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55. 15th March 1944. Anemone appenina in front garden flowered - the first flower for many years. 16th March. A beautiful day with very hot sun till 5 P.M. when some slight showers about. Fergus O'Rourke reported seeing a Bumble Bee. Honey Bees very busy on ♀︎ Salix cinerea in back garden & on Chionodoxa in front garden. 17th March. Another fine day, mild, with gentle SW. breeze & much hot sun in forenoon. On duty in museum. Vespa (probably germanica!) ♀︎ seen in front garden searching at 1P.M. Red Saxifrage in front garden with flowers practically open. [Open on 19th! AWS.] 18th March 1944. A dull day with odd gleams of sun & strong wind varying from SE to SW; cooler; with jam in evening as wind went more west & then rain & high wind at night. At 5.15 PM I saw my first Bumble Bee of season - a ♀︎ Bombus lucorum - busily feeding at catkins of ♀︎ Salix cinerea in back garden & she was still at work at 7.30 P.M. when rain threatened & I came into house 56. 19th March 1944. A fine day, with cold N-NW breeze; sunny in forenoon, but much cloud in afternoon. After lunch rode to Glenasmole & walked up nearly to head of upper lake on E. side & back. Vegetation very backward, but a few willows out by lake & lower down, but no "growth" & nothing that one could sweep. Saw red ♀︎ cones on some larch trees at E. end of upper dam, but anemones not out & no Chippchaffs heard. Sour one ♂︎ Andrena flying round ♂︎ willow in swamp opposite "the hermits" cottage, below lodge at lower dam, but no Andrena clarkella seen at bank by avenue just below this & no holes seen. No other hymenoptera seen. Upper lake about 3 ft. below overflow! 22nd March 1944. In afternoon rode to Lucan & back, but found demesne not yet open on week-days for the season & so did not attempt to collect. Saw blackthorn well out along roadsides in several places. A queer day, almost windless, but E. draught in Dublin & SW. from The Greenhills to Lucan, with heavy black clouds beyond & evidently rain, as train coming from S. wet on roofs of trucks. Some misty rain later in Dublin.