Saturday 26th. March 2011

With the cooler possibly damp forecast , I decided that today , I must catch up with maintenance and sharpening of my chainsaws and hedgelaying tools , which have been sat on the garage bench looking at me for the last week . The weather was just as had been forecasted , Carol went shopping and I got on with my jobs . From nowhere , the sun appeared and the temperature rose considerably .Thinking of the good day had on the Downs yesterday , the tools were put down again , and I was off to the Greensand Ridge to see what was about there . On arrival , the temperature was perfect for reptiles , warmth from the sun through thin cloud and feeling a bit clammy . The fact that it was not sunny , blue sky and hot , would mean that animals would be further out from cover to get that warmth . So it was with this Common Lizard , which did not move an inch as got closer and closer . In fact , it was so laid back , that the lens hood was almost resting on it's nose when I took this shot , prehistoric or what ? The away from cover also worked on the first Adder found , making an interesting shape as it soaked up the warmth . Not quite so out in the open were these three male Adders , but by now , the sun had gone again andit felt much cooler without it , so the three were huddled together to retain the heat between them . Just as the shutter went , the one on the top right of the trio realised I was there and was moving back under cover . The head of the second is easy to see , and the head of the third is about half an inch to the left of the second . At the same time , it started to drizzle , which became light rain , which continued off and on , mainly on until about 1400 , but it did mean I made my way home and finished the job that I had started . On returning from shopping , Carol wasn't at all surprised that the car was missing . Only other interest found on the short visit was a Peacock , it too warming up before getting the showers .