Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Dryad’s Saddle

    Dryad’s Saddle

    Damp weather is annoying for humans, but good for fungi, like this Dryad’s Saddle, a common bracket fungus on dead and decaying wood. Photos: © Natural England/Paul Glendell

  • Algal diversity at Kennack Sands

    Algal diversity at Kennack Sands

    While walking toward the coast path from Lizard recently I got talking to a fascinating botanist who told me that the slope he was looking at was home to twelve […]

  • Bloody Crane’s-bill

    Bloody Crane’s-bill

    The meadows above Kynance Cove are a good place to see Bloody Crane’s-bill in the summer, following recent habitat restoration and scrub clearance. Photo: Steve Townsend

  • Creeping Buttercup

    Creeping Buttercup

    Not much beats a meadow full of golden buttercups. Photo: Jörg Hempel, CC BY-SA 2.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons  

  • Ruby-tailed Wasp

    Ruby-tailed Wasp

    What a jewel of an insect! This Ruby-tailed Wasp was spotted at Poltesco. Photo: Andy Pay

  • Ragged-robin

    Ragged-robin

    Tousled pink flowers of Ragged-robin sway on their tall stems from late spring through to summer’s end. Photo: © Natural England/Chris Gomersall

  • Red Valerian

    Red Valerian

    The rich magenta and ruby hues of Red Valerian are a lovely sight in the summer, whispering of the Mediterranean. Photo: Amanda Scott

  • Common Crab Spider

    Common Crab Spider

    This little crab spider was spotted scuttling across the beach at Church Cove, near Gunwalloe, but they can be found in many habitats, especially open, undisturbed ground. Photo: Amanda Scott

  • It’s fledging time….

    It’s fledging time….

    Right now hedges, trees, heath and grassland as well as nestboxes are all of a flutter as the breeding season gets into full swing. Birds are busy diving into all […]

  • Kidney Vetch

    Kidney Vetch

    The books say Kidney Vetch blooms from June, but this is The Lizard, so it flowers from May. Look out for it on cliff tops and sand dunes from late […]

  • Hoards of Prehistory, History & the Future

    Hoards of Prehistory, History & the Future

    The invention of the Cornish shovel made it easier to shove things into the ground. It didn’t necessarily make it much easier to retrieve them as you had to remember […]

  • Jumping Spider

    Jumping Spider

    This attractive little species of Jumping Spider was spotted at Kennack Sands. Photo: Tony Blunden

  • Cuckooflower

    Cuckooflower

    The flushed pink flowers of Cuckooflower can be spotted in damp meadows and on stream banks in the spring. Photo: Steve Townsend

  • Flavous Nomad Bee

    Flavous Nomad Bee

    This lovely little nomad bee was spotted at Poltesco. Called the Flavous Nomad Bee, it was gorging itself on Three-cornered Garlic. Photo: Andy Pay   

  • Barren Strawberry

    Barren Strawberry

    Similar at first glance to Wild Strawberry, the pretty Barren Strawberry can be found flowering earlier, from February through to May.  Photo: © Natural England/Peter Wakely

  • Seaweed, what do you know?

    Seaweed, what do you know?

    Have you ever eaten, drank or bathed in seaweed? You might not think so but the chances are you have done all three. Seaweed is surrounded by a stigma founded […]

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