Port and Wey: 8 Aug 25

RSPB Radipole Lake

It was a visit to Radipole this afternoon with my "usual" return walk from where I parked the car in Goldcroft Avenue here to the North Hide here.

As good as the walk was, there was definitely a lack of birds with just a couple of Reed Warblers, and singles of Cetti's & Chiffchaff. The Reedbeds were completely void of birds, especially hirundines, which I had expected to see, skimming the reeds in search of insects.

Even dragonflies were sparse with just two hawkers and 3 Common Darters noted.

Birds Recorded:

Black-headed Gull

Herring Gull

Wood Pigeon

Robin

2 Reed Warbler

1 Cetti's Warbler

1 Chiffchaff

Magpie

Carrion Crow

House Sparrow

Chaffinch

Goldfinch

1 Reed Bunting

A juvenile Robin, just showing the first signs of its red breast.

Fish Recorded:

4 Three-spined Stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus

En route to the hide you have to cross the River Wey at the bridge here. There is always something on or in the water. Today there were at least 4 Three-spined Stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus. I'm pretty sure this is one of them.

Amphibians Recorded:
Common Toad Bufo bufo - seen briefly crawling into the undergrowth

Dragonflies and Damselflies Recorded:
3 Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum
2 Hawker sps.

A male Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum with a chunky sawfly sp. flying behind it.

And the Common Darter in slow-motion

And another male Common Darter which I thought was going to land on Teds back.

Butterflies Recorded:
8 Large White Pieris brassicae
8 Small White Pieris rapae
20+ Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria
2 Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina
2 Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus
2 Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta
2 Comma Polygonia c-album
1 Common Blue Polyommatus icarus

One of many Speckled Woods Pararge aegeria seen along my walk

A Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus on Common Tansy Tanacetum vulgare

A male Common Blue Polyommatus icarus

Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris
Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
Honey Bee Apis mellifera
Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius

Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
50+ Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
10+ German Wasp Vespula germanica
Ichneumon Wasp sp.

Common Wasps Vespula vulgaris

A Common Wasp.

Another Common Wasp with prey.

And here is a Common Wasp nest in the roots of a fallen tree.

Centre frame are the fallen tree roots and..........

.............here is a shot of one of the Common Wasps removing soil from the nest.

There aren't too many features to aid identification of this wasp. The yellow band along the thorax is partially covered so that doesn't help. The markings on the face are hidden so no help there either. However there is a third feature which will help with the ID and that is the yellow line behind the eyes. In this shot there is a full yellow line as opposed to a line disrupted by a black line running across it. So this is a German Wasp Vespula germanica.

Here is the aid again courtesy of Discover The Wild on Facebook here which I used for the German Wasp above. This site here has a good example as well.

This German Wasp is stripping and collecting wood fibres from this fence to take back to its nest.

Sawflies Recorded:
Ringed Tigress Athalia circularis

A Ringed Tigress Athalia circularis

Hoverflies Recorded:
5 Dead Head Hoverfly Myathropa florea
10+ Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax

1 Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax

2 The Footballer Helophilus pendulus

1 Pale-sided Epistrophe Epistrophe diaphana

1 Shiny-backed Halfband Melangyna umbellatarum
8 Parsley Blacklet Cheilosia pagana

1 Humming Syrphus Syrphus ribesii

1 Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly Eristalinus sepulchralis

10+ Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus

A Dead Head Hoverfly Myathropa florea

A Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax on Common Tansy.

A Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax

The Footballer Helophilus pendulus. AKA Tiger Marsh Fly

And a Pale-sided Epistrophe Epistrophe diaphana

A Shiny-backed Halfband Melangyna umbellatarum

This is most likely to be a Parsley Blacklet Cheilosia pagana. The only other similar Cheilosia is a Bolete Blacklet Cheilosia scutellata which frequents woodland and heathland edges.

Here are a few more Parsley Blacklets

A Humming Syrphus Syrphus ribesii

A Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly Eristalinus sepulchralis

Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Many unidentified flies
Greenbottle Lucilia sp.

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:

7+ Common Pondskater Gerris lacustris
1 Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva

2 7-spot Ladybird Coccinella septempunctata
1 Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni

7+ Greenish Parsnip Mirid Orthops campestris

A Common Pondskater Gerris lacustris with two whole legs and two halves for its back legs.

After weeks of not seeing a Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva, I found one on the reserve today, along with another bug below it.

A 7-spot Ladybird Coccinella septempunctata and................

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

An Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni under an Alder Alnus glutinosa. More on this beetle here.

In amongst the umbellifers were a few Greenish Parsnip Mirid Orthops campestris. And a new beastie for my list.

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
Many unidentified grasshoppers

1 Long Winged Cone-head Conocephalus fuscus - nymph

A Long Winged Cone-head Conocephalus fuscus nymph on Common Tansy

Caterpillars Recorded:

White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda

The caterpillar of a White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda

Plants:
Alder Alnus glutinosa
Blackthorn Prunus spinosa
Bramble Rubus fruticosusa
Common Ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris
Common Tansy Tanacetum vulgare

Common Teasel Dipsacus fullonum
Hemp Agrimony Eupatorium cannabinum
Purple Loosestrife Lythrum salicaria
Branched Bur-reed Sparganium erectum