Not Expected

Saturday August 12

The lid we use to cover the gap left when the actinic tube is removed, gave some idea of what was to come.

 


The interior of the trap and its egg boxes was covered by dozens of  small Black Beetles which I know as a species of Pollen Beetle.

Pollen beetles are small green, bronzy or black shiny beetles that visit the flowers of a wide range of ornamental plants and vegetables, where they feed on pollen. They rarely cause damage in gardens and are part of garden wildlife.
Pollen beetles belong to the beetle family Nitidulidae, which also includes the the sap beetles. There are about 90 species of this family in beetle, many feed on fungi, sap runs or dried carrion. About half the nitidulid beetles are ollen beetles belonging to the subfamily Meligethinae. Most are dark in colour and they feed in flowers and flower buds as larvae.

Such a nuisance, as they scurry about disturbing the moths resting in the boxes. I spent a lot of time brushing them off using my trusty paint brush. When the trap was empty, I tried a photograph to show the dozens still left in the Robinson - but it only showed up the wing cases of the flying ants also present. There were also at least four different species of beetle including the enormous Silver Water Beetle. My least favourite is the handsome, orange-striped Sexton Beetle, named for its habit of being the undertaker of the animal world. It buries dead animals like mice and birds, and feeds and breeds on the corpses. It is usually covered in small brown mites.

We did have a few interesting moths. The best was the  very ordinary looking Small Rufous, which is new for our garden. I may well have overlooked it in the past. This one is rather worn, and easy to miss.

 

We also had two new for the year, Small Rivulet and Copper Underwing.


 

Later on, whilst watching the England Women beat Colombia 2-1 to reach the semis of the World Cup, I felt a tickle in the knee area of my trousers. I rolled up my trouser leg and out fell ......................a Sexton Beetle. I was not happy. Especially as it was minus mites!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 12

Image
 Monday May 6 Most of the morning was occupied getting in touch with the car insurance people and then Autoglass - then waiting for Autoglass to get back to us.  A  stone chipped our windscreen on the way through Skye, since then its become a one foot plus horizontal crack on Pam's side. End result. We take the car to Lewis or Skye or wait until we get home. The garage here 'doesn't have the equipment to deal with the sensor in the front screen'. Ian, Heather's husband, says he does them all the time! Ah well, live with it.  Almost the first bird we saw as we drove north was a lovely male Hen Harrier. It was distant but I had to try, one of these days I'll get a decent photo. Original photo before editing, taken with 500mm lens    Edited     As we drove down to Loch Paible, a flock of fifteen Whimbrel dropped in to the near corner.We needed to turn the car, by which time the birds had gone, this Wheatear posed nicely for me.    A short d...
Read more

Moth Migration

Image
 Wednesday October 9 Like birds, moths migrate when the season and weather conditions are right. Recently, we have had easterly winds with a mouth watering fall of birds which we have been unable to walk and see. Many Yellow-browed Warblers, Eastern Crowned Warbler in Shetland, a possible Amur Stonechat and an Asian Desert Warbler in Norfolk. Our moth traps have had a reasonable sprinkling of the migrant moths - although some could be breeding here by now. Palpita Vitrialis Scarce Bordered Straw Delicate   and Rusty Dot Pearl
Read more

Day 19

Image
  Monday May 13   The day started slowly and ended at a gallop. A morning spent doing chores meant an even later start than usual, well past mid-day. Loch Druidibeg was the intended destination but we missed the turning and ended up at Loch Eynort. Both are in South Uist, but Druidibeg is not signposted on the northern approach. We even found a parking space in the small six car parking area, where we sat looking at a pretty empty sea. Eventually, Red-breasted Merganser, Shags, a Great Northern Diver and an Otter on the sea and Willow Warbler, Chaffinch, Robin, Blackbird, Dunnock, Cuckoo, and a Lesser Redpoll from the small wood alongside. AS we reversed away, Pam noticed the reg plate on the car beside us. It was WOC, Ian and Sue's car. We left them a note and drove on in the rain. We found Druidibeg this time. RSPB Scotland Loch Druidibeg, a community nature reserve formed in partnership with local crofters and the community estate. It is a Special Protection Area and Site...
Read more