Toft Churchyard Insects

Really warm day on Monday (20th) brought out quite a few insects including two hoverfly species and an Early Bumblebee along with Honey bees and pollen beetles. Both hoverflies are migrant species so wonder if brought in by the warm southerlies.

Snowdrops in Toft Churchyard

We have just a few snowdrops sowing in Toft churchyard along with White Dead nettle while the mosses on the walls and gravestones are in full fruit. A few glimpses of the flocks of Fieldfares on my walk across the fields to Comberton and back.

Toft Churchyard Focus on Bees

The first image is Andrena nitida, one of 13 species photographed this month in Toft Churchyard. It has a great range of vegetation with some areas mown regularly and therefore with lots of dandelions and daisies, other areas are cut back round graves but longer and other areas are left wild with alkanet, White Dead Nettle and lots of stinging nettle. 

Comberton Churchyard Bees and Flies

I have started another wildlife survey area for this year  - Comberton churchyard. It is a large area covering a wide range of habitats - thanks for the invite Teresa. Here is a set of some of the bees and flies encountered yesterday staring with Mrs and Mr Adrena fulva, a very attractive red and orange bee on the wing at the  moment. This is one of the very many mining bees that live in colonies in the grass or banks. The third image is another Adrena species A. nigroaenea followed by a Honey bee to show  the different leg structures. The Hairy-footed Flower bee is well named and is evidently on the wing at the moment with very loud buzzing. The visitor to the grape hyacinth is a bee-mimic, the Bee Fly, which lays its eggs in mining bee nests. Even more numerous in species and numbers yesterday were other  members of the diptera family including hoverflies and 'flesh' flies of various types. 

Insects Toft Churchyard March 15th

A project for this year is to record the wildlife, especially the insects, throughout the year in Toft churchyard. Here is the record from Tuesday's visit. I will attempt to repeat at regular intervals in equivalent sunny conditions. The stars were these minute mating Weevils on Daffodil. There were 5 species of bee: Red- and Buff-tailed bumblebees,  Hairy-footed Flower Bee, Honey Bee and male Andrena bicolor, plus Rove Beetle and various flies. Last image a Sawfly I think!