Standing up for Nature
The English name for this hoverfly describes it perfectly. Although the fly is only small, 10mm, the long thin body is instantly recognisable. The fly’s Latin name is Sphaerophoria scripta, which probably explains why it needs an easy English name. It’s a Latin name that is easily remembered in print but one I’ve never heard…
Tim writes: Long-eared Owls are not especially easy to see in Britain as they are patchily distributed and are generally elusive, usually only emerging to hunt after sunset. Fortunately I live near one of its patches in the South Pennines so I see them fairly regularly, but getting a photograph is never easy. This one…
Paul writes: I see lots of black beetles and many of them are quite difficult to identify. This is one of the easier ones. It is quite large, 18 – 26mm long, with a chunky looking body and distinctive orange tipped antennae. It belongs to the family Silphidae, commonly known as burying beetles. They emerge…
Paul writes: the Orange-backed Tachinid (Tachina fera) is a fantastic fly. It’s quite large, reaching 16mm long and easily recognisable by its colours and spiky appearance. It is fairly well distributed throughout England and Wales but less common in Scotland. I usually see them in August and September, I found this one recently at Harlow…
Tim writes: the Ural Owl is a close relative of Tawny Owl, but it is much larger with a much longer tail. The owl is about half a metre long with a wingspan well over a metre (<134cm), and weighing more than a kilogram. Tawny Owl by comparison has a wingspan just under a metre…
Paul writes: Shield-bugs develop in a series of flightless nymphs, or instars, each one different and slightly bigger than the previous one. This is a 5th instar, which is the final stage before adulthood. It’s about 10mm long and blends beautifully into its surroundings. The adult Common Green Shield-bug (Palomena prasina) grows up to 12mm…
Tim writes: I managed to capture the moment that this Slavonian Grebe opened its bill. It didn’t seem to be for any particular reason as it didn’t make a sound. I presumed that she was incubating eggs but her partner approached calling and she lowered he head inviting him to mate, and he did just…
Paul writes: If you can only recognise one hoverfly it will probably be this one. The combination of orange and black stripes on the abdomen is found only on this species. The Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus) widespread throughout Europe, North Asia and North Africa and can turn up in almost all habits. Whenever I’m on…
I was one of the judges for these awards – the judging was in early January and the book is out and was selling well at the Bird Fair last weekend. That’s pretty good going. The cover photograph, of American Flamingos at a flamingo sanctuary in Madrid, and by Pedro Jarque Krebs from Peru, was…
Tim writes: I haven’t seen a great many Capercaillies, and most of my sightings have been fleeting glimpses of birds disappearing into the forest. But this Capercaillie was different. This was one of those so-called rogue male Capercaillies that was pumped full of testosterone and ready for a fight. I had to get down low…