8 Jun 24

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadows and Wakeham Wildlife Site

Highlights today in a stiff westerly breeze were a pair of Swallows overhead and the resident Chiffchaff now singing from the Wildlife Site.

Birds Recorded:
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
2 Swallow
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
1 Song Thrush
1 Chiffchaff
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Goldfinch

The resident............

.................Chiffchaff has...........

............now moved to the Wildlife Site. He's........

............still very vocal. In the background is the male Song Thrush singing.

Butterflies Recorded:
2 Speckled Wood
3 Meadow Brown
5 Common Blue

Speckled Wood

A Meadow Brown

A male and female Common Blue

And another female Common Blue

Moths Recorded:

Straw Conch (Cochylimorpha straminea)

Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella)

Vetch Piercer (Grapholita jungiella)

A Straw Conch (Cochylimorpha straminea)

A Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella)

Vetch Piercer (Grapholita jungiella)

Bees Recorded:
Common Carder Bumblebee (Bombus pascuorum)
Bombus sp.

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)

Brown-footed Leafcutter Bee (Megachile versicolor)

Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea)

Common Carder Bumblebee (Bombus pascuorum)

Bombus sp. on Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria)

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)

Brown-footed Leafcutter Bee (Megachile versicolor)

And a Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea) on the flowers of a Wayfaring-tree (Viburnum lantana)

Sawflies Recorded:
Turnip Sawfly (Athalia rosae)

Turnip Sawfly (Athalia rosae)

Hoverflies Recorded:
Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)
Narcissus Bulb Fly (Merodon equestris)

Spotted Meliscaeva (Meliscaeva auricollis)

A Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

Narcissus Bulb Fly (Merodon equestris) - Form bulborum

Spotted Meliscaeva (Meliscaeva auricollis). AKA Spotted Thintail

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Dagger Fly (Empis tessellata)

Tachinid fly (Phania funesta)

#1 - fly sp.

#2 - Long-legged Fly sp.

#3 - fly sp.

A Dagger Fly (Empis tessellata) and.......

..........another one.

Tachinid fly (Phania funesta). It is believed to be a parasite of Shieldbugs.

#1 - fly sp.

#2 - Long-legged Fly sp.

#3 - fly sp. and a Small Black Ant (Lasius niger)

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
Cinnamon Bug (Corizus hyoscyami)
Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis)
Swollen-thighed Beetle (Oedemera nobilis)

A Cinnamon Bug (Corizus hyoscyami)

A male Swollen-thighed Beetle (Oedemera nobilis)

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
Meadow Grasshopper (Chorthippus parallelus)
Speckled Bush-cricket (Leptophyes punctatissima)

A Meadow Grasshopper (Chorthippus parallelus)

And the nymph of a Speckled Bush-cricket (Leptophyes punctatissima)

Spiders Recorded:

Crab Spider (Misumena vatia)

In the same Dog Rose just over a week ago, this Crab Spider (Misumena vatia) had a Dagger Fly (Empis tessellata) for a meal. Today it's caught an unfortunate Honey Bee.

Ants Recorded:
Small Black Ant (Lasius niger)


Plants:
Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria) 
Ivy Broomrape (Orobanche hederae)
Provence Rose (Rosa gallica)

Hedge Bedstraw (Galium album)

This is..............

.............Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria) 

Ivy Broomrape (Orobanche hederae)

Provence Rose (Rosa gallica)

These white flowers are...........

..........those of Hedge Bedstraw (Galium album)

I have come across this plant before.........

...............but can I remember its name!!

Ted:

Ted was in the undergrowth here. I had expected him to come over the top of the Ivy etc. Instead he came back onto the path from underneath the undergrowth.

Aircraft:

This is the flightpath of the Coastguard Helicopter Leonardo AW189 this afternoon. After its flight...

..........it landed at the Heliport on Portland. More on this aircraft here.