Tuesday 30 June 2015

Beautiful Golden and Hoary Bell

Beautiful Golden, Autographa pulchrina
Yesterday at Houghton Forest I found a Snout and two new moths, a Beautiful Golden and a Hoary Bell. Plenty of woodland flowers lined the tracks.
Bedstraw, Galium species
Bird's-foot Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus
Common Vetch, Vicia sativa
Harvestman, Mitopus morio
Hoary Bell, Eucosma cana
Hoary Bell
Broad-Leaved Willowherb, Epilobium montanum

Lauxaniid fly on sawfly larva
Lesser Stitchwort, Stellaria graminea
Mirid bug, Grypocoris stysi
Slender St John's Wort, Hypericum pulchrum
Snout, Hypena proboscidalis
Thick-headed fly, Conops vesicularis

Wild rose, Rosa species
Beautiful Golden, Autographa pulchrina
Beautiful Golden

Monday 29 June 2015

Strawberry season at Houghton Forest

Wild Strawberry, Fragaria vesca
Yesterday I wandered around the outside of Houghton Forest and saw plenty of Wild Strawberries. Marbled Whites, Meadow Browns and Ringlets were in the meadows and a Speckled Wood appeared on a path by the wood. There were large and small peacock larvae on nettles. Moths seen: Brown Plume, Common Nettle-tap, Common Sweep pupal case, Dark Strawberry Tortrix, Garden Grass-veneer, Sharp-angled Peacock.
all photos taken with 18-55mm lens with ring flash or Canon powershot G9.
14-spot Ladybird, Propylea 14-punctata
Artist's Bracket, Ganoderma applanatum
tiny beetle - id needed
Blue Bottle Fly, Calliphora vomitoria
Bumblebee, Bombus species
Brown Plume, Stenoptilia pterodactyla
Common Green Shieldbug, 2nd instar nymph, Palomena prasina
Common Nettle-tap, Anthophila fabriciana
Common Stretch Spider, Tetragnatha extensa
Common Sweep pupal case, Psyche casta
Dark Strawberry Tortrix, Celypha lacunana
Deadly Nightshade, Atropa belladonna
Deadly Nightshade
Fly, Phaonia pallida
Garden Grass-veneer, Chrysoteuchia culmella
Harlequin Ladybird pupa, Harmonia axyridis
Harvestman, Mitopus morio
Hoverfly, Syrphus ribesii
Lauxaniid flies mating
male and female Lauxaniid flies
Meadow Plant Bug, Leptopterna dolabrata
Mirid bug, Grypocoris stysi
female nymph of Mirid bug, Orthonotus rufifrons
Mirid bug, Plagiognathus arbustorum
Muscid fly, Helina species
Peacock larva, Inachis io
the thread may be the start of a cocoon
Peacock larvae, Inachis io
early and late stage Peacock larvae, Inachis io
late instar nymph of Pied Shieldbug, Tritomegas bicolor
Plant bug, Closterotomus fulvomaculatus
Red Soldier beetle, Rhagonycha fulva
Rust fly, Psila fimetaria
Sawfly larva
Sawfly larva
female Scorpion fly, Panorpa species
wing of Sharp-angled Peacock, Macaria alternata 
Speckled Bush Cricket, Leptophyes punctatissima
Wall Lettuce, Mycelis muralis
Wall Lettuce