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.