Friday, 15 Aug 2025
New insect today another one of those very confusing ichneumon wasp males that all look very similar. My best guess on this one and it could be the most appropriate name for it in this case is Ichneumon confusor. On the upper surface of an English Oak leaf I came across what I believe to […]
Thursday, 14 Aug 2025
Butterfly numbers greatly reduced. Small Copper is now the dominant species. A few Brown Argus (Aricia agestis), Small White (Pieris rapae), Speckled Wood and Gatekeeper still present. New insects added were Large Rose Sawfly (Arge pagana) and an unexpected passenger on my shorts after walking along the edge of the sheep enclosure, a Castor Bean Tick […]
Tuesday, 12 Aug 2025 – Park Downs
Having been alerted to the presence of several Silver-spotted Skipper butterflies at Park Downs, another of the Banstead Commons Conservators properties, I decided to try my luck. I did find a single male and will restrict my post to images of the species not yet seen on Banstead Downs (with the exception of the hoverfly). […]
Monday, 11 Aug 2025
Butterfly numbers generally are dwindling, although Small Copper numbers have increased again. Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown still dominate, but there are still significant numbers of Chalkhill Blue, even though these are starting to look increasingly worn and tatty. The odd Speckled Wood, Red Admiral and Brimstone are still to be seen. There were no new […]
Sunday, 10 Aug 2025
Although I have seen it before, at Warnham Nature Reserve in West Sussex and on Park Downs only 2 miles from here, this morning I recorded European Hornet (Vespa crabro) on the Downs for the first time. Although I watched it darting round for a few minutes, it did not land anywhere so I was […]
Saturday, 9 Aug 2025
Another two insects added today with Acorn Weevil (Curculio glandium) and Wall Mason Wasp (Ancistrocerus parietum). I also added a female Kite-tailed Robberfly (Machimus atricapillus) and an adult Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina) to my image gallery. The purple fruits of the Common Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea), sometimes referred to as dogberries, are now ripening. They look […]
Friday, 8 Aug 2025
Latest insect added to the year list is the Rufous Grasshopper (Gomphocerippus rufus), several of which were seen at different spots on the Downs. This is apparently regarded as a nationally scarce species and is restricted mainly to chalk grasslands in the south-east of England. After staking out a promising patch of Red Bartsia where […]
Wednesday, 6 Aug 2025
Two new insects today, a female Marjoram Wasp-Sawfly (Tenthredo thompsoni) and a Red Bartsia Bee (Melitta tricincta). These bees stay very close to the ground as their sole source of pollen is the Red Bartsia flowers. They also fly much faster than their bigger bumblebee cousins and more directly, so even trying to follow them […]
Sunday, 3 Aug 2025
Only one new insect today, one of those tricky to identify ichneumon wasps, a pimpline ichneumon which I believe might be Apechthis compunctor? After many sightings of nymphs earlier in the summer I have now seen an adult Speckled Bush-cricket (Leptophyes punctatissima). Other photographs included a female Hornet Mimic Hoverfly (Volucella zonaria), a male Kite-tailed […]
Saturday, 2 Aug 2025
New insects added today were Jersey Tiger (Euplagia quadripunctaria) moth, a possible Common Furrow Bee (Lasioglossum calceatum?) and Parent Bug (Elasmucha grisea). Latest photographs of already recorded species include a Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus) seen for the first time despite its name on Dock, Sun Fly (Helophilus pendulus) hoverfly (a.k.a. ‘The Footballer’), a Common Wasp […]
Friday, 1 Aug 2025
Good numbers of Brown Argus and Small Copper around this morning. Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown are increasing, and the large numbers of Chalkhill Blue are beginning to tail off. New insects for the summer were Long-legged Plant Bug (Phytocoris varipes), Alder Spittlebug (Aphrophora alni), Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) and Spotted Wolf Spider (Pardosa amentata), the latter […]
Wednesday, 30 Jul 2025
Another very overcast morning after a few overnight rain showers, which didn’t stop me adding several new insects to the list for this year. A moth, two flies and two wasps – Dingy Footman (Collita griseola), grass fly (Meromyza sp.), Snail-killing Fly (Trypetoptera punctulata), Yellow-tipped Darwin Wasp (Ichneumon stramentor) and Oriental Chestnut Gall Wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus) […]
Monday, 28 Jul 2025
Good numbers of Brown Argus present today, outnumbered by Small Copper, which are in much greater numbers than recent days. Insects added today were Tiger Ichneumon Wasp (Ichneumon xanthorius), a tiny (+/- 5 mm) Orthocentrus ichneumon wasp that landed on my watch strap, European Garden Spider (Araneus diadematus) and Kite-tailed Robberfly (Machimus atricapillus). Also photographed were […]
Sunday, 27 Jul 2025
A very overcast day and I was out much earlier than usual so not too much activity. Despite the conditions I did find one new insect on a bramble stem, the Tarnished Plant Bug (Lygus pratensis) and another on a sycamore leaf, a mosquito, a Culex sp., possibly the Southern House Mosquito (Culex quinquefasciatus?). Also […]
Friday, 25 Jul 2025
Two days of heavy showers has seen a lush greenness return to the Downs. Chalk Hill Blue (Lysandra coridon) still predominates, but I have a first ever sighting anywhere of Purple Hairstreak (Favonius quercus). A rather worn specimen but still a Purple Hairstreak! Other new sightings were a female ichneumon wasp (Ichneumon suspiciosus?), a female Red […]
Tuesday, 22 Jul 2025
Chalkhill Blue is still present in amazingly large numbers. New sightings included Wavy-barred Sable (Pyrausta nigrata), Tortoise Shield Bug (Eurygaster testudinaria) final stage nymph and Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax). On an English Oak (Quercus robur) the galls of the Knopper Gall Wasp (Andricus quercuscalicis) were found, as well as the egg sacs of the Sputnik Spider […]
Monday, 21 Jul 2025
Some good heavy rain in the past 2 days but the ground has been so dry that all was soaked up leaving the paths only slightly damp. No muddy puddles anywhere. At least that awful straw colour of the grass is returning to green with much new growth stimulated by the rain. A week since […]
Friday, 18 Jul 2025
The first Brown Argus (Aricia agestis) seen since 1st May – or maybe I’ve been writing them off as female Common Blues. New insects added to the list are a pair of wasps, a female Greater Pennant Wasp (Gasteruption jaculator) and a Sharp-shouldered Fly Fox (Ectemnius dives) both on the same Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium). At […]
Wednesday, 16 Jul 2025
It is still the most prominent butterfly and today I found the female of a mating pair of Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) carrying a parasitic Trombidium breei mite. A new insect added was the Lesser Hornet Hoverfly (Volucella inanis). On 3rd May I posted an image of a Currant Gall caused by the Common Spangle Gall […]
Monday, 14 Jul 2025
What a start to my walk today! Just 3 minutes after setting foot on the Downs I realised that there were a Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) doe and her fawn walking towards me along the path. So I fired off a quick couple of shots and ducked into the trees to my right, trying to […]