Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Puss as in pussy cat, not pus as in that 'orrible stuff that oozes out of an abscess...

Towards the back end of last year there was a programme of cutting back the overgrown edges to the rides in our local woods...


A rainy day for the workmen in Comfort's Wood

This left a lot of debris lying around, especially the large stalks of the hedge(?) parsley and just to the left in this picture, I found what I knew was a moth cocoon on the ground. It looked like it might be a Puss Moth but I wasn't sure. Anyhow, I rescued it and nurtured it through the winter until on the 27th of April this year, the adult moth emerged...



Sure enough, it was a Puss Moth and what looked to be a beautiful male judging by the antennae size...




It was such a rare treat to be able to see the abdomen markings which once the wings are fully inflated of course, you can't see, as they are held across the abdomen unless the moth is flying...












I was intrigued to see how the wings gradually inflated over a period of about three hours,from first emergence to ready to fly. These really are beautiful moths and so impressive when in pristine condition like this. 








The yellow tint to the wings disappeared as they inflated further and dried...






There's a head and eyes in there somewhere!

And so that was the emergence of the Puss Moth. I know that I don't usually dedicate a whole update to just one subject, but this was such a fantastic thing to witness and I wanted to share my experience through these photographs.

Until the next time...

Monday, April 27, 2015

I've been searching in Comfort's Wood for Hazel...


Time to welcome back the leaf-roller weevils to our local woodland. As soon as the hazel leaves begin to appear, I start looking out for these fantastic creatures. With its brick red elytra you would think it would be easy to spot. But being only 6-8mm in length, when it is not moving, it can look just like a part of the tree or at least, a new bud. 

Apoderus coryli (A Hazel leaf-roller weevil)

Apoderus coryli (A Hazel leaf-roller weevil)

Apoderus coryli (A Hazel leaf-roller weevil)


Another bright little thing I found recently was this 22-spot ladybird. Probably the brightest of our yellow ladybirds and added to that, how many other native ladybirds have a 28 letter name? This one is even smaller than the weevil at about 3-4.5mm which is tiny compared to say, the common 7-spot at 5-8mm. Unusually, this one feeds on mildew rather than munching on aphids.

Psyllobora virgintiduopunctata (A 22-spot Ladybird)
Compare it with this next ladybird to get an idea of just how yellow the 22-spot is. But then you might expect it to be yellower than the one below as that one is actually called and orange ladybird, despite it having a yellow head and legs.

Halyzia 16-guttata (An Orange Ladybird)




Issus coleoptratus! There...I can even write that without having to refer to my reference books. Why can I remember the scientific name of this hopper? Because it occurs quite often locally and I have found it regularly over the years. I think this is at the mid-instar stage, so it'll have a bit of growing to do yet. There is only one other similar species, I.muscaeformis, but it is much rarer and not one that I have ever found...or.....have I? Maybe I wouldn't be able to tell the difference if I did spot one?

Issus coleoptratus (A Planthopper)

Issus coleoptratus (A Planthopper)



Whilst on the subject of small creatures, this spider is only about 5mm. This is a female. The males look totally different and don't have the pale legs & brightly coloured palps.

Heliophanus flavipes (A Jumping Spider)

Heliophanus flavipes (A Jumping Spider)

Returning to ladybirds for a moment; what do these next two have in common do you think? Well, although sadly the second one was in a bad way for some reason, they are both 10-spot ladybirds. Variations of the same species, and yet neither have 10 spots, confusing isn't it?






Hmmm..how can I link into the next photo? Oh! I know, ladybirds are sometimes called ladybugs and I have just started to see some real bugs. True bugs that is. C'mon...I tried...I had a go? Ahem...(presses on regardless)...this is the common flower bug. That is its name, it isn't necessarily a bug that frequents common flowers, although, it sometimes does. Ever feel as though your digging yourself into a hole? Here's the photograph... 

Anthocoris nemorum (A Common Flower Bug)
Just to confuse things further, this was not on a flower of any kind but a nettle. Now you're going to tell me that a nettle is a flower I suppose? Let's move on to a moth then...



This longhorn moth is just starting to appear in the wonderfully named Comfort's Wood close to where I live and there are usually good numbers in springtime. It's a male and I think is Adela reaumurella, but it might be A.rufimitrella as it's tricky to be certain from a photo. You can see how long the antennae are in the males, I couldn't even get it all in the frame here.






In the same woods I found a large white butterfly feeding on the wild flowers.I know these have featured in my recent updates too but it's always worth sharing photos of spring butterflies in my opinion...


Pieris brassicae A Large White Butterfly)

Pieris brassicae A Large White Butterfly)

I also had a chance to photograph one in the garden, early one morning...




Well that's about it for another update, I think this one is somewhere around update number 157 and I should be back with another fairly soon.

Until the next time...


Sunday, April 19, 2015

Green, Light Emerald, White with an Orange Tip...

The first thing I need to say right at the start of this update is that I have had several enquiries about the Blue-tits and so let me tell you about them; I have to report that they have stopped visiting the nest-box over the past few days. It seemed to happen suddenly and not only that, but I haven't even seen them in, or around the garden. 

Perhaps the noisy neighbours are to blame, or even the local cats that seem to be constantly on the prowl close-by? There is also the possibility that something has happened to one or both of them. It's really disappointing as I was looking forward to having them and observing the nest building and raising of chicks. I did my best to encourage them and will do the same again next year. I might re-site the box though.



Shall we start with some spider pictures then? Oh yes please JJ! You know how much we all love spiders...

Click on any photo for a larger view on black
Diaea dorsata

Diaea dorsata

Diaea dorsata

This is Diaea dorsata, the Green Crab-spider. A reasonably common spider in the southern half of the UK but scarcer as you venture north and not recorded at all in Ireland. It is strongly associated with woodland, where it can be found on trees such as oak, yew and conifers. This one was actually on hazel. A short-lived spider, probably a year at best.


My first sighting and photo of an Orange-tip Butterfly
Moving along then, as I appreciate that there are a few poor souls who find spiders pedestrian subjects. Something much more mainstream here with my first sighting of the early spring butterflies that surely nobody could object to?
The photo above was my first 'snap' of the species and demonstrates my technique of getting what I like to refer to as an 'insurance shot'. I usually try to just get something on the camera's sensor as a record of the sighting, and then move in for what I hope will prove to be a better series of shots if I am lucky...

Anthocharis cardamines (Orange-tip Butterflies)

I caught these two soon after, doing the jiggy-jiggy thing. Blimey, only just emerged and they're at it already.
 Before the orange-tips arrived, there were already good numbers of small tortoiseshell butterflies on the cuckoo-flower...

Aglais urticae (Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies)




Peiris brassicae (A Large White Butterfly)
I have been looking after three Large White pupae over the winter and one has now emerged. The other two are pretty close also. This photo (above) was taken around 30 minutes after it eclosed.

This picture is of the chrysalis as it looked a few hours before the butterfly emerged. I just love how much detail you can already make out. You can see the eyes, wings, antennae and even how the proboscis lays flat at this stage and only curls up once the insect has emerged... 



I took the opportunity to get a close-up photo as well whilst it was waiting for its wings to inflate fully...







Let's move on to the case of the invisible caterpillar shall we? Here it is(nt)...




C'mon, you have to agree that the camouflage here is pretty amazing? What's even more amazing for me is the fact that I managed to see it at all! Once the macro has been focused on it, the true detail is revealed in all its glory...




Shine some light on it and suddenly, it doesn't seem to be half as well camouflaged? Yes, this is the same caterpillar that you can(t) see in the previous photograph. I think this is Campaea margaritaria,a Light Emerald larva.

On the subject of moths, I have run the moth trap three times now and had about the same amount of moths! Hopefully now that the weather is improving, my count will increase. I did get this early caddisfly on one night recently...   

Stenophylax permistus

Stenophylax permistus


I think this one could be the species I have named it as but of course, as always, I am willing to be corrected by anyone who knows differently. 
 





I always love to find something new to me and so when I spotted this next critter, I really was hoping that it wasn't the click beetle that it seemed to resemble..

Orchesia undulata (A False Darking Beetle)


According to the Royal Entomological Society Book of British Insects, this family of beetles (Melandryidae) are all associated with fungi and most are confined to ancient woodland. Nearly all are scarce species, with Orchesia undulata perhaps the most frequently found. It also seems that this beetle was first discovered in the UK in about 1907 and locally at that, in West Kent. 

Meanwhile, in the garden I came across another little beetle sitting pretty on the lavender. This one is the Pea Weevil (Sitonia lineatus) which is a pest of both beans and peas apparently. Not that it worries me as I have neither...

A Pea Weevil (Sitonia lineatus)

I guess I should think about winding up this update then as it's getting rather long already. Perhaps I'll leave you with one more beetle, this one is the rather shy and retiring cereal leaf beetle...


Until the next time...

Thursday, April 02, 2015

To quote the Fab Four, 'I Should Have Known Better'...

I love it when nature overrules me and makes me look like a numpty. It happened twice this week too. The first time I had been having a conversation with a friend about spider parasites (as you do) and said that, I had found lots of spiders over the years with wasp larva parasites and they were always sited behind the head, where it was impossible for the spider to reach or remove them. 
Blow me down, if I didn't find one myself a couple of days later and it was in a slightly different spot...






This spider was tiny, here's a photo that should give you a better idea...



I'm not exactly sure of the species of this little one, other than, I thought it looked quite similar to this next one that I photographed in a different location, about a week ago. I had considered that it might be Araneidae and in particular, Araniella opisthographa but it's quite variable in colour. It could be a different species altogether of course...





You'll be wanting to hear about my second faux pas no doubt? Oh it was nothing really, other than another of those coincidences that often happen with Mother Nature. I commented on a friend's photograph of a dock bug that I saw on an online photo site and said something about the fact that I still hadn't seen one this year. Shortly after, I found one. Of all possible places, on the wall of the house...


Coreus marginatus-A Dock Bug

These are really commonplace locally and probably by the end of the season, I shall be ignoring them altogether, but it's always exciting to see my first of the year. This one did provide a couple of interesting asides too. Have a look at the following picture and see if you know what the odd looking white 'spot' is...




A closer look shows more detail and also makes me think that those holes must be spiracles used for breathing and I hadn't noticed them in this location on dock bugs before...




This last shot shows the little projections between the antennae that can be used to separate this bug from similar species...





I have been lucky enough to find a couple of cool beetles since my last update. I'll share my favourite in a bit, but this was a neat find as well I thought; it's one of those ladybirds that isn't a ladybird at all...

Endomychus coccineus-A False Ladybird Beetle
Often mistaken for a ladybird, but the red colour is a bluff, to deter predators by trying to look like a nasty tasting ladybird. You might recall that one year I found the striking larvae of this little beetle?

False Ladybird Larva

False Ladybird Pupa


I said that the false ladybird beetle was small, and at around 5-6mm I guess it is, but you can half that for this next critter. Once again it's a beetle-although not the one I have already teased you with, no this time it is a weevil...


A tiny weevil-possibly Nedyus species?



Last year I had some larvae of the puss moth and they were amazing to rear and observe...

A Puss Moth Caterpillar-Cerura vinula

well two days ago one of the adult moths emerged...

A Puss Moth-Cerura vinula


This picture shows the moth with the pupal case that it emerged from...




It spent the day with me whilst it recovered from eclosion and dried its wings etc. Then on what was a fairly warm spring evening, I carefully placed it into the garden in a sheltered spot to allow it to gain its freedom. The following morning it had gone.




And here's that other beetle I mentioned earlier in this update. It's a longhorn that I only found for the first time last year and so that makes this one just my second sighting. Rahgium mordax is usually the first longhorn I find, making this a nice early sighting of R.bifisciatum. Actually R.mordax likes hawthorn, and that's where I spotted my beetle (I think) and so for a moment, assumed it was that one, as they are fairly similar in appearance....at a glance...wearing dark glasses...facing the other way...with your eyes shut!

Rhagium bifisciatum-The Two-banded Longhorn Beetle




And a closer look at this impressive beetle...




Just time for a couple of oddities that you might be able to help with? First up is this, well...pupal case I suppose? But what might have emerged from it? The only clues I can offer are that it was located at the base of a large, old oak tree and there were Andrena species bees and bee-flies present....




Then there are these little white larvae that I spotted under bark in a damp area of woodland...




Not too much detail on these as it was a 'snap' with the pocket camera but I haven't found a match yet.

That about wraps up this update. Back soon with another.

Until the next time...