Is size important?

That was my reply. But what was the question? I'll tell you before the metaphorical ink has dried on this virtual paper. Well I always did enjoy doing things in a different order. Or as my dad would say in his best erudite manner, "No wonder it doesn't look right, you've got the whole thing arse about face." Well, he was a 'well versed' man! I remember him reciting his version of the famous 'Casabianca' poem (The boy stood on the burning deck).

Let's crack on then (no pun intended) and get this mini bug-fest underway- 

This is only a phone grab, but I was so pleased to see this Small Tortoiseshell butterfly at a local garden centre. I hadn't seen any this year until this one. If sightings are down everywhere, it's a worrying sign. Especially given this headline from The Guardian newspaper last year: 

Fears are growing for the small tortoiseshell butterfly after this once-common garden insect continued its baffling decline despite the hot summer proving a boon to most species.

The small tortoiseshell suffered its worst summer in the history of the Big Butterfly Count with sightings falling by 32% compared with last year, according to the charity Butterfly Conservation.

The sharp-eyed amongst you will have noticed that I have changed the header for my blog: I do this from time to time, just to keep things fresh and so don't worry if you don't like it, it will be changed again sometime soon. I have been messing around with digital art effects, the picture above is a digital oil painting of my damselfly photograph from a while ago.

The point is though that I also changed the wording to 'It's a fascinating world' and here is an example of just why nature in particular fascinates me....

The photo on the left is of a Parent bug brooding her eggs. The one on the right, a 'clutch' of Hawthorn Shieldbug eggs.

There's no place here for sarcasm Spock! Anyhow, sarcasm is just one of the many services I myself can offer. I have yet to share the fascinating facts, but feel they are about to spill out onto this page right now: yes, here they come...

...the Hawthorn Shieldbug measures about 13-15mm in length. The Parent bug 7-9mm. Why then is it that the Parent bug (smaller) lays larger eggs, and there can be up to 50 or more; yet the Hawthorn shieldbug (larger) lays smaller eggs and usually only around 10 to 14? 

As far as I can tell, they both only produce one generation per year, so that isn't a factor. I wonder if the Parent bug is more prone to predation or parasitic attacks? Usually when nature provides large broods, it is with the expectation that  mortality rates will be high. 

But the difference in egg size? Now that does puzzle and fascinate me.

Here's another example...

I am not sure of the species of this Geometer caterpillar, it could be a Red-green Carpet Moth larva, and I guess most wouldn't even give it a second glance.

But to me it was amazing: how does it know that its best chance of not being spotted by predators is to align itself along the leaf vein? From a distance it will (and did) look like just a bump on the vein. Caterpillars don't have reasoning ability. I guess it's just hard-wired to do that huh?

These survey sheets represent just some of the work I have been doing to try and build a picture of the invertebrate life in one of my local woods. As far as I am aware, it has only been surveyed once before and my findings have far exceeded those records already. 

It's a continuing project that started in 2011 and so new species to add are becoming harder to find with each passing year. When one does appear though, it is quite exciting, and especially so if that find is something scarce like the beetle I located a couple of days ago...

Platycis minutus - A Net-winged Beetle

This is Platycis minutus, a Net-winged beetle of the family Lycidae. The latest information I can find states that there are just four species in the UK and " All are scarce as they are found in association with ancient woodland areas, where the larvae can be found in white-rot areas of decay in dead wood."

This was indeed the ancient part of the woods where I spotted the beetle and it was foraging I guess, on bracken. There seems to be some confusion as to just what these beetles eat. I have read they feed on tiny invertebrates, slime mould, plant juices, pollen and nectar, and even that they are short lived and don't feed at all!

Meanwhile, in the garden:

Plagiognathus arbustorum - a Plant Bug

At least I think that's what it is. I trawled through the 'British Bugs' website several times looking for confirmation and it seems the closest match. Always happy to be corrected though because these can be really tricky, especially for an amateur like me.

Hmmm...I still haven't gotten around to explaining the opening to this update yet have I. Well I guess...

Yes: the time is now!

Big breath, and...here goes:

I was in the very same woods where I found the net-winged beetle and as per usual, was checking for something completely different to what I found. There has been an increase of Painted Lady butterflies recently: here's one I photographed:

And so what I was doing was checking the thistle to see if I could find any eggs or larvae. I was starting to get a little frustrated at not being able to locate anything, when after checking dozens of plants, I spotted this lovely creature...

 Larinus planus - The Thistle-bud Weevil

This particular weevil is not liked by some; it feeds primarily on thistle buds, with the larvae being most destructive to them. In North America it has been used as a biocontrol agent against the Canada thistle, or creeping thistle as we call it.

I feel however  that everything is here for a reason and is a valued part of the ecology. It is mankind's messing with nature that is the problem.

Anyhow, back to the story: I squatted down to photograph the weevil. Once I get into macro photography of an insect, I tend to be oblivious to anything going on around me and pay little attention to anything other than concentrating on getting the best picture I can muster.

I took a couple of shots and stood up to see a woman with a dog (thankfully on a lead for once) observing me. "Were you talking to yourself just then" she asked with a smile. "Not exactly" I said, "I was thanking a weevil."

"You were thanking a weevil", she mocked! "Well, yes. It was kind enough to allow me a couple of photos, and so I thought I should at least thank it" I explained."

She raised her eyebrows, twisted her mouth to one side, drew a breath, paused... and walked away! Phew.

Corizus hyoscyami - A Rhopalid bug

It's good to see this attractive bug in the garden once again. They appear during August - September most years, and so must be well established now.

Bug-eyed and legless...

3 Min read

Of course I could immediately be shooting myself in the foot here, after all, this is going out over the web, and blogs can be notoriously lacking in factual content themselves. However, like a demented farmer, desperate to beat the failing light and get home for his supper, I shall plough on regardless. 

Take a look at a few photos I came across on the internet when I Googled 'Green Lacewing Larvae'

There were many more such examples, even videos. My problem is that most of these images do not depict a Green Lacewing Larva. Proof positive that we need to be very vigilant when using this 'ere interweb thingy. How can I be sure? Because this is what a larva of the Green Lacewing looks like...

A totally different insect. These have the nickname of Trash Bugs. That 'trash' on its back is a mix of plant debris and the remains of prey it has consumed and is using as camouflage and to dissuade any predator from attacking. 

It's a tad more complicated than that though, as you might expect. Some Green Lacewing larvae may not cover themselves in this way; but thankfully, there are other differences. Brown Lacewing larvae tend to be larger, have a slightly different body shape and can be more colourful. They also have shorter, less curved mandibles. Here's a couple of photographs of one I found in my garden...

This one is attacking a ladybird lava, possibly a 16-spot?

Quite odd looking aren't they, almost crocodilian (is that even a word?) In the words of Randy Bachman though, 'You ain't seen nothing yet'. How about gettin' yer peepers around this next critter...

It's a....Fly! 

Yes, most un-fly-like isn't it.

But that's what it is. Belonging to the Mecoptera order, and Panorpidae (Common Scorpionfly) family. These flies are called Scorpion Flies after, and here comes another stranger than strange fact: 'the males having enlarged genitals that look similar to the stingers of Scorpions. Well, we all have our cross to bear eh? My photo is of a female; females have genitals that look similar to Sting! (There's a joke there, but it's probably too risque to elaborate).

Instead, why don't we develop this odd/strange/weird fetish a tad further? As a PayPal employee said to me when I was struggling to get her to understand the problem I was having with their attitude..."Let's take ownership of this".

If you have been a regular reader of these updates over the past 8 years or so, you will have seen many oddities, but I can guarantee, yes...GUARANTEE, that you will have not seen what follows in this video.

This is stranger than a strange man who is a stranger in a strange town, walking around in a daze listening to 'Strangely, strange but oddly normal, by Dr. Strangely Strange' on his iPod! It's even weirder than Weird Al Yankovic...

Apologies for the quality of this video; it's only a (cropped) phone vid.

This is the detached leg of a Harvestman!

Shall I explain? 'We think you should JJ' - OK then, I will. When threatened by predators, Harvestmen play dead. If pursued, they will detach a leg (or legs) to escape. The detached legs continue to move after they have been separated from the body of the Harvestman and serve to distract predators.

This twitching is due to the  pacemakers,  located at the end of the first long segment of their legs. The pacemaker sends a pulse of signals along the nerves of the leg that causes the muscles to repeatedly expand and contract even after the leg is detached from the body.

While some Harvestman's legs twitch for a minute, others have been recorded to twitch up to an hour. If a Harvestman should lose ALL of its legs, it will just bum around!

Hmmm...too many. Time for a few pictures I think...

Allacma fusca - A Springtail

Bertkauia lucifuga - A Barkfly

What do these two photographs have in common? Well, firstly I was pleased with both finds. But what intrigued me was that until I got the macro lens on them, I thought these were the same species of critter. Neither one was more than a few millimetres in length and so I suppose it's excusable.

However, the first is a springtail (Collembola) and one that I have only ever found on fence-posts. This one was a couple of metres up an oak tree.

The second is a Barkfly, and a really interesting find as it seems to be quite scarce. Possibly under-recorded, but no records in my area at all.

Next up - Little and Large...

No, not that Little and Large! These...

Red-legged Shieldbug

A large (Red-legged) Shieldbug. And a little...

Coreus marginatus - A Dock Bug nymph

...Dock Bug nymph. I know this looks quite large here, but it was less than 5mm in reality. I have seen these at various stages previously, but never this tiny. I think this could be a first instar; directly out of the egg.

Time for one last weirdo photo, before this weirdo gets back in his box until the next update...

This is a photograph of a Peacock butterfly pupa, bursting out of the back of a caterpillar. I once filmed the whole process with a Comma butterfly. Here is a LINK to that video from 2011...

*Apologies to  anyone who has had problems with getting the email version of this update. It seems Blogger has sent out some incomplete notifications.