24.10 Day 38 . . . Charente Or Bust

A lazy morning padding around at the gite and enjoying the sunshine outside on the patio area. I decided to do a little David Attenborough as I’d seen something buzzing in a bush for a couple of days now. This little thing looked like a wasp, but had a long nose like a hummingbird and wings that were flapping at an incredible speed. After numerous attempts to photograph it (apologies for the photos attached) I popped the image through my handy phone app - and ta da!! The hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) - is a species of hawk moth found across temperate regions of Eurasia. The species is named for its similarity to hummingbirds, as they feed on the nectar of tube-shaped flowers using their long proboscis while hovering in the air; this resemblance is an example of convergent evolution. The hummingbird hawk-moth was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. As of 2018, its entire genome and mitogenome have been sequenced.
What did I tell you! So having been that smart I decided to search out another resident . . . and found A Crowned Orbweaver - a common species of orb-weaver, crowned orbweaver (Araneus diadematus) builds large and noticeable webs. Only the females build webs, and they may prey upon their mates before, during or after engaging in sexual intercourse. Crowned orbweaver is reluctant to bite humans and will not do so unless scared or provoked. It avoids danger by vibrating in its web until it becomes a blur, confusing predators.
A little later we drove to have a second viewing of the Hanc property which we liked having seen it a few days ago. It didn’t disappoint although I did spot a few more area that needed work - but that was always going to be the case. We were met there again by Natalie who then lead us across to a second property in Charente, in the small hamlet of St Claud. The roads into the property were ridiculously tight and many of them. The property had been worked on previously as a conversion but the builder had run out of funds. So masses still to do as a bit more of a wreck. There was also lots of traffic noise from nearby - so we quickly dismissed it. We also decided this particular area of Charente was not for us.
Back into Roxvanne we decided to visit Ruffec, but in arrival the town was closed, everything was shut - so we decided to go to Sauze Vaussais to the small bar Tre and I had visited the Sunday previously, but that was shut too together with most everything else. We still haven’t got our head around open and closing times.
We drove home and spent the late afternoon and evening there.
We had a couple of days before bought the most mooosive sausages, which we had for our evening meal with other snacky bits!
Tomorrow is market day in Lezay - we need to get up early 🤭

Footnote:
Just realised why the Hawk Moth liked the plant it was on . . .
Autumn sage (Salvia greggii) is a perennial, flowering shrub that grows from 61 to 91 cm tall. The flowers, typically red, can also be found in white, pink, orange, or purple. This disease and insect free plant is drought tolerant and attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. Perfect as a colorful, low-growing hedge.Read more