I'm afraid to say I take some species of wildlife for granted. Everyday from April through to October, possibly even November, the little pond skaters relentlessly make their way around the surface of our garden pond and I take very little notice of them; they are always there. It took years before I even thought about pointing a camera at one but now I have I am quite taken with them!
In every way "just another insect" but they are perfectly adapted for their environment and they take advantage of a micro-habitat no other insect is interested in, the surface of still water. They wait for small insects to get in to trouble on the water and they are quickly there and strike. They have developed an ability to rapidly move across water without getting waterlogged and that is mainly down to the shape of the legs, as this picture shows, with the back legs from the 'knees' downwards running along the water's surface.
There is so much of interest right under our noses in our gardens and all too often we choose to overlook it.
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