School holidays

Not been the healthiest of households these holidays with one thing and another. We've been watching the bugs in the fish tank - you can see a mosquito lava on the left. We really must get down to the shops and get a decent macro lens! The backswimmers seem to enjoy eating these lavae, and it pleases the rest of us as no mosquitoes then escape into the house.

We're toying with the idea of setting a similar tank up at the pre-school as there quite a lot of activity that little people will enjoy watching. The boys will like one creature catching and eating another no doubt! Remember, part of the fun and learning was identifying the appropriate places (remember legal restrictions) from which flora and fauna could be taken. Then there's the capture and transportation.

We've also been watching the birds on the feeders. We strung a wire from the house to trees opposite in a manner that allowed us to open windows and poke through cameras to get a better view of the birds. We really need a longer lens, but the effects of shutter speed, aperture and ISO (the sparrow on the left was shot at 3200 ISO in an attempt to get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the wings) are well appreciated whilst having fun capturing the birds. We've even seen the Indian Miner Birds trying to get food out of the upturned plant pot feeders.

Besides using the bird mix I told you about earlier we're also using sunflower seeds in an old 3 litre fruit juicer container. We get greenfinches coming for the seeds and it's fascinating to see the displays the birds make to "protect" their feed. Much to be learnt :-)

Just a couple of shots now to show you the fruit juice feeder and the closeness of the plant pots to the house. Have a go yourself and let me know how you get on. Also, if you have any ideas than will extend what we're already doing please tell us!