Dragons

Moth trapping at a private site in south Bedfordshire yielded very little, but as the day warmed up a few odonata were to be seen.

Migrant Hawker

Small Red-eyed Damselfly

Common Darter

Pantilius tunicatus

The Mirid bug Pantilius tunicatus turned up in the moth trap one morning. It turns to red as it ages, apparently.

Pantilius tunicatus

Green Shield Bug

A 5th (final instar) Green Shield Bug on the garden Buddleia.

Green Shield Bug
final instar

Oblique Carpet

I returned home from work at 02:30 to discover a small Geometrid in the Skinner trap that I didn't recognize. It was potted for further study the following morning, and it turned out to be a complete surprise - Oblique Carpet !

It frequents bogs, fens and marshes, the larvae feeding on bedstraws. There are two generations: months 5/6 and 7/8.
There are only a handful of records in Bedfordshire, the last was in 1973 !

Oblique Carpet
Orthonama vittata

Oblique Carpet
Orthonama vittata

Ledra aurita

This distinctive leafhopper Ledra aurita was in the Skinner moth trap this morning. At 13-18mm it is the largest UK leafhopper, and shows a preference for lichen-covered oaks.

Ledra aurita

The Gem

Quite a few moths around, the action tailing off around 01:00. Then, with a collection of moths potted up for identification in the morning, it was up the stairs to Bedfordshire.

One of the 'unknowns' proved to be The Gem (Orthonama obstipata). Not wishing to make any schoolboy errors, confirmation was sought from the macro recorders.

It is a sexually dimorphic immigrant, distributed over much of Europe, and an annual migrant to the UK. The last 'Gem' year was in 2006, apparently, when it was generally good for migrants as a whole. The recorders state that there are nine previous records in the database in Bedfordshire.

The Gem
Orthonama obstipata

Kos: 05/05/2011

Some of the wildlife of the Greek island of Kos.

Large Wall Brown
Lasiommata maera

Unknown predator feeding

Starred Agama
Laudakia stellio

Synaphe moldavica

Sandhouse Lane NR

Another fine April day with plenty of wildlife to enjoy. A small micro moth turned out to be Grapholita jungiella which was new for me - other day-fliers included Common Heath and Pyrausta purpuralis. There were  plenty of butterflies too:

• Dingy Skipper - 1
• Small White - 1
• Green Hairstreak - 9
• Small Copper - 2
• Holly Blue - 1
• Red Admiral - 1
• Speckled Wood - 4

Speckled Wood

Dragons were in evidence with four Downy Emerald, Large Red and Common Blue Damselfly.

Downy Emerald

Grapholita jungiella

Garden Moths 26/04/11

Last nights 'highlights' were Heart and Dart, and another Nut-tree Tussock. A distant Tawny Owl could be heard calling.

2425 Nut-tree Tussock

2089 Heart and Dart

Large Red Damselfly & Nut-tree Tussock

Two new insects for the garden - 2425 Nut-tree Tussock (this was the ONLY moth in the trap last night!) and today, a Large Red Damselfly landed on the berberis.

2425 Nut-tree Tusscok

Large Red Damselfly

Holly on Holly

The Spring heatwave continues with the daytime temperature peaking at 24 C. I took my first sojourn in to King's Wood, Heath & Reach and a number of butterflies were active, including a Holly Blue on a Holly bush. There was at least one Large White, a few Orange Tip, a Red Admiral and five Speckled Wood. Bluebells seem to carpet the woodland floor while overhead a pair of Common Buzzard displayed around the nest tree. A drumming Great-spotted Woodpecker revealed its presence in the canopy and a Treecreeper flitted from tree to tree. Very pleasant!

Garden moth trapping last night revealed:

• Argyrotaenia ljungiana - 2
• Twenty-plume Moth (Alucita hexadactyla) - 1
• Garden Carpet (Xanthorhoe fluctuata) - 1
• Brindled Pug (Eupithecia abbreviata) - 2
• Oak-tree Pug (Eupithecia dodoneata) - 2
• Pebble Prominent (Notodonta ziczac) - 1
• Shuttle-shaped Dart (Agrotis puta) - 1
• Common Quaker (Orthosia cerasi) - 2
• Clouded Drab (Orthosia incerta) - 1
• Hebrew Character (Orthosia gothica) - 2

Holly Blue

Bluebells

There were many hundreds of Green Longhorn Adela reaumurella dancing in the sunlight  only occasionally resting  - this one close to a crab spider...

Green Longhorn Adela reaumurella

2003 Pebble Prominent

Bugs

The glorious weather continues (although the nights are still on the chilly side) and it was a trip to the garden centre, followed by strenuous work catching up on some of those put-off tasks. The lawn now has a 'meadow' section, that is to say, left to its own devices! Invertebrates found there today included Green Shield Bug,  Hawthorn Shield Bug and two of the pyralid moth Pyrausta aurata - all first records for the year. A male Xysticus cristatus (a c.6mm 'crab' spider) was turfed out of the kitchen in to the berberis shrub where, no doubt, it will prey on the pyralid, or, strangely enough, the ants which run up and down the Honeysuckle stem growing through said bush.

Garden moth trapping last night revealed:

•  648 White-shouldered House Moth -1
• 1906 Brimstone Moth - 1
• 2187 Common Quaker - 1
• 2190 Hebrew Character - 2

Hawthorn Shieldbug

Green Shieldbug

1361 Pyrausta aurata

Xysticus cristatus

1906 Brimstone Moth

Early Moths

I don't mean Early Moth Theria primaria  but moth trapping in my Garden (SP9326) during the very warm spell this April turned up Bedfordshire's earliest Pale Prominent Pterostoma palpina, and at the Local Patch (TL0024) the second earliest Muslin Moth Diaphora mendica.

Pale Prominent Pterostoma palpina
08/04/2011
SP9326

Muslin Moth Diaphora mendica
01/04/2011
TL0024

Holly Blue

The Holly Blue seems to be having a good season. This individual was basking in the unseasonably warm sun in the garden.

Mega Moon

The Moon is currently up to 18% larger than normal due to a close approach.

Rookery Clay Pits

Where man has left the land untouched for many years a diverse flora and fauna has so far survived. There are plans afoot which, against the wishes of many, will destroy some of these areas. The Grizzled Skipper and the Wall Brown will disappear for good ...

Duke of Burgundy

After a cloudy start, the sun finally emerged on the Bedfordshire chalk, and with it a few butterflies - including this fine Duke of Burgundy.

Rammamere Heath & King's Wood NNR

It has taken over twenty years of (casual) searching to find an Adder on Rammamere Heath (Buckinghamshire). Not suprising, however, as a great deal was learnt in April on how to best locate them. Weather-wise it was sunny intervals (4/8 Octas), with the mercury approaching 14 Celcius and a coolish SSW wind at Beaufort 3-4. This individual was basking out of the wind on the sunny side of a tangle of dead bracken and birch branches.

Canon 40D, Tamron 180mm macro,
1/200sec, f / 10, ISO 200, tripod

There were plenty of male Green Longhorn Adela reaumurella moths on the wing around the birch saplings.

Sunrise

A short visit to the local patch at dawn revealed a misty scene.

Macro Fun

I'm really enjoying the new macro lens. The Green Hairstreak was showing well in the warm sun at Stewartby Lake. So far the extra reach of the 180mm has proven its value when approaching flighty subjects.

Canon 40D, Tamron 180mm macro,
1/160th sec, f/9.0, ISO 100, tripod

I can't find a name for this small spider which was lurking on a dead flower head - amazing camouflage !

This is Gymnochaeta viridis, very similar to the Greenbottle from which it differs by having hairy eyes. The second image shows a 'sun-tanned' individual - the bronze colour is acquired with age.