Speckled Bush-cricket

A welcome day at home, catching up with admin and waiting for a new tumble dryer to be delivered. Between spells at the computer I did some light gardening and found this fully-grown female Speckled Bush-cricket lurking in a grassy corner. She had somehow lost a foot, which made her rather disinclined to jump, so she was a relatively willing subject. The scimitar-shaped ovipositor is particularly impressive and is used to lay eggs into tree bark or plant stems, where they overwinter with the nymphs emerging in May and June.

In the early evening we went to see the house that Chris and Lizzy are buying. It'll suit them perfectly and is in wonderful condition, with a reasonable sized garden surrounded by trees. The lady who's selling it is also lovely - we spent ages chatting and eventually had to drag ourselves away as Ben was cooking dinner and we didn't want to be too late. He prepared stir-fried pork with chillies, which was delicious - it's always such a treat to be cooked for!