Look into my eyes...

A lazy blip tonight, because I'm sooo tired. We spent the day at Waterbeach Barracks on a recrding trip arranged by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Environmental Records Centre. As usual when entering any military site, we had to undergo vehicle and identity checks, all carried out cheerfully by some very smart young soldiers - I wouldn't have minded taking some of their portraits!

The site had been recorded quite thoroughly for its plants, and I wasn't sure I was going to be able to add much. But in the end, the existing list became a motivating challenge, and I managed to add several new species, including the rarest plant of the day - wall bedstraw - listed as Vulnerable in the UK Red Data Book.

I have a bit of an advantage with this, as I've monitored the largest population in the county for over five years and so am very familiar with it. When we reached the part of the site where I found it, I just knew the habitat was right, so was keeping a special look out.

We also found some interesting insects, including a hugegoat moth larva , similar to the one photographed by Freespiral a couple of weeks ago. Chris found this queen median wasp Dolichovespula media under a log, preparing to hibernate.

We brought her home to photograph, and will place her under a log in our garden tomorrow, so that she can hopefully make a hanging nest next year. She wasn't very co-operative about having her portrait taken. She didn't keep still, and immediately after this shot she flew off round the kitchen. A good job no-one in our family is afraid of wasps or allergic to their stings!