Rhubarb

Rheum x hybridum

We've been given quite a lot of rhubarb and there's only so much rhubarb crumble we can eat, so I experimentally made a batch of jam which has turned out ok. Rhubarb Rheum x hybridum is on my P-SL life list as in Orkney it grew all over the place, here in Perthshire it seems restricted to actual gardens and allotments. However, the plants that have escaped gardens and are wild in the countryside include a huge range of species here, most are, I think, benign, but Japanese Knotweed, Indian Balsam and American Skunk Cabbage are pretty much rampant.

American Skunk Cabbage Lysichiton americanus more info here - https://invasivespecies.scot/invasive-plants/american-skunk-cabbage/

 The most surprising find of the last couple of weeks and an add to the patch list has been Stock Dove. This was heard whilst cycling around fairly early one morning. I've looked repeatedly for this species, scanning Woodpigeon flocks through the seasons and rarely locating even a suspect. The habitat was not surprising, the bird was singing from one of the big old hybrid Lime Trees on the estate in an area of parkland. I would expect this species to be here, the surprise is that it has taken so long to find one. Crossbill continues to be outstanding, but my hearing for overflying finches appears to be an impediment.

The vane traps have added a few species to the P-SL list. Working through the catches is quite hard work, the beetle species I'm catching are not familiar as I've not used this method before. The traps caught a lot of a small (3mm) Epuraea species, these are especially hard to get to species.

I spent about six hours to get this to species. That's with AI giving me a head start of getting to genus, although I probably spent an hour or so checking that was accurate. In the end I'm happy this is Epuraea unicolor due to the shape of the mid and hind tibiae and the genitalia, but I may send some off to be checked.

I seem to be finding quite a number of things that are troublesome to identify at the moment. A sawfly has occupied a fair bit of time, I'll have to key it from the beginning maybe, it is somewhere in the Macrophya area maybe.

 

Macrophya maybe?? Tenthredo (thanks AG), and given that lead I got it to atra (awaiting confirmation).

 I've extracted the genitalia so I guess the next stage is to try and match to an illustration in Lacourt... I think the penis valves match ok to atra. 

Penis valves, Tenthredo atra.

Another awkward beast was this moth which came to FUN pheromone lure in the garden. Obsidentify was 100% that this was Pammene obscurata. I wasn't so sure. But online opinion (thanks NV) was that P. obscurata it was indeed. 

Pammene obscurana

I've not light trapped recently as it has been so cold. However, today there was some warmth and I saw a number of Silver-ground Carpet flying at the fish farm, where there were also five or so Orange-tip and a Green-veined White. Along the way on the estate a first Red Admiral of the year showed briefly. I'd seen Painted Lady on 15th at CCW. Of course now is the season for Pearl-bordered Fritillary, A south facing hill near some birch woodland and Bracken; somewhere in Glen Lednock will be worth searching I think, there are old records from there.

Painted Lady

There were a few interesting things in the light traps and a few more to pheromone, I've at last added Emperor Moth to the garden list. But that's for the next post.

 

 

South and back

I had to travel to London for a few days. Not too much on the agenda whilst there so I managed to go to a couple of my favourite sites,  Nunhead Cemetery and Brockley Cemetery, I also mooched about looking for plants in the streets, and I had a garden I could investigate. I'd not been to London at this time of year for a good many years, and whilst I used to live in southern England I was not much into insects and my botanising was pretty much limited to the chalk Downs and orchid hunting. So the trip added quite a few species to the pan-species list. I only took the wee Olympus Tough with me so the photos may not be quite up to the usual standard, especially since mine is a fairly old TG-4, although it is a surprisingly good macro camera. It is taking quite a while to work through all the photos, more than 700, and things like Andrena bees are a bit of a headache to identify, so this post is somewhat incomplete.

The first evening I managed to find Petty Spurge (everywhere) and Hop on the Brockley streets. Annual Mercury, Euphorbia oblongata and Greater Celandine were also added fairly sharply the next day. But Tuesday afternoon at Nunhead Cemetery was more the business, sunny and warm, not too much wind, and lots of flying insects; why had I not brought a net? 

Hoverflies were everywhere as were a lot bees, Holly Blue were most evident with the occasional Orange Tip and Speckled Wood and I was quickly on to Dock Bug - new. 

Dock Bug Coreus marginatus

Searching through the low hanging branches of a few oak sp I came across the spectacular Black-headed Cardinal Beetle Pyrochra coccinea.

Cardinal Beetle Pyrochra coccinea

I thought I had a Cream-streaked Ladybird, but too small! It was one of the more confusing iterations of 10-Spot. 

10-Spot Ladybird Adalia decapunctata

7-Spot and 14-Spot were also found.

7-Spot Ladybird Coccinella septempunctata

14-Spot Ladybird Propylea quattuordecimpunctata

 Bee-flies turned out to be Dark-edged, and not the hoped for Spotted. But the striking Anthomyia pluvialis was common - and new.

Anthomyia pluvialis

Another dipteran that I think I've only recorded once before was Phasia hemiptera.

An interesting Tachinid fly that is a parasitoid of plant bugs like Birch Shieldbug Elasmostethus intersinctus, laying its eggs on the adult bug, the larvae once hatched eat the host from within until it expires (I think this to be correct).

Most frustrating was a tiny 'picture-winged' fly Euleia heraclei, the Celery Fly. I like these insects but they are not easy to photograph, especially with the TG4, this is where I most missed my EM-1.

Celery Fly Euleia heraclei, tiny, and very active

Equally frustrating were what I think were a species of nomad bee which appeared to be hunting for nests of burrowing bees. These were so active and rarely paused for a moment.  In the end I managed to identify them as Nomada fabriciana and get some very poor images. There were several other bee species, these are always tricky to identify but 'm fairly happy with these identifications, correction welcome!

Andrena scotica Chocolate Mining Bee

Andrena chrysosceles

Andrena haemhorrhoa

 

I collected a few very small beetles on flowers which turned out to be Byturus tomentosus and Meligethes aeneus, both common enough things, but I'd not found them previously. These are the sort of things which are much easier to identify if you have Duff, the investment was worthwhile for sure. 

 The hoverflies were very active with many Myathropa florea. More interesting perhaps were Eupeodes luniger found on the bridge just before the cemetery where there were 100s of aphids (still unidentified) on Prickly Lettuce. Dasysyrphus albostriatus briefly on a gravestone and Epistrophe melanostoma.

Epistrophe melanostoma, female (thanks CS and RM)

Myathropa florea

Syrphus vitripennis (probably) female

Syrphus sp

Xylota segnis

Eupeodes luniger

 Birds were plentiful, Chiffchaff and Blackcap especially, but there was a Whitethroat singing in Brockley Cemetery.

Green Hairstreak was a nice surprise in Brockley Cemetery.

Holly Blue in Nunhead and Brockley Cemeteries.

Large Red Damselfly at Nunhead.

I'm realising this is a long list of species... and let alone what else I recorded round and about and in Brockley Cemetery, although a quick mention for Psallus albicinctus which I found there, and there were many interesting galls, especially on Turkey Oak. 

Psallus albicinctus, keyed through Nau, the fine spots on the head and pronotum, the shape of the hind femur and the extent of the spots on the hind femur led me to this ID, quite an uncommon bug I think (specimen retained and microscopically examined).

However, a quick jump to the garden of where I was staying where on an angelica cultiva there was a Honey Bee that remained very still, remarkably so until under closer observation I discovered why.

Misumena vatia with an unfortunate Apis mellifera Honey Bee

The long task of editing the images complete, now to add everything to iRecord.... I added around 30 species to my P-SL in, effectively, two days. I think I might head south again shortly, maybe. 

Bug

Spring has been cold and slow to warm up. An early Cuckoo at the community woodland was a welcome surprise and a small hirundine movement on 19th included all three species. The occasional flock of Pink-feet are heard and/or seen heading north. Moth trapping has been very slow and unspectacular with just Water Carpet as additional to the year. Most of the time its been just too cold to bother.

Water Carpet

However, interesting things have been found. The vane traps, still unmodified, I must sort out the rain protection, have produced a few interesting beetles.

Epuraea melanocephala and  fore tibia for ID feature

 

Melinopterus prodromus, there's an improved key in Duff. A surprise was that this species can be so much larger than M. sphacelatus, by at least 1mm. This image shows the notoriously awkward to see 8th stria well. A trick with these is to put them in liquid as the pale/orange rear edge to the pronotum will then show up well. However, I always think there is a difference in the pores on the pronotum which is a quick clue to the beetles identity.

Anacaena globulus

It's unsurprising I'm catching Aphodines as there are horses in a nearby field to one of the community woodland traps and at home there are plenty of Red and Roe Deer, frequently in view from the house in the evening. I've caught M. sphacelatus and Agrilinus ater as well.

 Anyway, to cut to the chase the star beast was found making its way across the kitchen floor by Louise.

Eremocoris abietis

One large (hard to see) and several smaller spines on fore femur.

Hairs on the hind tibia shorter than the width of the tibia.

 There are twenty records of this Highland specialty bug on the NBN (perhaps only 13 accepted) - this record has already been verified. Heck of a good find for the kitchen floor. The kitchen is proving to be a seriously effective trap for rare species.

Friends appeared from north and we went for a walk around the community woodland in the afternoon. Standing by one of the small pools and a beast from the deep appeared on the surface.

Newt sp -  Lissotriton

Lissotriton newts are tricky to identify, ideally you have to see the throat and if it is spotted or not. There was no choice, insect net was deployed and with a quick dip a newt was captured.

No spots on the throat = Lissotriton helveticus Palmate Newt.

 As a bonus the net was full of Ampullaceana balthica Wandering Snail, which I'd not seen before and was new for the CCW.

I'm still doing some botany. The list of common species I've never recorded  is fairly shocking, Harrap's book is helping but an attempt to download a plant list for a tetrad around home was unsuccessful, I need to read the BSBI instructions most likely.

Latest common plant to be added is...

Ceratium globeratum Sticky Mouse-ear

 Also found Gooseberry growing out in the wild, a good way from any garden. Currently puzzling over various small Cruciferae species....