Riverfly Survey in Toft

Toft Bourn Brook Group is carrying out surveys of the invertebrate species in the Brook according to the Riverfly rules and regulations for acquiring the samples and then counting the species found in the water. The species that are monitored include Mayflies, Olives, Stoneflies, Shrimps and  Caddis flies. Timed samples are taken and then examined for the Groups shown on the circular chart and the numbers of individuals counted. We also found very young Loach and American Crayfish plus Beetles, various Midge larvae and Pond Skaters etc

Lark Rise Farm Barton (Countryside Regeneration Trust)

 Lots of butterflies around for our morning visit with Marbled White by far the commonest species. I was looking for butterflies and other insects in good condition and on attractive perches away from other vegetation to try for some pictorial images. The wind was the greatest barrier to achieving this but here are a few that I liked plus a species sheet for those seen in the 90 minutes we spent there

More Garden Species

Lots of insects in the garden at the moment as you would expect with the hot dry weather. Here are some species from 2 days ago including very fine Long-horned beetle, three species of ladybird (Harlequins are spotless when they emerge I think). IDs are on the final image sheet. 

Swiss Garden at Old Warden

We hadn't visited the Shuttleworth Collection and Swiss garden at Old Warden for several years and so decided on a visit there yesterday, remembering the cafe for an old-fashioned brunch and large areas of wild garden beyond the formal area in the Swiss Garden. Unfortunately the cafe has been modernised and, just our luck, the kitchen was closed. The gardens are still impressive for the tall trees etc but it has all been 'tidied ' up and certainly is no longer the haven it was for insects. These are all I found in a 90 minute visit - the Welsh Chafer (brown beetle) has not been reported on the NBN atlas anywhere in the area so was an interesting find. The strange looking bug is a nymphal stage of the Tree Damsel Fly. Certainly the very hot conditions did not favour an insect hunt except for the Four-Spot Chasers.