From the same family as the squirrels, this creature is symbolic of our mountains and lives in an altitude between 800 and 3 000 meters. It was successfully reintroduced in Pyrenees in 1948, as it had totally disappeared at the end of the Pleistocene period. It hibernates 6 to 7 months a year without stocking food […]
Tag: France
Scarce swallowtail
Comparison between Iphiclides podalirius VS Iphiclides p. feisthamelii What a pleasure to go after dragonflies and find this gorgeous specimen on my doorstep in the lavander! Un Flambé magnifique, un des plus beaux papillons d’Europe, dans la lavande du jardin. Ces plants isolés m’ont offert un bokeh assez uni mais je n’ai pu me concentrer […]
Dragonfly, a formidable predator
I suggest here a more detailed follow up to this article, about odonate predation. A dragonfly feeds exclusively on live preys, whether it is still at the stage of larva or of a winged imago: it consumes a wide variety of insects daily from flies (Diptera), to bees (Hymenoptera), to some beetles, to butterflies (Lepidoptera), […]
All about Common Scarlet-darter
Crocothémis écarlate et coeur copulatoire Crocothemis erythraea – Anisoptera – Crocothemis -Cette magnifique espèce est devenue courante en Europe du sud et de l’est, mais elle nous vient d’Afrique comme le Trithémis pourpré – Trithemis annulata – qui est arrivé dans notre pays plus récemment (suivre le lien pour lire son histoire). Cette libellule peut […]
Miss Blue-tailed – dinner’s ready!!
Prédation chez les libellules: Ishcnure élégante “casse la croûte” de bébé portecoupe! Ishnure elegans VS Enallagma cyathigerum Non, rien de barbare dans cette scène parfaitement normale dans le monde des odonates où une libellule en mange une autre! Les Agrions portecoupes sont extrêment nombreux et sont donc souvent et facilement prédatés, par d’autres odonates entre […]
European polecat
Mustela putorius putorius – Rare pictures of this forest creature with wet hair from all the rain we had these last weeks. Mustelidae close to the weasel, mink, otter and hermine. Its domestic counterpart is the ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Short-legged, this animal measures from 35 to 37 cms long without the tail and weighs […]
2 species of owl flies
Ascalaphe loriot – Libelloides ictericus -Neuroptera – Ascalaphidae 4 genders of owl flies divided into 14 species in Europe.This first one is a scarce insect for which I haven’t found the English vernacular name. It occurs around the Mediterranean dry countries and can be rarely found in about 4 French departments. We encountered this individual […]
The Common Genet
Genetta genetta – I went to photograph quite a different subject knowing that in this low mountain area Genets are quite common, I was hoping to see one but without really believing it. This one was having a nap in a tree hollow so must have had a meal not long ago. The big eyes […]