Check him out! Bufo bufo in the sweet-pea tunnel! Started lifting the spent plants on Wednesday, clearing out the docks and preparing the three beds with the lovely muck John Wyatt gave us. This chap was tucked under the mypex against the tunnel rail, and had been raining righteous wrath on the dozens of slugs which I'd also been finding (I like to think, at least) It's another sign that a pond or two might be a good idea; I think we've got two obvious spots for them, we've got the clay for puddling (just a bit) and we know how it drains now after 9 months on site. He was a great find, and along with the myriad of bees, wasps and hover-flies that cloud the blooming beds (and which followed around our displays at the festivals this year) , shows how diversity can generate diversity. It will be interesting to see how the plot matures (in wildlife/biodiversity terms) over the coming years. It's small and its connectivity to the wider landscape is relatively tenuous, and as we've discovered; it's exposed! I'm looking forward to getting to know personally the various genera which adopt each one of Jo's plants.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_toad
N.b. No toads were harmed in the making of this blog and associated images. All parties were consensual and were released back into appropriate habitat as per EU Habitat Regulations (Media Wildlife Clause 862) Annexe 3 2004.
Jp x
