A couple of posers

A harvestman came down the wall in front of my desk, and posed there, waiting until I noticed.

Legs and leggy shadows.

Zooming in. She* was very patient, sitting absolutely still while I tried to get all of her in focus.

*Arbitrary choice of pronoun. How do you tell a female harvestman (harvestperson?) from the male? It's difficult. The male has longer legs and a smaller body than the female, but that's hard to calculate, unless you have a pair side by side. And females have a long ovipositor at the back, but usually this is hidden in a sheath, and only extended when they're laying eggs.

Their relatives, spiders, are easier, with the male's "boxing gloves" always held ready for action.

Later, I was preparing the camera for a few shots testing different settings, when this fly dropped in to sit right in front of the lens. I didn't even have to pick up the camera.

A very shallow depth of field got his hair, but not the face in focus. But at least I got the colour of the eyes.

He was not as patient as the harvestman; when I moved the camera, he up and left.

Small wonders

April, between showers . . .

Red-stemmed moss.

Plume moth, sleeping on the wall by the door

Robin, pulmonaria, and daffs. And a few leaves of lettuce, still surviving cuddled up to the pulmonaria for protection from the slugs.

The young raccoon, back again for a drink, keeping his eye on me.

He needs a nail clipper; look at that thumb nail!

Raccoon fingernails. I'm not volunteering to trim them for him.

And the first rhododendrons we've seen this year.

And the cup mushrooms are out in force! But each time we've seen them, so far, it has been pouring rain.