Anemone coronaria

DSCN3543 [Anemone coronaria]

Anemone coronaria,

commonly known as the Crown anemone, Poppy anemone, or windflower,

is a very common flowering plant in the Mediterranean region.

It produces flowers in shades of red, purple, white and blue.

Its sepals, usually 5-8, are arranged around a characteristic black center of stamens

that forms a crown-like ring;

a fact that lends the flower its name “coronaria”.

 

In Greece,

Anemone coronaria typically grows to a height of 20–35 cm

and blooms from January to May.

Each flower can measure 3–7 cm in diameter.

 

Its diversity of colors is eye-captivating,

so I feel I should share with you below

an assortment of colors

that I had the opportunity to photograph.

 

 

803_0889 [Anemone coronaria]

 

 

301_5506 [Anemone coronaria]

 

 

301_5513 [Anemone coronaria]

 

302_3432 [Anemone coronaria]

  

302_3698 [Anemone coronaria]

 

 

301_6950 [Anemone coronaria]

Anacridium aegyptium

DSCN1925 [Anacridium aegyptium]

 

Being tired at the end of a long day in Chalkidiki some years ago,

I was looking for a place where I could take a short rest

when I saw a bench that seemed to be unoccupied!

 

Alas! What a disappointment!

Right in the middle of the bench a huge insect remained motionless

and indifferent to my presence - and even worse … to my fatigue!

It was an Anacridium aegyptium,

also known as Egyptian grasshopper or tree grasshopper.

 

This insect is one of the largest grasshopper species in Europe.

Adult males are typically 30–55 mm long,

while females are larger, reaching 45–70 mm in length.

 

It is easily identified from its large body size

and its eyes, which have characteristic vertical black and white stripes.

 

Those striking eyes kept looking at me and said:

“Go away, the bench is mine!”

I refused to obey. I stayed, kept looking at it and remembered

that this species is common around the Mediterranean

in a variety of warm, dry habitats, including scrublands, orchards,

and gardens, where it lives on trees and shrubs.

 

It is a solitary species that feeds on leaves

and is generally considered a minor agricultural pest,

as it does not form large, destructive swarms like the migratory locust.

 

All this sounds good

but I would expect it to move to the side and make some room for a tired old man,

but it didn’t!

 

For a picture of Anacridium aegyptium nymph please click HERE.

 

 

Crocus nivalis

801_1745 [Crocus nivalis]

Crocus nivalis blooms in the heart of winter

in areas stretching from the Peloponnese to Northern Greece

at altitudes of even beyond 1300m,

where it is aften seen growing on snow-covered mountain peaks.

This is most likely the reason why it was given the name “nivalis,”

which derives from the Latin nix (nivis), meaning snow.

 

In Attica, however, it is also found as low as 400m

on all the mountains around Athens.

 

The picture was taken in Anthusa (Attica).