Clare Rayner

@clareacrayner.bsky.social

618 Followers 441 Following

Teacher, Mum, Apprentice Farmer, NEU Rep. Very keen on native species plants 🌱 trees 🌳 and insects 🐞 Essex, UK

Purple Hairstreak butterfly, with distinctive purple streak on dark grey upper wings, sitting on a patch of green linen.
One hedgehog is at a food bowl in a garden flower border. A second hedgehog rapidly approaches and the first hedgehog backs off, hissing.
Pinky-purple bull thistle flower head
A hedgehog in a flower bed drinking from a shallow dish, with various plants in the background. In the foreground is a garden table and chair.
Hummingbird Hawk Moth nectaring on salvia flowers in a garden flowerbed.
An Aranet co2 monitor on a classroom desk showing 30.9 degrees c temperature and 53% humidity.
A brown patterned Dark Arches (?) moth sitting on my T-shirt, trying to disguise itself as a brooch.
Yellow spike of agrimony with several hoverflies hovering around it.
Black and white marbled White butterfly sits on a light pink clover flower amidst green leaves.
A meadow brown butterfly with its distinctive brown under wing and black “eye” perched on a yellow buttercup flower. Grass stalks and purple selfheal flowers can be seen in the background.
A marsh orchid that looks like it is shimmering in the light, maybe just about to teleport to another dimension.
A beautifully patterned moth with light coloured wings with black markings, and an orangey-yellow body, resting on a laurel leaf near to a nettle patch.
Bright pink-topped pyramidal orchid poking out of a patch of grassland.
A green-tinged iridescent rose beetle sits on an ox-eye daisy. In the background lots of other ox-eye daisies covered in insects!
4 crotal bells of different sizes hanging vertically on a ribbon by the side of a doorway. Behind the bells is a wooden beam.
Female Tawny Owl sitting on the perch/tray of a wooden barn owl box attached to a pine tree. Just behind her, a fluffy grey owlet perches on the edge of the box entrance hole.
A small fluffy grey fledgling Tawny owlet which is looking out from the entrance of a barn owl box made out of wood and fastened to the trunk of a pine tree.
A low-growing sea campion plant spreading across shingle with a single white flowers.
Small white flowers of Hairy Tare, with the stems tangled around grasses.
A small brown and orange butterfly with a black “eye” on the upper wing resting on grass.
White blobs of cuckoo spit on the leaves of honeysuckle growing up a trellis against a red brick wall.
A black tray filled with 4 rows of 3 small plant pots, all with little clumps of wildflower seedlings growing in them.
White-flowered Field penny-cress growing by the side of an arable field.
A tiny white flower in the midst of green leaves.
A carpet of bluebells with purple bells and green leaves, covering the floor of a woodland with outgrown coppice in the background.
A common carder bumble bee taking nectar from a rosemary flower.
Weird alien form of butterbur with pale purple spikes poking out of the ground surrounded by smaller heart-shaped green leaves.
Cowslips among daisies, red dead nettles and other greenery on the bank of a pond.
A row of variously-coloured small seashells (periwinkle and topshell) laid out on a large grey rock.
The white petals and purple spur of the small but lovely sweet violet flower, peeking out from a carpet of green leaves.
A blue envelope vomiting up a pile of papers.
A tawny owl perching on the entrance of a wooden owl box up a pine tree.
A cloudy pond full of water sits in a rather barren clay crater. Chunks of flint and rock can be seen scattering the surrounding earth. A few dead thistles adorn the ground in the foreground and behind the pond, a row of tall trees reaches into the grey sky.
Yellow cowslip flowers standing above green leaves and grass on a bank.
A slightly amateur-looking fence made from hazel poles banged into the ground with willow woven in and out. There is a meadow in the background behind the fence and a wooden gate. In the distance there are trees silhouetted against the sky.
A cluster of smal yellow/orange and black 16-spot ladybirds gathered on the woody stems and behind the leaves of a honeysuckle plant climbing up a green wire trellis against a brick wall.
A tawny owl peeking out of a wooden owl box
Tawny owl with mottled brown and white feathers looking out from the hole in a barn owl box made of wood, positioned high up on a pine tree with lots of ivy on the trunk.
A tray with tea and biscuits sits on a wooden table with a range of children’s books displayed behind it.
A white basket with a selection of apples, pears, walnuts and two eggs. Grass and fallen leaves in the background.
A rainbow stretching across the sky above a rough grassy meadow with a line of trees at the far edge.
Shaped flint handaxe (not confirmed) with sea urchin fossil.
A chunky little brownish-orange moth, with a fluffy head and legs, and distinctive white markings on its wings.
Tiny pink five-petalled common centaury flowers growing low to the ground on a grassy path.
Purple flowers and green serrated leaves edged with a brownish purple, of the flowering plant “Black Horehound” or Ballota Nigra
Blueish purple butterfly resting with wings open on a yellow birds foot trefoil flower amidst grasses.
Roman coin with lettering around the outer edge - the coin is worn and pitted.
Flowering cherry tree in front of a shrubby scrubby bush composed of a variety of species - rose, guelder rose and bramble amongst others.
“Powerchips” image describing ridged green items used to “house micro organisms” and “distribute oxygen and moisture” in the biodigesting process
Red, orange and yellow patterned mint moth sitting on a dark green veined hazel leaf.
Thistle tortoise beetle larvae using a lump of black frass (dry excrement) as a shield against ant attack. Sitting on green veined thistle leaf
Lovely little bee orchid flowering amidst grasses and selfheal.
A light purple orchid with darker purple patterning, amongst various green leaves
Meadow Brown butterfly with brown wings, tawny patch at the top with a black “eye”, sitting on top of a cluster of purple thistle flowers.
A female ghost moth in the foreground with brown wings patterned with darker reddish markings. Behind her, a male ghost moth with white wings can be seen. They are clasping the stem of a knapweed and long grass can be seen in the background.
Yellow flower of meadow pea flowering on a road verge.
Striped brown moth nectaring on the bright purple cornflower.
An orange and brown painted lady butterfly with white and black markings sitting with wings open on a patch of dry earth, in amongst tufts of grass.
Stripy black and orange caterpillars feeding on the leaves of ragwort.
An orangey-brown moth with white patterns sitting on black-painted wood.