Not visible to the naked eye, the phone camera picked up pink and green hues of the #aurora over our urban Peterborough garden last night, which gradually disappeared behind the increasing cloud cover.

Despite the recent rain, still rather few fungi round Peterborough. Today I only found a scatter of Persistent Waxcaps at Swaddywell, while earlier this week a walk at Castor Hanglands NNR only yielded a cluster of Common Inkcap, a Parasola sp. and some Yellow Stag's-horn #ukfungusday #fungifriends

Has anyone else ever come across a Wild Strawberry flower looking quite like this? The serrated petal margin is certainly new to me! #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

A few fungi from a visit to Roydon Common on Tuesday 6/10 - one of a large group of Deathcaps around an oak, the underside of a Fairy-ring Champignon, and Sphagnum Greyling and Sphagnum Brownie both found near the edge of the mire. #fungifriends

Despite the heavy rain, yesterday's Peterborough moth trap contained a nice mix of migrant and autumn species, including our first ever Ni Moth (been waiting for that one!), our second Vestal, the first Brindled Green of the season and a Large Wainscot living up to its name. #teammoth #mothsmatter

The Fenland Flora by Owen Mountford & Jon Graham (with 300 photos & over 1000 maps). This 1400-page, 2-volume set has now gone to print. Pre-pub offer ends 31 Oct 2026 -visit naturebureau.co.uk/bookshop now & SAVE £25 on published price @bsbibotany.bsky.social @plantlife.bsky.social

Bedford Purlieus NNR yesterday, where a sunny ride-margin contained plenty of flowering Wild Basil and Vervain - one of my favourite plants. In shadier areas Dewberry was also having a late flush of flowers... #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Seen flowering at Swaddywell NR this week - Wild Mignonette, Common Centaury, Blue Fleabane and Agrimony - all species which thrive in brownfield sites on calcareous substrates. #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Despite the lack of rain, I managed to find a few colourful fungi in Bedford Purlieus NNR highlight being the rare webcap Thaxterogaster collocandoides (in the same place as last year when it was confirmed by an expert), Deceptive Knight and Charcoal Burner #fungifriends

A much cooler night than of late, so the moth trap was almost bare this morning - but still exciting to find our first Scarce Bordered Straw of the year- only recorded once before from our Peterborough trap in 2019 #mothsmatter #teammoth

Having enviously watched everyone reporting The Vestal from their traps, one finally made it to our Peterborough garden last night - at last!!! #mothsmatter #teammoth

Good to find a very beautifully marked Beaded Chestnut in the trap this morning, NFY. Plus repeat visits from very fresh Small Mottled Willow, Beet Moth and Cypress Pug after a long hiatus... #mothsmatter #teammoth

Always a good day when the first thing you find in the morning is a pristine Merveille du Jour moth sitting on the sheet next to the Peterborough moth trap - NFY. I always forget just how stunning they are... #mothsmatter #teammoth

some flashes of Gesneriaceae that caught my eye from the last few days (cos who can resist a Gesnerid?) Kohleria stuebeliana, endemic to the eastern slope of the eastern Andes in Colombia Columnea microcalyx Episcia cupreata Besleria solanoides #WildlifeTravelling in #Colombia

the second Harpy Eagle encounter in two days, in the Sierra de la Macarena words fail. just an awesome beast, in an awesome location, thanks to some awesome people, who have brought us to a place where tourism was unimaginable just a decade ago. we will be back.

we were invited back to #Colombia this autumn by @procolombiaco.bsky.social and our friends at Nature Colombia with the promise of the world's biggest bird of prey. as you can see, they have more than lived up to their promise. and it's not over yet... #HarpyEagle #WildlifeTravelling

In one small area of saltmarsh at Holme-next-the-Sea we found plenty of Sea Aster - some fully-rayed Tripolium pannonicum var. pannonicum, lots of rayless Tripolium pannonicum var. flosculosum and some that was unsure of its identity... #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

A beautiful autumn day on the Norfolk Coast studying the flora of shingle, dunes and saltmarsh with a group of improving botanists - all records entered into the BSBI App! Names in ALT #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

The continuing dry weather means that fungi are still rather sparse, but good to find a fresh group of Lurid Bolete yesterday, associated with Small-leaved Lime at Collyweston Great Wood NNR. Not uncommon in our local woods, but nearly always slug-eaten or rotten when I find it! #fungifriends

After a tip-off from a friend, I was pleased to re-find the Striated Bird's-nest fungi at @wildlifebcn.org Old Sulehay Forest. First seen by me late last autumn, it was interesting to see them at an earlier stage, when the fruiting bodies are covered with brownish hairs #figifriends #fungi

Fungal highlight of the week - one of a group of Dewdrop Dapperling found on the edge of a grassy ride through ancient woodland at @wildlifebcn.org Old Sulehay Forest. New to me and seemingly a very local species nationally, with very few records in the Peterborough area #fungifriends #fungi

from the Andean cloud forest, we dropped all the way down to the great wet plains of the Llanos, where we finished the day with two fantastic Giant Anteater sightings and a handful of Hoatzins #WildlifeTravelling in #Colombia (and the least said about the lost passport, the better...)

on the first day of our #famtrip to Colombia, we had a breakfast appointment with the Cundinamarca Antpitta only discovered in the 1990s, the entire world population is squeezed into the cloud forest between 2000m & 2200m asl on a handful of Andean hillsides #WildlifeTravelling in #Colombia

After a year when I've seen more UK Clouded Yellow butterflies than ever before, mostly zipping past at high speed while I've been recording grassland quadrats, yesterday one finally stopped in front of me to nectar on Common Stork's-bill at Snettisham Beach

for the last few days of our Brazil trip, Laurie and the group have left the Pantanal behind and headed into the mistily lush Atlantic Forest: fewer spots, but a lot more colourful #WildlifeTravelling in #Brazil

Some of today's #fungi seen on a walk round @wildlifebcn.org Old Sulehay NR, including Tuberous Polypore on a fallen oak log (new to me), a tiny Matt Bolete, a much chunkier twin-headed Rooting Bolete and a Snowy Inkcap Coprinopsis nivea on dung #fungifriends

For #mushroommonday, a very fine young cluster of Honey Fungus, seen on a walk round Bedford Purlieus NNR yersterday #fungifriends

Fen-edge hedgerows along Etton Green Lane are draped with the pale green fruit of Wild Hop. Known to John Clare, hop featured in the opening line of 'June' in his Shepherd's Calendar - #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

For #wildflowerhour, three rather lovely species flowering well at Bedford Purlieus NNR today - Hairy Lady's-mantle (VU GB red List 2025), Tormentil and Common Eyebright - all very uncommon in the Peterborough area. @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Brazil, where even the small cats are big our group are now headed back along the Transpantaneira, having spent three amazing days with the Jaguars of Porto Jofre but the trip is far from over, as this Ocelot (our 2nd of the trip!) would like to point out #WildlifeTravelling in the #Pantanal