Not much happens on the meadow in August; the hay is gone and the volunteers are taking a break, so I took a walk around the meadow in the evening to see what was around.
Water Mint, Mentha aquatica, plentiful by the attenuation pit intake pond. 
Meadow grasshopper, Chorthippus parallelus. 
Gypsywort, Lycopus europaeus, growing by a pond. 
Knopper galls, made by the wasp, Andricus quercuscalicis, distorting the way acorns grow. 
Meadowsweet, Filipendula ulmaria. Its scent seems to get stronger in the evening – it smells of marzipan! 
Roosting Common Blue Butterfly, Polyommatus icarus. 
Marsh Woundwort, Stachys palustris. 
An Earwig resting in Mugwort, Artemisia vulgaris. 
Hazel, Corylus avellana, with developing nuts. 
Hairy shieldbugs, Dolycoris baccarum, (there are two, I promise!) hiding in a Goat’s Beard seed head, Tragopogon pratensis.
Remember, most of what lives and grows on the meadow just turned up, or was waiting under the soil for an opportunity to grow. All you need to do to let nature thrive is give it a chance, whether you’ve got an acre or a window box, whatever habitat you can add will help.
It’s been about a year since I took over writing these Nature Notes, and I think I’m repeating myself a fair bit, so this will be the last one for now. I’ll still post interesting sightings and share what you’ve seen. Keep enjoying the meadow and its residents and don’t forget the little, buzzing, flying, creeping and crawling things, there are a lot more of them than you think!
– Hester
