False widow spiders in the UK.........

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17123737

It always fascinates me how some species, helped by human actions, will find a new place to colonise and thrive....muntjac deer, ring -necked parakeets, mitten crabs, little owls....all escaped or introduced into the countryside and have done remarkably well. Love them or loathe them, you have to admire their opportunism. False widow spiders have been here a long time apparently, having arrived in boxes of imported fruit. I wonder how they have coped with our recent run of cold winters......? Worth treating with respect if this woman's experience is anything to go by........

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2130975/Woman-loses-hand-bitten-false-widow-spider.html

Soundtrack to Summer Holidays in the 1970s...........

I loved this series....the acting was not particularly great but the music and setting and...strangely the black and white film - were a great stimulus for me as a young boy. I particularly remember his cliff-top house which looked just like perfect accommodation in every way......

More Corporal Jones...........

A black squirrel....melanistic mutations in Central Park.........

In the UK we are most familiar with the Grey squirrel, which has colonised much of our landscape since being introduced about a hundred years ago. Our native red squirrel has declined markedly and has now disappeared from most areas apart from a few islands and remoter parts of Northern England and the Highlands of Scotland. Although a range of reasons have been cited as to the cause of the decline, the spread of squirrel pox has been a major contributor as well as the fact that greys seem to be incredibly opportunist and resilient, particularly in urban areas. There have been reports recently of 'black' squirrels in the midlands around Northamptonshire and they seem to be on the increase so it was with interest that on my recent trip to New York I saw a black individual amongst all the greys feeding, like this one, close to North Meadow. Upsettingly, after getting some great shots, I lost my camera later on the trip so this is not my footage. It will be interesting to see if this melanistic mutation will increase in the UK and become a more common sight in our parks and gardens. I have, incidentally, also seen a white squirrel in  Hampden Park, Eastbourne, on the South Coast which was not an albino as it had dark, not red eyes. As with many other mammals,  I wonder if there is a leucistic mutation too...........

Red Lion........