Standing up for Nature
I was driving across a moor in County Durham in January and I spotted this female Black Grouse from the car. It is the first close photograph I have ever managed of a female Black Grouse. Some books call them Greyhens but they are brown rather than grey so that seems like quite a daft…
Social Distancing Week 8. Ashy Mining Bee. Paul writes: One of the good things I’ve discovered about looking for insects closer to home are the unexpected finds. The Ashy Mining Bee ( Andrena cineraria) is my best this spring, it is a first for my local patch, OS square TA0978. It’s a bee that I…
Tim writes: if Lapwings are being watched by a predator (or a human) they sometimes pretend to have a nest in a different area to where their actual nest is. Because of this Lapwings were thought to be deceitful birds and the collective noun is a deceit of Lapwings. Chaucer said that the bird was…
Social Distancing Week 7. Hairy-footed Flower Bee. I’ve been watching a colony of these beautiful bees since the middle of March. I initially noticed them in one of the flower beds in my village five years ago and now I watch out for them each year. Hairy-footed Flower Bees (Anthophora plumipes) are one of the…
Tim writes: The name implies that this is a tropical species but it also occurs throughout the Southern Himalayas, so also goes by the name of Himalayan Porcupine (Histrix brachyura). Its scientific name translates as short-tailed porcupine, even though its tail is quite long, but this distinguishes it from the Long-tailed Porcupine (Trichys fasciculata), which…
Social Distancing Week 6. The Footballer. The Footballer (Helophilus pendulus) is a colourful hoverfly that has started appearing in my garden over the last few days. It’s a chunky fly which rests with its wings open. The striped thorax is what makes it stand out from most other flies, so it’s quite recognisable. It’s a…
Tim writes: Steppe Eagles (Aquila nipalensis) are a bit smaller than Golden Eagles and breed across the desert steppes of Central Asia but migrate south to winter in sub-Saharan Africa, India and Southeast Asia. Huge numbers pass through certain places on migration, such as the Middle East and Nepal, and its name (nipalensis) refers to…
Social Distancing Week 5. Gooden’s Nomad Bee. I love dandelions at this time of year. They are one of the main food sources for a huge variety of insects so a nice expanse of flowers in a sunny spot is an ideal place for watching and waiting. There is a grassy bank just along the…
Tim writes: these are Tibetan Macaques, sometimes known as Milne-Edwards’ or Chinese Stump-tailed Macaques (Macaca thibetana). They are the largest species of Macaque and occur mainly in Eastern Tibet and Western China. They are classified by IUCN as near-threatened largely because of habitat destruction. They live in mixed sex groups of twenty to thirty with…
Social Distancing Week 4. Tapered Drone Fly. This is the most visible insect in my garden at the moment. It is a hoverfly, which mimics a drone Honey bee (Apis mellifera). The male Tapered Drone Fly (Eristalis pertinax) is fiercely territorial and is busy staking out its territory. It can be heard buzzing and seen…