Ento Photo File

Oaken Wood, 28/05/11 - update

2011-06-16T20:28:00.000+01:00

Just had it confirmed that the Cricket nymph I photographed was a Roesel's Bush-cricket which is a first for me.

Roesel's Bush-cricket Metrioptera roeselii

Bee Hotel Update

2011-06-10T23:15:00.002+01:00

As of 10th June the Red Mason Bees Osmia rufa have completed 14 tubes.

Oaken Wood, 28/05/11

2011-06-10T22:36:00.003+01:00

Here are a few pics of my trip down to Oaken Wood (Grid Ref SU9933) on the Surrey/Sussex border from a couple of weeks ago. Although it was cloudy, this site never fails to deliver.

Glow-worm larva Lampyris noctiluca

Long-horned Bee Eucera longicornis

White-legged Damselfly Platycnemis pennipes

Wood White butterfly Leptidea sinapis

Nemophora degeerella

Hotel Residents

2011-06-04T23:18:00.003+01:00

The Red Mason Bees Osmia rufa have been busy over the past month collecting pollen and creating cells for their eggs. Here's a female coming back with mud to seal one of the tubes. - Update: following comments I've amended the title of the 2nd pic.

Osmia rufa female

Colletes male (perhaps C.daviesanus)

Bee Hotel, Front Garden, 29/04/11

2011-04-29T20:15:00.002+01:00

I purchased some Red Mason Bee tubes about three weeks ago, despite never having recorded a tube nesting bee in my garden before, then made a rather rustic 'bee hotel' to put them in. I placed it in my front garden, south facing as suggested and kept an eye on it over the past couple of weeks, half expecting that it would be taken over by spiders or even not being occupied at all. This morning I casually glanced at it and noticed that a couple of the tubes appeared to be blocked...so I took a closer look and, much to my surprise, I saw three little faces looking back at me.

Bee Hotel

The occupants - Osmia rufa
Male = pale face Female = dark face

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 17/04/11

2011-04-20T22:10:00.000+01:00

I headed back to the park to try and find Green Hairstreak butterflies but they're still not out here yet. However, I did manage to see both Andrena fulva and A. cineraria and another of their cleptoparasites, another Nomada bee, presumably N. goodeniana.

Nomada sp (presumably N.goodeniana)

Timble Ings, 16/04/11

2011-04-20T22:03:00.001+01:00

I went to Timble to see if any damselflies had emerged but only saw several Peacock, Comma and Orange Tip butteflies. Walking back to the car I heard a rustle in the undergrowth and to my surprise a couple of small Common or Viviparous Lizards appeared. The scientific name was Lacerta vivipara but it's recently been changed to Zootoca vivipara.

Common or Viviparous Lizard

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 09/04/11

2011-04-20T21:50:00.000+01:00

Back out in the field at last. I went to see what was taking advantage of the unseasonal warm , sunny weather and managed to see a few Andrena fulva and one of their cleptoparasites, a Nomada bee, presumably N.flava but confirmation by photograph is not always possible. The female A.fulva had just deposited a pollen ball in it's underground nest. The micro moth, Eriocrania subpurpurella, was also about in small numbers.

Andrena fulva

Nomada sp. (presumably N.flava)

Eriocrania subpurpurella

Timble Ings 04/09/10

2010-09-04T22:53:00.000+01:00

I had a quick photo session at Timble Ings today. The weather conditions were far from ideal but I managed to photograph some of the dragons and damsels that were present.

Black Darter

Emerald Damselflies in copula

Emerald Damselfly in close-up

Bastow Wood 27/06/10

2010-06-28T21:06:00.000+01:00

I lead a Butterfly Conservation field trip to Bastow Wood, Grassington on Sunday. We had an excellent day, with plenty of species seen and fantastic, hot, sunny weather. The highlights were nineteen Northern Brown Argus Aricia artaxerxes, twelve Dark Green Fritillary Argynnis aglaja and five Cistus Forester Adscita geryon moths.

Northern Brown Argus

Dark Green Fritillary

Cistus Forester

Green Carpet

Chrysoteuchia culmella

Mill Hill, Shoreham 28/05/10

2010-06-06T21:22:00.000+01:00

Following on from the morning visit to Oaken Wood, I carried on to Mill Hill which overlooks the R.Adur at Shoreham. I was hoping to see Adonis Blue butterflies and I wasn't disappointed, recording over 180 along with the odd Dingy Skipper or two.

Lysandra bellargus (m)

Lysandra bellargus (f)

Erynnis tages

Oaken Wood 28/05/10

2010-06-06T20:28:00.000+01:00

Oaken Wood on the Surrey/Sussex border is a great place to see all sorts of invertebrates, particularly Wood White and Grizzled Skipper butterflies. However, I was pleased to finally see one of the bees that I've been searching for...the Long-Horned Bee, Eucera longicornis.

Eucera longicornis

Leptidea sinapis

Pyrgus malvae

Front room window, 14/05/10

2010-05-14T21:35:00.001+01:00

A visitor appeared on my window this evening, a Twenty-plume moth Alucita hexadactyla. Unfortunately it flew off before I could get a pic from the usual angle.

Birk Crag, Harrogate 01/05/10

2010-05-01T21:01:00.000+01:00

Buglife organised a Chestnut Click Beetle Hunt at Birk Crag, Harrogate today. Birk Crag is one of only two sites in Britain where the Chestnut Click Beetle Anostirus castaneus can be found. Unfortunately, we didn't manage to find any today but there's always next year.

However, I did manage to get a couple of pics of one of my favourite solitary mining bees, the Grey Mining Bee Andrena cineraria.

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 24/04/10

2010-04-25T17:32:00.000+01:00

An hour spent in Prince of Wales Park on Saturday afternoon produced a couple of mining bee species and more Eriocrania subpurpurella but still no Green Hairstreaks.

Eriocrania subpurpurella

Andrena cineraria

Andrena fulva - male & female (the male is the smaller of the two)

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 18/04/10

2010-04-18T19:11:00.002+01:00

I went to Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick today to look for Green Hairstreaks and bees. I didn't spot any Hairstreaks but did manage to photograph various species of bumblebees and this Cuckoo bee, Nomada goodeniana (I'm reliably informed) which is a cleptoparasite of various species of Mining bee.

Nostell Priory, 05/07/09

2009-07-05T22:54:00.004+01:00

I took a group of Butterfly Conservation and National Trust members around the Obelisk Lodge meadow at Nostell Priory (NT), Wakefield today. In all we had twelve species of butterflies, three species of moths and six species of dragonflies. The highlight of the day was not one but two Hummingbird Hawkmoths nectering on bramble within a couple of feet of one another.

Ruddy Darter Sympetrum sanguineum (immature male).

Hummingbird Hawk-moth Macroglossum stellatarum

Front Garden, 14/06/09

2009-06-14T21:44:00.003+01:00

A Hummingbird Hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) was a welcome visitor to my front garden this afternoon.

Township Plantation, Cumbria 17/05/09

2009-05-17T19:06:00.008+01:00

I went on the Butterfly Conservation Yorkshire 'awayday' to Township Plantation, Cumbria (SD451884) today. Five Branch members were lead around the area by Dave Wainwright, BC's North of England Regional Officer. The weather was overcast but at least it stayed dry.

Here's a couple of the Duke of Burgundy butterflies we managed to find, we saw four in all, and also one of the two Speckled Yellow moths that were present in the coppiced woodland on the site.

Nostell Priory 03/05/09

2009-05-03T22:19:00.006+01:00

I went to the National Trust property, Nostell Priory, near Wakefield today. I managed to get my first damselfly of 2009...an immature Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum. There were also a few Large White and Green-veined White butterflies flying in the Spring sun.

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 19/04/09

2009-04-19T20:48:00.006+01:00

I went to Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick again today in search of Green Hairstreaks and managed to find three along with three Speckled Wood and four Peacock butterflies.

Front Garden - Saturday 18/04/09

2009-04-19T09:16:00.003+01:00

In between a spot of DIY, I spotted this hoverfly holding territory against all comers in my small front garden. I have identified it, from other pics I took, as Eristalis pertinax. This common hoverfly is widely distributed and can be seen wherever there are suitable flowers.

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick, 12/04/09

2009-04-12T12:23:00.003+01:00

Lots of Eriocrania subpurpurella flying low around the oaks in the park this morning. The larvae of these small micro moths mine oak leaves but the adults do not feed...their only purpose is to reproduce.

Prince of Wales Park, Eldwick - Sunday 05/04/09

2009-04-05T18:06:00.004+01:00

I can't believe it's April before my first post of the year...mainly due to the weather but other commitments have also prevented me getting out and about with the camera. Not much insect activity in the Prince of Wales Park in Eldwick as the cold weather earlier in the year has definitely held back the Bilberry but there was the odd bumblebee about along with a very flighty Comma, which I eventually managed to pin down after several attempts.

Timble Ings - Sunday 21/09/08 part 4

2008-09-23T19:44:00.004+01:00

I took this pic on Sunday of a recently emerged leaf beetle, Chrysomela aenea, on an Alder. It's larval skin can be seen next to it. It will change from purple to green as it matures.

Timble Ings - Sunday 21/09/08 part 3

2008-09-22T22:39:00.004+01:00

These are the best 'in-flight' pics out of 250 or so I took of various pairs of Black Darters either flying in tandem or ovipositing. I now need to master the shutter speed on my D50 to get the wings in focus too.

Timble Ings - Sunday 21/09/08 part 2

2008-09-21T22:12:00.006+01:00

I only managed to see four butterflies in total, two Speckled Woods, a Small Copper and a Wall.

Small Copper

Small Copper
Speckled Wood

Wall

Wall (underwing)

Timble Ings - Sunday 21/09/08 part 1

2008-09-21T22:00:00.006+01:00

Well, a nice weekend at last. Managed to get up to Timble Ings today to see what's still about.
Here's some shots of Common Field Grasshopper Chorthippus brunneus.

Shipley Station Meadow - Part 2

2008-09-02T22:04:00.004+01:00

Here's a hoverfly that I couldn't identify. It's a female Syrphus sp. and one of three look-a-like species. Telling apart Syrphus torvus, S. ribesii and S. vitripennis can be troublesome at times but not always impossible. Syrphus torvus, for instance is the only one that has hairy eyes. This is quite visible in males, females are less obvious, so you probably have to catch them and look into their eyes from various angles. The other two Syrphus species are hard to tell apart, especially the males. For females there is a clue though: if the thighs are blackish it is Syrphus vitripennis, the smallest of the three. If the thighs are yellow it is Syrphus ribesii, the biggest of the three. Unfortunately although I took six photos of this hoverfly, none showed the rear femur, so I don't know if it was black or yellow. The larvae of all species feed on aphids.

Shipley Station Meadow

2008-09-02T20:56:00.010+01:00

I popped down to Shipley Station Meadow today. It's probably one of the smallest nature reserves anywhere in the country. It's part of Shipley railway station and not much bigger than my house and garden. The females of the colony of Common Blue butterflies show more blue colouration than most other Yorkshire specimens. Unfortunately, I only managed to find one today but took almost 200 pics of her.....thank heavens for digital cameras.

There were also some hoverflies enjoying the sunshine, this one is the Drone Fly or Eristalis tenax.

This one is a Marmalade Fly Episyrphus balteatus.

I also managed to find this moth, Angle Shades Phlogophora meticulosa, sunning itself on a Hypericum.

Rodley Nature Reserve

2008-08-31T19:26:00.005+01:00

I also popped into Rodley NR today to see how the dragonfly ponds were progressing. The 'phase one' ponds are maturing nicely but work on the 'phase two' pools has been delayed due to the awful weather we've had this summer.

Here's a pic of a female Brown Hawker Aeshna grandis ovipositing in one of the established ponds.

This Drone Fly Eristalis tenax was one of several hoverfly species I saw close to the ponds. The aquatic larvae of this fly are called 'rat-tailed maggots'.

Shipley Station Meadow

2008-08-31T19:14:00.003+01:00

Went to Shipley Station Meadow today to check out the rabbit damage and see what pics I could get despite the overcast conditions. I managed to find a couple of preoccupied Conopid flies. These flies parasitize bumblebees.

Northern Coleopterists Meeting

2008-08-24T21:17:00.007+01:00

The Northern Coleopterists Meeting will take place on Saturday, 27th September 2008 from 10:00am to 16.30pm at Manchester Museum, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL.

Agenda
10:00 - TEA/COFFEE
10:25 - Introduction - Tom Hubball
10:30 - Manchester Museum: Collections and Records – Dmitri Logunov
11.00 - Beetles Associated with Lundy Cabbage – Roger Key *Updated*
11:45 - Why We Need More Work in the Lake District:
The Last Stronghold of Hydroporus rufifrons – Garth Foster
12:30 - LUNCH (Please note that lunch is not provided)
13:30 - Buglife and Beetle Conservation - Matt Shardlow or Jamie Roberts
14:15 - Water Beetle Recording and Conservation in Yorkshire – Martin Hammond
14:30 - Preparing, Setting and Mounting Specimens – Don Stenhouse
15:15 - Informal discussions, viewing exhibits and identification of specimens.
16:30 - END

Please bring along any exhibits for discussion or set specimens for identification (unfortunately due to time constraints we will be unable to try to identify any un-set specimens).
The Entomology Departments library and collections will be available to view and some microscopes will also be available but please feel free to bring your own.
Please note that lunch is not provided. However the museum has it's own cafe and there are a variety of fast food restaurants in the vicinity. As food and drink may not be consumed in the Entomology Dept, a room is provided for anyone bringing a packed lunch.
The nearest car park to the museum is Booth Street West. This is open from 6am-midnight
For directions, see http://www.museum.manchester.ac.uk/yourvisit/travel
If you have any further questions please feel free to contact myself or Dmitri on the phone numbers/email addresses below.
See you there.

Tom Hubball01535 678334 (after 6pm) - email vc63dragonfly@blueyonder.co.uk
or
Dmitri Logunov, Manchester Museum 0161 275 2666 -email dmitri.v.logunov@manchester.ac.uk

Comma larva

2008-08-24T20:31:00.002+01:00

On my visit to Chambers Farm Wood I also managed to find the caterpillar of a Comma (Polygonia c-album) on the underside of a leaf.

Comma larva

Dark Bush-crickets

2008-08-24T19:59:00.009+01:00

Went to Chambers Farm Wood, Lincs, grid ref: TF149739 yesterday and managed to get a few pics of Dark Bush-crickets (Pholidoptera griseoaptera) despite the overcast conditions.

Dark Bush-cricket - male
Dark Bush-cricket - female

Dark Bush-cricket - another male

Dark Bush-Cricket - underside

Welcome to my world

2008-08-24T19:15:00.003+01:00

Welcome to my Blog.

I will be using this site to post pics taken by me on my travels around Yorkshire, Britain and Europe.
The pics will mainly consist of insects and other natural history images. Hopefully you'll find some of them useful in identifying your own specimens but always check your identifications with an 'expert'.......to find one, try your local natural history society, county museum or even log onto Yahoogroups at http://groups.yahoo.com/

Tom