JJ finds a Lemon Spider...

Time for another update, and after all the silliness and frivolity of the past few episodes, I am attempting to post a "sensible" update, as requested (the other request was a physical impossibility).

So; 'Titter ye not'...

Here cungs poto nunger one then (excuse my diction, I am trying to keep a stiff upper lip)...

Do you mind keeping the noise down, I've got a splitting head!

I guess that lots of us are using the lockdown time to do some clearing out at home? Well anyway, I decided on a whim that a good spring clean of my studio would be in order. Tucked down between the carpet and skirting was this mummified caterpillar exoskeleton. It must have been there a few years I guess and looks like one of the hawk-moths. 

How about a caterpillar that is very much alive now...

A Pale Brindled Beauty  Moth Caterpillar - Phigalia pilosaria

Well that's what I think it is anyway: as I always say though, I am only an amateur and as 'they' are always messin' with names, for all I know it could now be known as a Hairy-pimply Lockdown Looper! Oh yes, for any of you eagle-eyed chaps or chapesses, I do think it has recently moulted (or molted if you are in the USA) and I do think that is the discarded moult, extreme bottom left of this photograph.

Note the safety line attaching the caterpillar to the leaf too. Some caterpillars use a safety line of silk (produced from glands in their mouths) much like a bungee cord, so that they don't actually hit the ground and can later crawl back up to continue grazing. 

Sometimes, if you are very lucky and in the right place at the right time, you will be presented with a photo opportunity that you cannot decline: your subject will be sitting pretty, with a nice clean background and all you have to do is point the camera and press the button. That's an abridged version of the story of this next bee photograph...

Even so, as this lovely bee was so very compliant, I took half a dozen photos just to ensure I had at least one useable one. In fact something very rare happened; they were all useable. I think they call that Sod's/Murphy's law? I think that's the appropriate axiom...or is that when things are bound to go wrong? 

Oh come on! It's not that scary is it? This is a crab spider (Thomisidae) and I think it is Xysticus species: in fact I think it is 'Xysticus lanio'. I think that because somebody told me that's what it is. As always though, I am not 100% positive; especially as this species is listed as 'Uncommon, regional' and 'scarce in southern and eastern England', which is exactly where I am. 

By the way, crab spiders because yes, they can walk sideways and backwards like crabs. 

Luckily this is my humourless update, and so I will be making no jokes pertaining to the female anatomy: instead I shall  just inform you that this is an Oak Gall and possibly an Acorn Plum Gall. If that's correct, then the gall is formed by the wasp 'Amphibolips quercusjuglans'. 

Yes...another one! 
Don't worry though, it's only a lemon spider...

Well that's what I call it. You have to admit it looks like it has a lemon for a body?

It's actually 'Misumena Vatia', the Goldenrod Crab Spider. I have never seen one quite this shape though. They usually look like this...

Perhaps the yellow one is gravid? Oh yes, they have the remarkable ability to change colour too.

"How many spiders are too many?"

That was a rhetorical statement by the way. So let's move on to something you might find more palatable shall we.

Rhopalus subrufus

Recent years have seen a real drop in the number of true bugs that I am seeing, and so finding good numbers of these Rhopalid bugs in local woodland a few days ago was heartening. This family is closely related to the Squashbugs and consists of 11 species.

I did also find this tiny bug; this time in the garden. These teeny green bugs (3-5mm) can be real tricky to identify from a photo and so I think my best guess here would be Orthotylus species.

I'll leave you with this first photograph of a nut weevil for this year...

I think that everything points to this being Curculio nucum rather than C.glandium. Especially given it was seen on hazel and this species is associated hazel, whereas it's oak for C. glandium.

(This video will be too large to show in the emailed version - you will need to view online)

The bugs have their say...

You might know that we insects and bugs are having a hard time right now. What with plummeting numbers due to climate changes and intensive farming, and now this damn Covid 19 thing. Well, it's time we were heard and so JJ, kind soul that he is, has given over this update to allow us to vent!

Let's start with one of the lucky ones...

A male Orange-tip Butterfly

Yes, you may well be thinking what have I got to gripe about? Well not as much as some I agree, but let's begin with my name shall we? I say 'my name' but it's only a moniker given me by an uneducated, upstart human being, and let's face it what do they know; get more sense out of a weevil! 

I mean...'Orange Tip'...do you see any orange at the tip of my wings? No...'cos there ain't any! And the girlies, who I spend most of my time chasing, don't have any orange: mind you, I am hopin' that some of mine might rub off on one or two, if ya get my drift!

Basically though, I am one of the lucky ones. I seem to be able to patrol up and down the woodland rides without being stopped by a police officer asking if my journeys were essential; although, it could be that they leave me alone because of my injured wing? They assume I am out for medical reasons.

Aphelia paleana- A tortrix moth larva

That's good for you mister, but what about me, Timothy Tortrix? You will rarely see me because I like to live concealed inside a spun, or rolled leaf - yes, social distancing is no problem for me. But I am worried; look at all these spots! I don't remember having those before I moulted last. I'm sure I have the virus: do you come out in spots when you have got it? 

Scathophaga stercoraria-A Yellow Dung Fly 

What's that stupid butterfly whinging about regards his given name? Look at mine...bloody 'Dung Fly'! This lockdown is no good for me either - I need to...well, don't want to get too graphic here, but I do love to be able to have sex on a fresh cow pat. Oh yes! Nothing finer in this world: and the fragrance...Mmmmmmm! 

My partner loves it too, 'cos she will then lay her eggs on said pat. But I have to admit that I am struggling to find fresh poop. I think all the cows must be self-isolating indoors listening to their stereos. They love a bit of Mooosic apparently.

Oh dear, did we get in trouble...

So there we all were, just hanging...trying to keep the chilly wind off our delicate undercarriages, when a local plod starts giving it large with the old rabbit! "NO social gatherings allowed" he bellows. "But, we are not out and about as a group, we have been here in this exact spot all winter" I tell him.

"Are you all from the same family?" he asks...I mean, c'mon! We're beetles, how the hell do we know anything about our parentage? We're not even fungus beetles, at least they care for and tend their young. And so I answer "Could be, although I distinctly recall my father saying to me personally, right, I'm off, you strange little maggot".

He mumbles something about being flippant, and goes on his way. But not before insisting we should disperse before he returns at dusk.

Eurydema oleracea~ A Brassica Shieldbug

And so the fly and the butterfly are complaining about their common names are they? Well consider this: my scientific name is 'Brassica', and that's just what I am; Brassic! Ok, ok...I know, it doesn't really work as a written word, you have to speak it (so to speak) because the phrase is; 'Boracic...boracic lint', meaning skint. But you can hardly expect me to excel in grammar can you? I'm a blinking bug not an English lit student.

The point is, how am I going to pay this £60 fine I collected, just for venturing out into the garden to feed? As I protested to the police officer, "One has to eat". I mean, besides not carrying cash, I have no concept of money at all. Still, they can chase me for it I guess, after all I couldn't give them a mailing address,  I don't have a permanent one, I am itinerant.

A Puss Moth Caterpillar

I really do think that us bugs are being targeted during this pandemic you know. I swear I was just getting in my one hour per day exercise, I hadn't even left this leaf and was minding my own, keeping a safe distance from everyone, when  I was taken aback by a loud shout of "Oy! You", which caused me to instinctively  raise my 'tail feathers' like this; and before you could say metamorphosis, I was in trouble with the law for indecent behaviour. 

"I'm not sure I even know what indecent behaviour is", I protested. "Offending against generally accepted standards of propriety or good taste" came the reply from the bluebottle. "How so?" I inquired.  "Take a look at the picture below" he said. "Do you see now?"...

Leave it out! Who is that anyway? For starters, I can't look at that photo properly can I...I'm just a photograph myself. I sent him on his way and flipped him the bird! Well, I would have done if I'd had any fingers.

At least there seems to be no law against our feathered friend exercising outdoors yet...

Springtails are responsible for the smell of spring...

Yes spring has sprung and this year more than any we need to appreciate and celebrate it. With that in mind, I have just one word to share...Geosmin!

Bear with, bear with, this is going to get interesting...

An article published 6th April this year entitled: 

'Research unearths the science behind the smell of spring'

stated this; 'You may not have heard of geosmin, but wherever you may be on this planet, it's likely that you could recognise its smell.'

The secret, according to the study published in Nature Microbiology, lies in an ancestral mutual relationship between the soil bacteria Streptomyces and primitive, six-legged creatures called springtails (Collembola).

Scientists suspected  some kind of animal or insect  might help distribute the Streptomyces spores. And so to cut a long story short, they conducted a series of experiments which proved the theory.

The studies found that geosmin chemical signals  guide springtails to Streptomyces as a privileged food source. In return, springtails help disperse Streptomyces spores in two ways: by defecation and by distribution of spores that stick to their bodies.

So next time you walk in the woods or dig your garden and notice the smell of spring, spare a thought for the springtails and Streptomyces toiling in the soil below; an example of chemical communication that’s endured for 450 million years.

(Not sure if this works or not; it's just one of those 'sound and vision' phone photos that I thought I would try)

Well that was one of three discoveries I have made over the past few days.

The second one was that springtails sometimes live inside ants nests. It wasn't until I moved a plant pot in the garden and spotted some tiny white moving dots amongst the ants beneath, that I discovered a new species to me. 

Yes, this is 'Cyphoderus albinus' a minute species of springtail that lives with ants. Thought to be fairly frequent here in the UK, but under-recorded. I could only find one record from my part of the world and that was down in Sedlescombe Sussex. 

Cyphoderus albinus - A Springtail (Collembola)

This was the third discovery:

And just what was this third discovery JJ? Well, I had not realised that silver birch trees have both male and female flowers. Male flowers are long and drooping, whilst female are shorter and erect (stop it!).

It was the beautiful purple stigmas that attracted me; something I had not previously noticed. 

What else is to be celebrated in spring? Well procreation is. Procreation is the most basic and important function. Without it nature is good for one generation only. Everywhere you look in springtime the insects and bugs seem to be only too aware of this fact and appear to split their time equally between eating and making more insects and bugs (in fact at times, doing both)...

I think these might be Flesh flies?

Propylea quatourdecimpunctata - 14-spot Ladybirds

What a name eh! I think quatourdecim means 14 and punctata for 'spotted'. Much easier to stick to the shortened version of 'P14'.

I've been seeing a number of ladybird species lately...

The orange ladybird - Halyzia sedecimguttata

The orange ladybird - Halyzia sedecimguttata

A 22-spot Ladybird - Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata

A 22-spot Ladybird - Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata

Whilst we are talking about overly complicated scientific names, I apologise once again if any of these written here are not current: the powers that be are always changing established names and I don't seem to have either the time, or the inclination to keep up to date (although I daresay I will eventually).

Staying with beetles for a moment (because of course ladybirds are just colourful beetles) I have spotted my first one of these for 2020...

A Hazel Leaf-rolling Weevil - Apoderus coryli 

I find these weevils every year, and weevils of course are also beetles. I found this one on the 8th of February, making it my earliest find by 2 days. Judging by the amount of debris it's carrying around, I would hazard a guess that it had only just emerged.

Another weevil I spotted in the same woods; not sure about the identity of this one yet, but possibly Otiorhynchus?

Sneaky bugs!

Yes, it's that time again. Here I sit at the laptop constructing another update for you. As per usual this will involve sourcing material, writing the text, several interruptions, toilet breaks, caffeine stops, proofreading and heaven knows what else, before I deem it suitable to share.  However, hang in there, it'll be worth the wait (he says with fingers firmly crossed under the table).

Question one: What do you know about Water Cricket?

No, not underwater cricket!

No, not that kind of water cricket!

I am talking about the water cricket bug...

Velia caprai - A Water Cricket

Question two: What do you know about  'Kleptoparasitism'?

Well water crickets are fascinating little creatures and they are subject to Kleptoparasitism. That's all very well you say, but what is Kelptomania or whatever that was you said? 

I shall tell you exactly what it is: not only that, some other strange facts about this creature as well.

Kleptoparasitism (literally, parasitism by theft) is a form of feeding in which one animal takes prey or other food that was caught, collected, or otherwise prepared by another animal, including stored food. Sneaky huh?

Worse still is that this particular bug spits! Yep...spits! 

If its intended prey starts to get away, the cricket can eject a kind of spit from its mouth, which has the effect of lowering the surface tension in front of it, which then allows it to travel at twice its normal speed. This behaviour is known as expansion skating or relaxation swimming. I tried it once at the local Lido, but couldn't get away with the spitting!

Talking of spitting: another strange fact about this bug is that it is distasteful, but then we knew that with the spitting? No...it is distasteful to predatory fish. In fact so distasteful is it to brown trout that they will spit out any crickets ingested without harming them.

A final fact is that they use all of  their six legs at once; like a kind of three man rowing boat. Of course these are not really crickets at all. They belong to the order Hemiptera (True bugs). I found this one by a local stream, which pleased me because they are supposedly indicators of good water quality.

This was actually my first sighting of a true bug this year. A parent bug on hawthorn...

Elasmucha grisea - A Parent Bug

The same day I came across this tiny (possibly 3mm) caterpillar...

It was also on hawthorn but I have no clue as to its identity yet. It could be a Torticidae larva, as they tend to have similar markings, but would probably need it to grow a bit before being able to risk a definite ID.

This on the other hand is a house caterpillar. At least that's where I found it - in the house.

I got quite excited when I also saw this little bug on the hawthorn...

My excitement was short lived though: when I got the photo on to the laptop, I could see it was nothing more than a giant aphid.

Hawthorn was quite productive that day regards finding bugs. It's also where I spotted this ultra-cool weevil...

A Blue Weevil -Possibly Involvulus caeruleus  (Rhynchitidae)

I actually found two on different bushes...

Are you imagining me here writing all this out? I only ask because I am doing so whilst the iPod is currently playing John Lennon's anthem 'Imagine'

Erm...
Do you recall recent posts about beetles I have found that seem to have fungi growing from them? Well Lordy, Lordy, hush my mouth...here's yet another...

Now I have once again tried to research what is going on here and the only thing I have uncovered thus far is an article about Cordyceps. 'Cordyceps are a fungi that infects the host (in this case a beetle) and then instructs the victim to climb as high as possible, where it will die and sprout fruiting bodies. Eventually, the fruiting bodies will erupt and ejecting spores to the wind, which will travel far and wide looking for new hosts.'

Personally I am not convinced this is the same fungi, but possibly. 

Why the laughter JJ? 

Oh because I just checked back on what I wrote about writing while listening to John Lennon, and had quite genuinely made a typo that saw another word made from the word that was supposed to be 'this' (think about it!)

I'll leave you to ponder on that.