Newport Garden Log - 17 Apr 20 - 20 Apr 20

Friday 17 April 2020

Still some sun but a windier day with more cloud so rather few insects and no bird sightings of note

New today were
- the froghopper Empoasca vitis
- the mining bee Andrena bicolor
- the hoverfly Epistrophe eligans

Photos of these and a few other things.

This tiny bright green insect is most likely the froghopper Empoasca vitis (no vernacular name). Note the serrations on the hind legs. There are several similar species that are mostly seen later in the year.

I do find mining bees hard. This though seems quite straightforward with back hairs on the face, gingery hairs on the thorax and a blackish abdomen with pale hairs between the segments. Thus it is an Andrena bicolor (no vernacular name either). New for my garden list.

Are the facial hairs black here? If so it has a grey beard! I cannot see why this not also an Andrena bicolor.

This hoverfly has the build of the drone flies but is noticeably smaller. The bands on the body are very variable – this was typical of several noted today. It is Epistrophe eligans (also no vernacular name). Common in April and May and rather easier to approach to than many insects. Also new for my garden list.

As previously noted many of the small hoverflies rest with closed wings obscuring the markings necessary for identification. Sometimes, as here, it is possible to manoeuvre without disturbing the insect and get the angle of the light such that the markings can be seen. This is a Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus). Most easily separated from the Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare) by the faint stripes on the thorax. That said there are several similar, though less common, species.

I found this flower lurking in deep cover under a hedge. Not surprisingly as it is Hedge Garlic (Alliaria petiolata). Perhaps its shady location is responsible for the rather late date – I usually see and eat the leaves of this nutritious plant from the first few days of April. Has many alternative local names and as the most common name implies it smells and tastes of garlic, especially the leaves.

(Ed Wilson)

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Saturday 18 April 2020

Cloudy all day with some rain late morning. Nothing seen and no photos

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Sunday 19 April 2020

Highlight today was the trio of Sand Martins seen flying NE at 12:30. I am sure these pass overhead every year. Catching these as they migrate through has to be ‘right place at right time’. There are no breeding colonies or water bodies close-enough for them to be common.

Otherwise my first Ashy Mining Bee (Andrena cineraria) was notable. A very distinctive and smart bee.

Some good photo opportunities today:

I am still finding bees rather confusing. This has reddish-brown hairs on the abdomen and a dark thorax. It seems to be a female Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis). Males have a white tuft of hairs on the face.

Whereas this is reddish-brown on the thorax and has a dark abdomen. It seems to be an Early Mining Bee (Andrena haemorrhoa). Probably a female as males tend to be paler. Note the very dense hairs on the hind-leg.

And this has reddish-brown on both the thorax and abdomen (but not the head). It is a female Tawny Mining Bee (Andrena fulva).

Compare with the Early Mining Bee. The hairs on the thorax of this bee are rather sparse and the abdomen is very shiny. I think it is a male Blue Mason Bee (Osmia caerulescens).

Here it is: my first Ashy Mining Bee (Andrena cineraria). It is a male with all white hairs on the face. My initial though was that this was a small bumblebee – this specimen does have that dumpy build.

Here is a ichneumon wasp sp., worth a look even if I cannot specifically identify it. Seems to be waving its long and banded antenna. Several distinctive features including the cloud in the wings; the orange band on the abdomen; and the black and yellow pattern on the legs. These closely match Ichneumon suspiciosus, though that has a white spot on the thorax and the tail and a smaller wing cloud.

This is the hoverfly Dasysyrphus venustus with the upward curving yellow bars. There is a similar species, generally flying later in the season, with bars more creamy-white in colour.

Not a special hoverfly, just an arresting view of a male Tapered Drone Fly (Eristalis pertinax). A male because the eyes meet.

A more normal view of the same individual.

To my eyes the femur (upper segment) of the hind leg on this Syrphus hoverfly is yellow and thus it is S. ribesii? Well probably not –necessarily. This a male and while none of my books tell me what colour the legs of the males are the implication is that males S. ribesii and S. vitripennis cannot be separated. So Syrphus sp. it stays.

Had to take advice on this. The markings suggest a female Epistrophe eligans but this is a much brighter yellow than usual. I am reliably informed this is just what it is. And no that is not a pointed tail, a sting or an ovipositor. She is just rubbing his back legs together.

Can’t such much about this other than it is a female (pointed abdomen) crane-fly, probably of the genus Tipula. Note the halteres (knobbed vestigial hind-wings) between the two hind pairs of legs.

A fly worth showing as it prepares to fall down a hole in a laurel leaf. It is very similar to Scathophaga sp. (dung flies) but I cannot specifically identify it.

Three for the price of one: a fly, a coin and a nail. I can identify two – a one penny piece and part of my dirty thumbnail. The tiny black fly is a problem. For its size it has very large wings and long antennae – indeed it appears to have only one antenna. In fact I doubt it is a true fly and it is likely an aphid. It closely resembles photos on the inter-web of Common Maple Aphid (Periphyllus testudinaceus)

Here is a close-up.

This thin dead twig had just broken off a silver birch tree. It exhibits several interesting growths of lichen and the small orange fungus. It just might be Common Jellyspot (Dacrymyces stillatus).

A correction to my last posting of Hawthorn (Crataegus sp.) flowers. These are they. I was misled by a flower on a cherry tree sucker that was growing through the hawthorn hedge!

(Ed Wilson)

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Monday 20 April 2020

Garden highlight today was the arrival of the Swifts over their nest sites around the older houses in Newport town and easily visible from my house. A date several days earlier than usual.

Two new hoverfly species to add to my growing collection
- The Footballer (Helophilus pendulus)
- Meliscaeva auricollis

As usual a collection of insects photos:

Another posing female Tawny Mining Bee (Andrena fulva), This one then turned around ...

... to give me a view of its facial horns.

A smart-looking Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris). Separate from similar wasps by the pointed black marks down the centre of the abdomen. I have never previously noted the black hairs on the face of this species.

A front-on view of a Tapered Drone Fly (Eristalis pertinax). Note that it is using its hind legs to clean its wings making it look rather strange.

One of the ‘difficult to separate’ Syrphus group, especially as it is a male.

I guess it is the angle of the light but this Syrphus hoverfly show faint stripes on the thorax.

This is a male Helophilus pendulus hoverfly, a species sometimes known as The Footballer (on account of its stripes) or Sun fly (because it likes sunbathing). As usual I read “there are several similar species” but a key on the Naturespot web site identifies it as this species by the extent of yellow on the hind tibia. In addition to the usual ‘do the eyes meet?’ it is only the males of this species where the third pair of yellow marks is slightly lozenge shaped – on females they are more horizontal.

The dark face stripe below the antenna eliminates one of the confusion species.

And this gives a clear view of the extent of dark and yellow on the hind tibia confirming its identity. New for my garden list.

I read “there are numerous similarly marked, narrow-bodied species”. Helpful! In the shade this is the hoverfly Meliscaeva auricollis. A new species for me.

A side-one sunny view of the same.

A strange posture – the front legs forward looking like long antenna. I am sure it is a midge. There are very few images on the web to help me. An interesting insect.

(Ed Wilson)

Newport Garden Log - 14 Apr 20 to 16 Apr 20

Here is my Newport garden report for three days with relevant images of some new and some strange things I have found

Tuesday 14 April 2020

Chilly with a frost to start. Blue skies all the way failed to make it warm.

Best today was my first-ever Pine Ladybird (Exochomus quadripustulatus). Several tiny and unidentified things found ...

Today’s images

Upon further investigation this seems to be a male of the Grey-patched Mining Bee (Andrena nitida). Some / all of those that I have identified as Andrena scotica may in fact have been this species.

A better photograph of a Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris). This view clearly shows the pointed black mark on the first segment, quite unlike the spade-like mark of the German Wasp.

A small grey fly lurking in the new-growth leaves on a Holly bush. Big red eyes but rather little else to help with identification.

Another tiny fly. The banded body suggests a midge sp., but the antenna are too long and the legs relatively short. The tip of the body looks somewhat pointed and I am wondering whether it is one of the 500+ species of UK sawfly. I can find very little information on the web illustrating these species.

I found this a few inches away from the putative sawfly. Equally baffled! I suspect a Myrid Bug but there are literally thousands of species to choose from ....

At just 0.1” (or 3mm in new money) this tiny beetle is a Pine Ladybird (Exochomus quadripustulatus). The markings are rather similar to one form of the Harlequin Ladybird, though the distinctive comma-like is unique to this species. Note too the flange around the elytra (wings).

An even small and really tiny black beetle on a uPvC window sill.

Did I say really tiny? Yes that really is a standard-size One Penny piece! No chance of identification but illustrates some of nature that usually goes unnoticed but is a vital part of the food chain.

This is a rather bizarre-looking small spider. I think it MAY be a male of one of the forms of the Candy-striped Spider (Enoplognatha ovata) – many forms have red stripes along the back. It does seem rather small but then as previously noted spiders grow throughout their life after the hatch.

This shows my first view of the spider – upside-down and underneath its web spread just above the surface of a leaf.

Another new spider found on the same uPvC window sill. It has the typical shape of a crab spider and I think it is a female Philodromus dispar. Males are all-black and it may well have been one such individual that I photographed earlier.

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Wednesday 15 April 2020

New insects were the main interest on another sunny day with just thin high cloud making it hazy at times. Warmer than yesterday with slightly less breeze.

These were the new species logged:
- An Early Mining Bee (Andrena haemorrhoa)
- Two hoverfly species Dasysyrphus venustus and Xanthogramma citrofasciatum
- The flies Scathophaga inquinata (a dung fly) and Fannia lustrator
- A Cucumber Green Orb Spider (Araniella cucurbitina)

This small insect had me confused and I still cannot positively identify it. Having dismissed ‘greenfly’ I noted what appeared to be a fourth pair of legs sticking up at the back. I then noted the small sword-like tail which provided the clue that this is an early instar cricket (not grass-hopper as the antenna are too long). Apart from it being too young have any real identification features the extra legs are cerci, shown by males: and the sword-like tail is the females ovipositor. So ...?

Another illustration of the amazing dimpled appearance of a Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina). I have deliberately cropped the tip of one foot and shown it off-centre to avoid distracting pale background.

This individual qualifies as a ‘busy bee’, with that much pollen collected. It is an Early Mining Bee (Andrena haemorrhoa) and with the tip of the tail showing a slight yellow cast is likely a male, the smaller of the sexes. New for my garden list.

Worth a second look.

And a third look at a less industrious individual.

Here is a Nomad Bee sp. All species are wasp-like in colouration and have a wasp-waist. This seems to match Nomada leucophthalma both in markings and April emergence. However this group is poorly illustrated on the web and caveats about difficulty of specific identification abound.

Last of the bees for today – a male Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis). Males have white tufts on their face and longer antenna than females. Quite why the scientific name was changed from the apposite Osmia rufa escapes me.

I think this is the hoverfly Dasysyrphus venustus (no vernacular name). The oblique yellow marks are a slightly better fit for the very similar and more common species Dasysyrphus albostriatus. However that species has grey stripes on the thorax that are not present here. A new species for me.

This hoverfly has narrower, paler, more horizontal bands and the overall effect is blacker. It is a Xanthogramma citrofasciatum. The yellow lines at the edge of the thorax are hard to see in what was a distant ‘safety shot’ before it flew off never to be seen again. Also a new species for me.

Just a regular Tapered Drone Fly (Eristalis pertinax), but one that allowed a close view again showing how hairy these insects are.

With a small head well-separated from the body, medium-length antenna and striped thorax this fits robber-flies in the genus Dioctria. However I cannot find any illustrations with species showing a wing cloud so I will have to pass.

This one of the Scathophagidae (Dung flies). I suspect Scathophaga inquinata. My attention was caught by the bright orange legs. This is the most widespread dung fly with these features. The resolution of the picture does not allow me to see whether then antenna are plumose which would provide 100% confirmation.

Another fly whose legs caught my attention – apparently tri-coloured in this instance on the back two pairs, though this may be affected by the angle of the light. Certainly all-dark on the front pair. There is also orange at the base of the wing. These features exactly match Fannia lustrator – a common fly without any vernacular name. I’ve spent a while on the web researching why (some) flies have red eyes – to no avail. I did learn that almost all insects see red poorly, if at all, but can see in to the ultra-violet part of the spectrum that we cannot.

This is likely the crane-fly Tipula lateralis, a very common spring-flying insect. I am slightly cautious because this genus normally rests with the wings held apart. An alternative name to crane-fly (apart from Daddy Long-legs) is ‘bobbing gnat’ and I have seen several doing this. I assume is some sort of display. One point to note: between the two hind pairs of legs there are small knobbed structures. I have at last found out what they are. Called ‘halteres’ they are modified rear wings used by many flies to orientate in flight – like gyroscopes. Some insects, moths and butterflies for instance, still have two fully developed pairs of wings. Flies do not. Often the halteres are too small to be seen.

This six-eyed green spider is a Cucumber Green Orb Spider (Araniella cucurbitina). A common small spider on bushes, especially in spring.

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Thursday 16 April 2020

Again it was mainly new insects etc. that went in to the log on a sunny day. More high cloud, especially later, again made it hazy. Light wind until dusk when the breeze started to increase.

Long-tailed Tits visited again. Starlings seemed to be ferrying food back to nearby nests so I guess their partners are on eggs. No Greenfinch seen or heard was the only ‘regular’ missed.

New for my growing garden list were
- Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)
- Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee (Bombus vestalis)
- Migrant Hoverfly (Eupeodes corollae)
- Syrphus sp. hoverfly, either S. ribesii or S. vitripennis
- The spider Philodromus aureolus

A few images to illustrate these and some other visitors

I wonder whether it is always this pair of Canada Geese that flies over morning and evening. One having a good ‘honk’ here.

This very pale Common Buzzard caused momentary panic when I saw it in the distance – Osprey?! Well not really. The Buzzard was circling on raised, broad wings and therefore quite unlike the almost gull-like narrow-winged silhouette of an Osprey.

I think its called ‘billing and cooing’, though the cooing bit seems to be a separate part of the wooing. Wood Pigeons of course.

Another visit from the Long-tailed Tits today

The other one – apparently just two birds rather than the usual small gang.

This was a noticeably smaller shieldbug so I got in close for a photo – thus it doesn’t look smaller. It is a Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus). Apart from its size the most obvious separation from the similarly marked Hawthorn Shieldbug is that the tip of the ‘tail’ is white and not red. A new species for me.

Another great view of a female Tawny Mining Bee (Andrena fulva)

Today’s Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis) with scruffy orange tufts on the tip of its abdomen.

This bee was very difficult to photograph as it scrambled around on pale sunlit ground. I am almost certain it is a Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee (Bombus vestalis), a species that takes over nests of the Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris). This latter species often shows a white tail but it has an orange band on its body.

This hoverfly is a Syrphus sp., either S. ribesii or S. vitripennis. Only females of these species can be separated and then only my the colour of hind femur (top part of the leg). So Syrphus sp. it stays. First in the garden this year.

One of many small hoverflies that look very similar and rarely show all their features because they perch with wings closed. The most notable feature here is how the black bands bend back along the side of the edge of the body. The best match seems to be a female Eupeodes corollae. This is sometimes known by the rather misleading name of Migrant Hoverfly. Certainly numbers are boosted by immigrants in mid-summer but it occurs naturally from March onwards.

This is amazing tiny creature – a type of midge. Can find nothing like this on the web. With antenna like that it looks as if it ought to be sweeping chimneys! Presumably a male, the antenna being used to detect female pheromones. It also seems to have a small brush on its tail.

With lunch sticking out of its jaws this seems to be the common crab-spider Philodromus aureolus.

These are flowers of Ivy-leaved Speedwell (Veronica hederifolia). As one of my books says “it can be a tiresome weed”. Here in what passes as my lawn.

The first Hawthorn flower. Possibly a genuine Crataegus monogyna, but I cannot be sure. A haven for insects so I may be soon getting a new range of species on the flowers.

(Ed Wilson)