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"Nature is so full and varied that if you want to find the place with the most variety, it is the place you most study. Just take in a small piece of land and examine it hard enough." Gilbert White... Long Road, a few miles from Selborne where the pioneering 18th century naturalist lived and documented the flora and fauna of his area. Long Road is our patch, the place to watch the time and seasons come and go, to listen, think and learn
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6840730.ecehttp://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6840730.ece
ReplyDeletecurious....!
Got this back from BBC Springwatch...if they don't know...gosh...who will??
ReplyDelete@bbc_springwatch
BBC Springwatch
@agingerlass We blogged about that odd jelly substance last year http://bbc.in/22e1pU Not sure if we got to the bottom of it. Heron vomit?
It was still there today...maybe I should take a sample...
It is still there almost a week later...so many dogs walk past the spot every day and none have eaten it, so it *must* taste horrible...perhaps the bird vomit theory is a good one...
ReplyDeleteThis is similar to the decomposing jelly I've seen in many places in the Cairngorms, particularly on the Insh Marshes in the late winter. Over the years I have often found several patches of jelly along the embankments of the River Spey and as you note they tend to persist for some time!
ReplyDeleteI strongly suspect this is frog spawn possibly discarded by a predator, with buzzard or perhaps Otter strong candidates, whilst tucking into a spawn-laden frog. As the season progresses you can find such jelly further developed with early stage tadpoles beginning to appear seen as small black dots.
Just a theory at present so I'd be interested to hear if you gain more information on this.
Hey thanks for that, we certainly do a have a lot of buzzards locally but no otters. It certainly does resemble frog spawn doesn't it.
ReplyDeleteDid I take a sample? No, will keep eyes and ears peeled for more in the area.