Birds, Leps, Observations & Generalities - the images and ramblings of Mark Skevington. Sometimes.

Friday 24 April 2020

Network

Sometimes I read through a blog post that I've spent time on, realise that I missed a glaring spelling or grammatical error and then wonder if people noticed or just think I'm naturally illiterate. I quite often end up going back in to change vowels and mis-keyed words; quite clearly I'm not as good at typing as I used to be think I am.

The moth trap was okay, nothing stunning but I've perhaps never been so pleased to see this pair so that I had something to point the camera at .......

Garden Carpet (just about dark enough for f. thules)

Bright-line Brown Eye

I also had time to point the camera at some by-catch ..

Limnephilus affinis

Tipula oleracea (13 antennal segments, RoySoc key)

Other moths came during the day, with Esperia sulphurella, Incurvaria masculella and Caloptilia stigmatella all netted in sunshine.

After sorting out the moth trap nice and early, and before I settled into the office to log on for work, I had to make use of our facilities. Whilst sitting there contemplating life and whatnot, I managed to add a bird to the 'lockdown list' that has stalled for days - albeit a heard only that was clearly flying over but no idea which way. Anyway, it was the unmistakeably melodious yet slightly raspy call of a Grey Heron ..... 'KWAHK'.

I managed to spend time in the garden this afternoon, and I had the luck of a really lucky thing yet again. I decided to spend more time with net in hand, and if I netted something interesting looking I could point the camera at it. Turned out to be a good day for flying beetles. By far the best was yet another full-blown inconspicuous ladybird tick - yeah, I know!

Scymnus frontalis

I obviously wanted to get a better shot, but this was not playing ball. It either sat stock-still but with legs and head tucked in, or shot off scutting about and trying to fly off with incredible speed. I tried again later, though not much better.


As if that wasn't good enough, I netted another one of these ....

Nephus quadrimaculatus

Whilst these were superb, perhaps the last beetle-type I expected to be netting in flight was a carabid. It was at least easier to see that a beetle was heading my way!

Leistus spinibarbis

I faffed about with this one for a bit mulling over the ID, because in some shots the rim of the pronotum looked red and I got side-tracked.

I scored another new for garden beetle too, and it's a weevil to boot - back of the net!

Ceutorhynchus pallidactylus

I've also got a netted-in-flight Staph to have a go at and also a handful of bits sieved out of a make-shift 'compost + dead shrew' pot that I've been culturing. Not convinced I'll get anywere with these though, and the Staphs are tiny.

Maybe something around the Cholevidae .....

Aside from beetles, a large variety of unidentifiable tiny flies and the like were inadvertently netted, Seth would have been loving it. I've now got a few bits in pots to work through when the predicted lull in the weather comes next week. In the meantime I'm trying to squeeze new inverts out of what is actually a pretty small and unexceptional garden. Not sure the inverts appreciate that.


I've never seen the film Network. Maybe I should look it up!

2 comments:

Gibster said...

Amazes me how you catch all these things in flight. I've seen just one beetle in flight this year (and I was certain it was a Sepsis fly until caught) and it's not as though I'm not looking!

Have a look at this for your beetle https://sites.google.com/site/mikesinsectkeys/Home/keys-to-coleoptera/keys-to-identify-the-british-species-of-leiodidae

PS - I've just ordered 'Sarcophaga of France', I just need to find one now - but for myself rather than via your blog.

Skev said...

I think it comes down to lack of other stimulus in the small area! If I was anywhere near blossoming hawthorn I be bashing it, or if in long grass I'd be sweeping it etc - I wouldn't be stood around like a dipstick wondering if something might fly past :-)