Ranscombe Farm with the Field Club

Myathropa florea, Eristalis tenax, Eristalis pertinax, Eristalis arbustorum, Sphaerophoria scripta, Episyrphus balteatus, Melanostoma scalare, Volucella inanis,

Interesting solitary wasps

Both Acerias on Acer

Corncockle, Nettle-leaved Bellflower, Fluellens, Ground Pine, Blue Pimpernel, Stinking Iris,

Greensand Way path down from West Peckham

Episyrphus balteatus, Myathropa florea, Melanostoma scalare, Epistrophe grossulariae, Syrphus vitripennis/rectus, Eristalis pertinax, Dasysyrphus albostriatus, Eristalis arbustorum, Meliscaeva auricollis, Sphaerophoria, Cheilosia illustrata, Chelosia sp., Common Red Soldier Beetle,

Hedge Woundwort, Black Horehound, Fireweed, Hogweed, Dandelion, Nettle, Ivy, Sycamore seedlings, Enchanters Nightshade, Alkanet, Lettuce, Coltsfoot, Nipplewort, Roberts Weed, Selfheal, Geum urbanum,

Green Woodpecker heard. Kestrel overflying Matthews Lane on way back. 

Haysden Country Park

A bright male Eristalis arbustorum photographed well with most characters seen: whitish face, bright abdominal pattern, yellow on T2 continuous with T3, pale base to hind tibia, swollen hind metatarsus, dark tip to mid tibia, dark tips to mid and front tarsi, a hint of long hairs on arista in one photo.

This picture concentrates on the swollen hind metatarsus.

Also seen were Eristalis pertinax I think, and Eristalis tenax definitely. 

To the Pheasantry and back.

Eristalis arbustorum and Eristalis pertinax, bug, Carder bee, white/buff tailed bee, honey bee, Volucella pellucens,  Episyrphus balteatus, Small White, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria, Holly Blue, Common Carpet, seven spot ladybird, spider.


Spearmint, meadow vetchling, vetches, water mint, water parsnip, common centaury, ragwort, yellow loosestrife, woody nightshade, yarrow, common knapweed, black horehound,                  

Back to Dene Park

I found a nice moth on the grassy meadow which I think must be a species of Epirrhoe, perhaps the Common Carpet, Epirrhoe alternata.

Interesting to see the greyish tuft of hairs on the side of the thorax of this female Episyrphus balteatus. She seems to have a swollen abdomen (full of eggs?) and to be taking pollen directly from the anther. Note also the small facial bump, the whitish frons with the small dark Y above the antennae and the longitudinal stripes on the top of the thorax.

I photographed two Eristalis and both of those turned out to be male Eristalis pertinax.

Damp meadow

A short walk down to the damp meadow by the River Bourne demonstrated once again the great diversity of flowers there, with plenty of Hawkweed, Bristly Oxtongue, Fleabane, Ragwort,  Mayweed, Birds-Foot Trefoil, Meadowsweet, Mint, Knotgrass and a small yellow trefoil of some sort, all in full flower. Last year there were plenty of Common Blue butterflies, but I didn't see any today. There was however a minute skipper, possibly an Essex Skipper, although I could not get around to looking at the underside of its antennae tips.

The other Lepidopteran seen - apart from the usual grass plumes - was a Shaded Broad Bar, Scotopteryx chenopodiata (confirmed almost instantly on ispot).

There was also this odd fly, plunging its proboscis deep into the flower throats of this mint head

Not much variety in the hoverflies, but particularly good for Sphaerophoria scripta, 

together with some Episyrphus balteatus

and a couple of Eristalis tenax.

and there was one of the very common (this year at least) Myathropa florea.

On the way down by the side of the footpath beside the large OSR field, I found a nice Syritta pipiens, so recognisable by its size, shape and jizz. you can see the rear tibiae colour pattern slightly more clearly in the second photo.

Hunting for a needle in the haystack

The crops are struggling towards harvest at the moment, with the wheat to the North of East Lock drying off nicely:

The field on the South side of the River had already been harvested, and the straw "rolled", under a violent sky:

On the path on the way down all the hogweed was swarming with Rhagonycha fulva,

but also attracted this Volucella pellucens:

Failed to find ANY sign AT ALL of the Shepherds Needle in the crop margin