Summer Leys Macro Day

While photographing these rain drops at Summer Leys Nature Reserve early yesterday morning my eyes fell upon a Wasp Spider in its web - apparently a first for their reserve so the jungle drums beat (or more likely the internet buzzed) and, by lunchtime, lots of photographers arrived to see the spider. There were plenty of macro subjects in good light with sheltered still areas for them to display - ideal for a day out for the RPS Nature Group.

Garden Project 18 - Maturity

 I try to remember to document the garden through the year as part of my project to produce a Wildlife garden with as many habitats as I can in the smallish area of my front garden. Here a snapshot of a (late)summer garden when flowers are beginning to die back but still plenty of wildlife in the Herbaceous borders, Pond, Hedgerow, Woodland and Meadow. Some of the inhabitants are shown with their chosen plant.

Sawflies, Ichneumons and Others from the Garden

Another batch from the garden last Friday when the wet conditions gave way to a really hot humid day that the insects found to their liking. Lots of different Sawflies and Ichneumons - most not able to identify from photo but will go in the garden database as photos with suggested family etc. The one with the very long ovipositor was very impressive - about 1 cm total size. The rain had brought out slugs and snails

Extraordinary Garden Flies

Physiphora is a small metallic fly with very impressive eyes. The larvae develop in decaying plant material. This is followed by Urophora which produces Thistle Galls, Volucella zonaria a type of Hornet Hoverfly, two Tachnid fly species etc etc.

Bumper Day for Insects

The conditions were obviously ideal for insects today. Here a batch before the rain came. The Chalcid wasp was ovipositing into a knapweed head presumably finding a larva to inject its egg into. There are 1,717 at the last count of this family of minute wasps so chances of ID probably small!! Similarly not much luck with the tiny spider and its fly prey.