Some very nosey company for NVC surveys today. Personal space doesn’t translate into farm horse apparently

Alongside the hammering rain that seems to have made itself at home over the past couple of weeks, the other challenge I’ve noticed is finding time to post work updates alongside the annual August fieldwork rush. NVC surveys have been enjoyable despite the weather though!

Back to the Blorenge this week in search of some more peat amongst the heath. Fantastic site with some great examples of Cladonia hiding under the heather, this photo’s of Cladonia portentosa. The cowberry is also still going strong! Fantastic colours all around.

Some absolutely stunning views for peat depth surveys today. Now that’s what I call a gorgeous Welsh summer!

Nice to see a population of Royal Fern in full swing during some lowland peatland surveys near Swansea today. A very unassuming site when you first get to it but it hides some great features and nearly 4m of peat in places

All sorts of weather from 10 minutes of driving rain to an hour of blazing sun on site for peatland water vole surveys today. Managed to catch the last of the bog asphodel in flower as well, expecting them all to be bright orange in seed the next time I see them

A few other species highlights from this week including an emperor moth caterpillar, which I don’t think I’ve seen before. Drosera (always a favourite of mine) and a well developed lichen community on this fence post which I think is mainly Xanthoria parietina.

Back out onto the local marsh today, but this time for some stilling well repairs rather than water sampling. Highlight of the day though was not retrieving the stilling well from a very interesting smelling reed dominated channel, it was seeing a wasp spider in the field next to it on the way in!

Absolutely roasting day to be out on the Blorenge mapping peat and erosion around footpaths with Adfer Natur CIC. Incredibly dense heath with more cowberry than I’ve seen in one place before

Bog asphodel is starting to come into flower at Maerdy. About half of it still seems to be in bud so hopefully some great photo opportunities in a couple of weeks. Luckily I’ll need to be back here for more vegetation and water vole work

A very busy but rewarding week with the highlight definitely being the Moss Worlds final exhibition. The moss house at the firs is now one of my favourite places, it has Wilson’s filmy fern growing on the walls! Great as well to see the moss protest signs and everyone’s moss stitch pieces in person

Highly glamorous bat surveys this evening. They can’t all be glorious views all the time!

The heatwave continues for the peatland surveys today. Back on familiar ground at Maerdy wind farm for vegetation monitoring. Interesting to see the worlds most adventurous Drosera clinging to the last patch of eroding peat in one of the large pans on site

The most blue sky seen during surveys in Wales for some time today. Looks like the heatwave finally showed up. Highlight of the survey was the first bog pimpernel seen this year! Found on a flushed slope just over that hill