Toft Invertebrates (2)

Here are yesterday's species. First the bees - Tawny Mining Bee (male), Early Bumble Bee and Hairy footed Bee (female); then the Hoverflies including a Platycheirus albimanus in the jaws of a Flower Spider, several other fly species including the Bee Fly and finishing with Box Moth caterpillars and my first record of a Caddis fly larva from my pond.

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.

Dorset - Powerstock Common (01/06/2023)

Traditionally Powerstock Common is always the first venue that we visit on our annual trips to Dorset. As always, it did not disappoint with Tiger beetles, an Adder, Orchids, including Butterfly Orchid, Butterflies including Marsh Fritillary and Grizzled Skipper, spiders and the colours and wildlife of the ponds

Pondlife at Mapperton, Dorset

Yesterday morning, we visited Mapperton Gardens on our way to Kingcombe and spent a long while photographing the various animals on and under the water including Water Boatmen sculling around, a Diving Beetle larva and  Pondskaters on the surface. Most of the time it was trying to catch the newts as the came up to the surface- both Palmated newts and Smooth Newts plus a large number of Toad tadpoles