You guessed it back to the meadows and track this afternoon and the biggest change in the past 24 hours was the presence of half a dozen or so Six-Spot Burnets, with one pair mating.
Also new for the year was a Mullein Moth caterpillar and I also had 2 new insects for Portland. The first was a Soldier Beetle (Malthinus flaveolus) and I'm not sure if it counts, but I also found a Reed Stem Borer Sawfly (Calameuta filiformis). The reason I say that, is because I found it drowned. It had become trapped in a small pool of water between the stem and large leaf of a plant in the meadow.
Here are a few images from this afternoon.
Wakeham Meadow
A Meadow Brown with an Ichneumon Wasp, Amblyteles armatorius flying across the front of it.
Another Meadow Brown and there's always a blade of grass in the way.
Well I know there are at least 3 separate Speckled Woods in this area. You can tell by the nicks in their wings.
A pair of Six-Spot Burnet Moths mating.
A male Six-Spot Burnet Moth is attracted by the pheromones the female is releasing.
Another Six-Spot Burnet Moth
A Red-tailed Bumblebee
Another Ichneumon Wasp, Amblyteles armatorius.
Ichneumon Wasp sp.
Ichneumon Wasp sp.
I found this drowned...........
Dead Head Fly, Myathropa florea
3 Dock Bugs and a Common Green Shieldbug
Hairy Shieldbug, Dolycoris baccarum
Hairy Shieldbug, Dolycoris baccarum
Hairy Shieldbug, Dolycoris baccarum
6-spot Ladybird
Harlequin Ladybird
And another Harlequin Ladybird
Harlequin Ladybird nymph
Harlequin Ladybird nymph
Black ants!!
Harvester maybe!!
The Mullein Moth caterpillar
A Muscidae fly, Helina abdominalis
Helina abdominalis
Helina abdominalis
Tachinidae Fly (Thelaira nigripes)
Tachinidae Fly (Thelaira nigripes)
Pellucid Hoverfly, Volucella pellucens
Pellucid Hoverfly, Volucella pellucens
A Miridae or something similar. Turns out its a..........
..............Soldier Beetle (Malthinus flaveolus). And a new one for me on Portland. More on this beetle Here.
Well they say you learn something new everyday and today.........
............I have discovered Wild Chives (Allium schoeneprasum). Well at least I think they are!!!
Birds Recorded: Herring Gull, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, 2 House Martin, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, 2 Song Thrush, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Wren, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Starling, House Sparrow and Chaffinch.
Butterflies Recorded: 2 Common Blue, 3 Speckled Wood and 12 Meadow Brown.
Moths Recorded: 3 Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella), 1 Hook-streak Grass-veneer (Crambus lathoniellus) and 6+ Six-Spot Burnet moths (Zygaena filipendulae)
Bees Recorded: Honey Bees, Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum), Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) and Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
Ichneumon Wasps Recorded: 2 Amblyteles armatorius
Hoverflies Recorded: 10+ Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus), 2 Pellucid Hoverfly (Volucella pellucens) and a Dead Head Fly (Myathropa florea)
Flies Recorded: Flesh Fly (Sarcophaga sp.), 1 Muscidae fly (Helina abdominalis) and a Tachinidae Fly (Thelaira nigripes)
Bugs and Beetles Recorded: Lesser Thick-legged Flower Beetle (Ischnomera cyanea), Swollen-thighed Beetle (Oedemera nobilis), 5 Common Green Shieldbugs (Palomena prasina), 6 Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus), 5 Hairy Shieldbug (Dolycoris baccarum), 1 7-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata), 2 Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis), 3 Harlequin Ladybird nymph and a Soldier Beetle (Malthinus flaveolus).
Slugs and Snails Recorded: White-lipped Banded Snail (Cepaea hortensis) and a Garden Snail (Cornu aspersa)
Grasshoppers and Crickets Recorded: Dark Bush-cricket nymphs (Pholidoptera griseoaptera) and a Great Green Bush Cricket (Tettigonia viridissima)
Caterpillars Recorded: The Mullein Moth
Spiders Recorded: Harvester !!
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On this day..........
2018Today's Sightings Here.
2017
Today's Sightings Here.