Charmouth 1st August

I spent the morning near Charmouth looking for some local specialities namely Slender Centaury, Cliff Tiger Beetle and Sea Heath. To my delight I managed to find all three and some additions too. Being a beginner I found the Centaury group a little tricky to get the hand of but pointers that helped included looking for the presence of a basal rosette, whether the branches along the whole stem or just the top half and the leaf shape.

Lesser Centaury

Sea Heath

Slender Centaury

Asaphidion pallipes

Cliff Tiger Beetle

Stagonospora atriplicis

Green Tiger Beetle

I've seen Green Tiger Beetle on Brean Down a few years ago but never on Sand Point until today. I found this individual on the footpath near the point seemingly hunting for food. Their prey is said to be ants and spiders and other insects small enough to drag down into it's burrow. I watched it attack a woodlouse at one stage the rest of the time it lay in wait.

Green Tiger Beetle

Bloody-nosed Beetle

Whilst out on Black Down on the Mendips this morning I found this beetle. After some trouble I eventually got identified as Bloody-nosed Beetle. A common beetle that is found in the vicinity of Bedstraws. Whilst out there were plenty of Common Heath and Bilberry Tortrix were on the wing.

Bloody-nosed Beetle

Crepidodera aurea 30th May 2014

I found this beetle on the bark of White Poplar this morning at Sand Point, Somerset so decided to have a go at identifying it. The conclusion was Crepidodera aurea. The dark hind femur contrasting with the orange tarsus and tibia was the clue that led to it being Crepidodera species.

Crepidodera aurea

Common Cockchafer Melolontha melolontha

Here's a shot of a Common Cockchafer that I took back in May. Probably my best shot of this species.

Common Cockchafer Melolontha melolontha

Necrodes littoralis

This large beetle was on my ground sheet last night. This carrion feeding species is said to be attracted to light so was a welcome addition to my year list.

Necrodes littoralis

Nicrophorus vespillo

This beetle was attracted to my MV light last night. I saw this or a similar species at Berrow just over a week ago. One of the distinguishing features of Nicrophorus vespillo is the curved hind tibiae.
Edit: A little bit more information on this species. The red top to the antennae and yellow side hairs along with the curved hind tibiae are all features of Nicrophorus vespillo.

Nicrophorus vespillo

Spotted Longhorn - Rutpela maculata

This was bug of the day for me and found within the first 15 minutes of leaving the car. The first 10 minutes was spent trying to get photos of a Mason Wasp which at the moment is looking like a Symmorphus sp. The Longhorn was quite flighty but very approachable.

Neocoenorrhinus aequatus

This little weevil gave me no end of problems to identify. For starters the family was not in my beetle family key so I didn't stand much of a chance. Fortunately I was able to get it identified by an experienced coleopterist.

Neocoenorrhinus aequatus

Looking for more bugs 31st May

A great morning out with plenty of new species seen today and perhaps my personal favourite is Pammene rhediella found flitting about on Malus. A warm sunny day and even the on shore wind couldn't do much to change the summery feel to the day. On the bird front 2 Grey Plover were in the bay picked up on call as the tide rolled in but overhead there was no visible migration.

Seioptera vibrans

Centrotus cornutus Treehopper

Gooden's Nomad Bee

Tenthredo sp

Red-headed Cardinal Beetle

Moth trapping on night of 29th May

It was slightly overcast and temperatures were up to 13 degrees by nightfall so I set out for a couple of hours moth trapping. Quite a few interesting insects came to the trap but the Noctuid numbers were still very low for the time of year. Highlights were the migrant Diamond-backed Moth, Purple Bar, Small-waved Umber, Light Brocade, Rustic Shoulder-knot, Sandy Carpet, Yellow-barred Brindle, Orange Footman. Insects included Potato Leafhopper, Liophloeus tessulatus Weevil and Short-tailed Ichneumon Wasp.

Potato Leafhopper

Yellow Ophion Ichneumon Wasp

Liophloeus tessulatus

Burnet Companion and Wasp Beetle 25th May

Yet another cold morning with temperatures again around 7 degrees. I did a quick sea watch from Anchor Head until 7am that  yielded 2 Greylag Geese and 3 Gannets heading up river. After breakfast under a clear sky, lighter winds and warmer temperatures it was back to Sand Point for some Botany. New plants for the year were Common Mouse-ear and Red Campion.
Whilst looking for Glanville Fritillary I disturbed a moth that to my surprise turned out to be a Burnet Companion. This is the first site record of this species and a new moth for me. Also whilst on the slope Glyphipterix simpliciella was found on Oxeye Daisy and Common Carpet was also disturbed from the footpath.
In Sand Bay I found my first Wasp Beetle, a species I have never seen before. Back home it didn't take long to find out what it was on the internet.

Burnet Companion

Wasp Beetle