wildlife that surrounds us, but we do sometimes feel somewhat under siege.

This year we seem to be overrun with rats (see previous post), with snakes, with tawny owls (what a noise they make!), and have had a lot more damaging porcupine and wild boar activity (not to mention the squealing of the wild boar as they run across the bottom terraces in the middle of the night which wakes us up and then also wakes Reggie up and precipitates a half-hour barking session).

That all sounds a bit cynical, but we really are still enthralled by nature and every day find something new, something so beautiful it takes our breath away and makes us wonder at, well, the wonder of nature.

Wild growing Madonna lily. Lilium candidum.

An inhabitant of our wood pile.

(It's pretty tiny and doesn't do any more damage than an ant bite)

The stunning seedpod of love-in-a-mist - Nigella damascena. (Something about its striking colouring reminds me of rhubarb and custard sweets.)

Coprinus

Pond life.

A wnd & rain casualty

Cob nuts.

Natrix helvetica after a heavy meal! (Likely a toad).

Red Lily Beetle (Lilioceris Lilii)

Moss Carder Bee (bombus pascuorum)

'Spotted Darner' Dragonfly (Boyeria Irene)

A giant puffball!

Pontedera cordata (pickerel weed)

The nine spotted moth (Amata phegea) hitching a ride.

Fennel flowers.

The delicate and beautiful seed pattern of Lactuca muralis - easy to miss!

The stunning flower of the (cultivated) snake bean, aka asparagus bean, aka yardlong bean, aka long-podded cowpea, aka Chinese long bean, aka bodi/bora. So many names!