Looking for Foxgloves

We went for a walk today to see whether the Foxgloves were flowering. In the past the woods have been full of the tall pink flowers, but this year they were very thin on the ground. We found a few (maybe a dozen) but we had to look quite hard to find them. I don't know whether it's a bad year for all Foxgloves, but they have definitely struggled in this wood.

The sun came out and the butterflies appeared. We saw three Red Admirals, several Meadow Browns and Speckled Woods and one Small White. They're the first Red Admirals I've seen this year and one of the first Small Whites.

A Red Admiral enjoying the sunshine

Small White

We heard a Greenfinch and a Chiffchaff in the trees, but couldn't see them. We also stumbled across a few other things including a couple of Puff Balls that had been eaten by the slugs, some King Alfreds Cakes (a strange black fungus) and a mossy stump that I just thought looked interesting!

Puffballs that look like the slugs have enjoyed

King Alfred's Cakes - a type of fungus

 

A mossy stump - I just liked the look of it!