Bee-wolf Wasp Behaviour

The Bee-wolf  Wasp males (second image) are smaller than the females (first image), have yellower and more prominent face markings and are overall darker normally. 

The females normally fly with the bee tucked neatly under their body but occasionally drop the prey and then may fly with the prey dangling. The bee is taken into the burrow and a single egg laid on the prey. The female and later the wasp larva spread bacteria on the prey that will protect against fungal infections destroying the wasp larva food.

The final image is the Red-Banded Wasp with a moth caterpillar.

Time to Harvest

The wheat and barley are both now ready for harvest in the fields around Toft, Cambridgeshire. 

The sky was changing all the time - perfect for some monochrome harvest images from my favourite walk today.

Close-up in Gamlingay Woods

This HorseFly landed on Sue's arm so too good an opportunity to snap it - before the circular saw on its mouthparts got to work! Amazing multicoloured compound eyes and what I think are cone-shaped single eyes. I was using the 50mm Touit Zeiss lens at very close range so depth of field a problem - of course fine if the head is sharp and the rest OOF but in many cases missed critical sharpness on the eyes. Here are the more successful ones

Addenbrooke's Rocks

As part of their 250th Anniversary Celebration, Addenbrooke's Charitable Trust (ACT) held a fund-raising concert as a prelude to the Cambridge Rock Festival on Wednesday evening. Pedants may question the apostrophe  but it is part of the title of the hospital name even though it changes the meaning of the phrase to those not in the know. 

Oxborough Hall Norfolk

As Tuesday was forecast rain on and off, we decided to visit Oxborough Hall on our way to our B&B near Thetford. Oxburgh Hall is a moated country house owned by the National Trust. Built around 1482, Oxburgh has always been a family home, not a fortress.The light was pretty dull so interiors were difficult with all the dark carved wood and brickwork. A brick spiral staircase leads to the roof with good views down onto the property.

More Digger Wasps and Friends

Another visit to the sandbank produced a few more species including the Red-banded Sand Wasp with its prey - a moth caterpillar, the splendidly named Astata boops both male and female (with its prey - green shieldbug) and a Red-legged Spider Wasp (without its prey!). Great sightings of the beautiful little cuckoo wasp - identified on-line as Hedychrum nobile or H.niemalai but still no Cerceris wasps as hosts seen. A few more Bee-wolf flight shots and a single hoverfly reflecting the relative absence of hoverflies at the moment

Tourists in Cambridge

There have been several articles concerned about the numbers of tourists visiting Cambridge this summer though others see it as very good for business. It can be a problem for the tour guides who even resort to carrying steps to be heard by their group. Kings College attracts the largest numbers even though part is closed for organ rennovation. There are still quiet places to be found as in Clare College.