On Friday last week, I nonchalantly took a swipe at a number of 'winter gnats' dancing above my front garden conifer border. I've always ignored then, although I knew what I expected them to be. I potted a couple and a quick look at a male with a hand lens seemed to confirm my thoughts. Then, you know that thing where you pot a flimsy fly but then forget about it until it's way past its best? Yes, that. By the time I did remember it had long since thrown a seven and, unhelpfully, managed to hold its wings at a jaunty angle whilst the abdomen had shrivelled somewhat.
Completely pointless trying to pin it and almost impossible to look at properly with the microscope, but I saw enough to convince myself that it was indeed Trichocera regelationis as expected. I detached a wing to try and show the two key characters on that at least ....
Vein 2A short and strongly curved, vein r-m very slightly curved with a
distinct cloud over it.
This is a ridiculously common species, so not surprising that I'm able to find one with virtually no effort at all.
6 comments:
Just finished a couple of Trichocera, oddly enough. Some of the regelationis up here are as boldly marked as yours, but many only have a vague ghost of a cloud on the cross-vein. And my saltator are all weird too, ovipositors a bit too long. I thought I had these sussed last year, but this year they seem to be more variable and 'trichy'. I'm doubting all females (apart from major) and am wondering about sending the whole damn lot off to someone like Julian Small for confirmation. Some other species also show vein clouds and the whole thing about vein lengths is variable too. The more you know, the less you know! Meh, I should have just stuck to birds, haha. But yeah, yours is a dead cert regelationis, congrats buddy :)
I think it's going to be quite some time before I think about looking at other Trichocera, though likely to be more species around here.
You should probably have annulata down there, which is pretty obvious (it's abdomen is annulated...) and T.major which is huge with very long claspers/cerci depending on whether male or female. But the rest are a bit kinda meh, to be honest.
Sorry, I meant very long claspers/ovipositor depending on whether male or female. Clearly I need a drink about now....
Mark, have you had a chance to look at the BDC planning newsletter special? Especially relevant to Springwell Lane & Whetstone Pastures.
Hi - yes I am aware of the 'Whetstone Pastures Garden Village' proposals. It will be fucking horrendous! The area being considered looks larger than Whetstone, Blaby and Countesthorpe put together - hardly a garden village! It falls south of the areas I include in the 1K square. Looks like a new motorway junction being included, along with the wider project to put a new city bypass across the south and east of the county. No idea if or when it will happen - probably waiting for some Tory dilution of planning requirements.
https://www.whetstonepasturesruralaction.co.uk/
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