It was a quick walk down the lane to the meadow and back, before the rain arrived. It was certainly a lot fresher than of late, and I could have done with a jacket, in the cold north-westerly.
Main highlight was not one but two Chiffchaffs singing at the far end of the lane. And also noted were 4 moth species, which made a change from the normal two I almost record daily in the meadow.
Birds Recorded:
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
2 Chiffchaff
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Goldfinch
Escapees, Ferals, Possibles Etc.
Feral pigeon
Butterflies Recorded:
5 Large White Pieris brassicae
5 Small White Pieris rapae
1 Green-veined White Pieris napi
1 Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria
4 Ringlet Aphantopus hyperantus
3 Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina
6 Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus
3 Marbled White Melanargia galathea
1 Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta
1 Common Blue Polyommatus icarus
A Green-veined White Pieris napi
Just the one Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria seen today.
And a Ringlet Aphantopus hyperantus
Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina
And another Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina
And a Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus
A Marbled White Melanargia galathea
And just the one Common Blue Polyommatus icarus seen
Moths Recorded:
15+ Six-Spot Burnet moth Zygaena filipendulae
1 Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella
1 Dwarf Cream Wave Idaea fuscovenosa
One of many Six-Spot Burnet moths Zygaena filipendulae seen this morning. This one is on Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra.
And a new moth for my Port & Wey List. This is a Dwarf Cream Wave Idaea fuscovenosa, which I found in the meadow.
Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris
Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
Honey Bee Apis mellifera
Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius
Orange-tailed Mining Bee Andrena haemorrhoa
An Orange-tailed Mining Bee Andrena haemorrhoa. You can just make out the orange tip on the tail. This Andrena bee also goes by the name of Early Mining Bee.
Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
2 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax
Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus
Syrphus sp.
Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Many unidentified flies
2 Banded Burdock Fly Terellia tussilaginis
And a new fly to add to my list. This is a Banded Burdock Fly Terellia tussilaginis on Greater Burdock Arctium lappa in the lane. There is actually a second Banded Burdock Fly directly behind it. You can just make out the brown banding on the wing tips.
Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva
Potato Capsid Closterotomus norwegicus
Swollen-thighed Beetle Oedemera nobilis
Common Nettle Flower Bug Plagiognathus arbustorum
In the flower-head of this Large Bindweed Calystegia silvatica is a male Swollen-thighed Beetle Oedemera nobilis
On this Common Knapweed is a Potato Capsid Closterotomus norwegicus (top) and (below) two Common Nettle Flower Bugs Plagiognathus arbustorum.
Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
1 Dark Bush-cricket Pholidoptera griseoaptera
30+ grasshopper sps.
................on these Common Ragworts Jacobaea vulgaris, and dozens more on other plants. Yet I've only seen a couple of "adult" Cinnabar moths here in the meadow in 8 years since I've been visiting this location. Odd!!!!
1 Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella
1 Dwarf Cream Wave Idaea fuscovenosa
Tawny Sycamore Piercer Pammene aurita
A Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella
And my first...........
..............Tawny Sycamore Piercer Pammene aurita of the year on a Sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus leaf .
Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris
Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
Honey Bee Apis mellifera
Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius
Orange-tailed Mining Bee Andrena haemorrhoa
A male Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius on Common Knapweed
Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
2 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
A Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris.....................
................... on Wild Fennel Foeniculum vulgare
Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax
Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus
Syrphus sp.
A Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax
A Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus hovering and actually keeping very steady for the camera.
And a Syrphus sp.
Many unidentified flies
2 Banded Burdock Fly Terellia tussilaginis
Greenbottle Lucilia sp.
Flesh Fly Sarcophaga sp.
A Greenbottle Lucilia sp.
A Flesh Fly Sarcophaga sp.
Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva
Potato Capsid Closterotomus norwegicus
Swollen-thighed Beetle Oedemera nobilis
Common Nettle Flower Bug Plagiognathus arbustorum
1 Tortoise Bug Eurygaster testudinaria
A Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva on Common Ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris
And having taken the photo of the Marbled White and sifting through the images, I realised I had also photographed this Tortoise Bug Eurygaster testudinaria. This individual is the final instar. More on this bug here. and here.
1 Dark Bush-cricket Pholidoptera griseoaptera
30+ grasshopper sps.
Slugs and Snails Recorded:
Garden Snail Cornu aspersa
White-lipped Banded Snail Cepaea hortensis
Caterpillars Recorded:
Garden Snail Cornu aspersa
White-lipped Banded Snail Cepaea hortensis
Spiders Recorded:
Black-palp Wolf Spider Pardosa nigriceps
A Black-palp Wolf Spider Pardosa nigriceps carrying a sac of eggs
40+ Cinnabar moth Tyria jacobaeae
It's a mystery to be honest, but there are around a dozen caterpillars of the Cinnabar moth.............
