If you’re wondering why the P-O is graced with fewer palms than a decade ago or why many remaining trees look sick or dead, pests in the form of a moth and weevil are to blame.
Coming from the French word terre for “soil,” the word terroir originally described the special characteristics of a region, or piece of land, which gave different varieties of wine, coffee and tea their individuality. (Soil, climate, position, regional traditions….)
The mosquito, (‘little fly’ in Spanish) has been around for more than 30 million years.
It’s a balmy evening. The barbecue is lit, wine poured. Glass in one hand, fly swat in the other, you’re coated in Deet, surrounded by citronella candles; eyes peeled and ears pricked for attackers. The garden’s bad enough, but what about tomorrrow’s walk in the country? How to tell friend from foe, underfoot and in the air?
As the rain clouds gathered on Thursday morning, I jumped in the car with two adventure-loving pals and headed up to the ominously-named Pont du Diable (Devil’s bridge) in Céret to meet up with our guide from Extérieur Nature.
Too many cherries? Cherry Brandy anyone?
Music therapy, for trees!
These unpleasant little devils are different from the common mozzie in that they fly and attack during the day as well as night, their bites can be more painful and cause more swelling than the common or garden mozzie, and their stinger is able to pierce clothing!
We’re talking stingers again! Despite being maligned and feared by many, hornets are far less hostile than so-called ‘social’ wasps – at least towards us humans. Some hornet lovers label our native European species ‘gentle giants’. But we also have Asian hornets in the PO. How do they differ and what’s the problem with them? Lesley McLaren explains.
It’s all go! Migrant birds are returning from their winter homes and mammals are getting frisky; reptiles are emerging and bugs are flying. There are territories to be claimed and defended, mates to attract, nests to build, setts to clean, burrows to renovate, young to feed. And the backdrop to this frenetic activity is a landscape transformed into countless shades of green.