Our meteorologists were brilliantly wrong; today weather was perfect here in Vienna and Lobau, and I spent a nice day out there. We had a lovely 16 to 17 degrees Celsius and stiff, cold northerly winds, which was all mixed with a bright and sunny sky - what more can one ask for?
Firstly, while I did determine to my complete satisfaction a specimen of Centarium erythraea (Echt-Tausendguldenkraut; nothing that special really, I'll probably bother you with that one another time), some wild boars sneaked into the bushes just right behind me which I only realised when I went back to my bicycle. They were only about fifteen metres away from me, but again (as so often) the boars were faster than me and ran away before the shock flooded my body with adrenaline.
Only shortly after that episode the stags began to bell: so again the mating season for red deer has begun. The belling of the stags was very loud and close, but I didn't dare to try and get much closer; anyway it isn't proper to interrupt their sexual rites, I wouldn't like that either, and it is proper to show respect for the red deer here.Then I did realise that all the bugs were gone. No more mosquitos; or at least almost none which is a huge relief.
And finally I found this very strange Cichorium intybus (Wegwarte - Common chicory) which grow like weed on fatter soil:
Strange it was because this plant only is supposed to flower in the morning; their buds are supposed to close around midday or in early afternoon while this shot obviously was taken at night already. (No, it wasn't, of course ... but it was late afternoon already.)
On my way home I noticed that a great many specimens of the common chicory did have their flowers open till sunset which really is strange - because usually those very same specimens kept them closed in the afternoon and evening yesterday. (Well, I admit to it that I have found one single plant yesterday which was flowering in the evening; but the others all were closed for sure.)
Someone should tell the common chicories of Vienna to behave properly and close their flowers in the afternoon, as etiquette demands. (Not that I didn't try, but those buggers wouldn't listen!)
