Thursday 25 April 2019

Life in the Margins

At this time of year, I really enjoy walking beside the water ditches on Pevensey Levels, where an abundance of  new life can be found emerging from the water margins. Early season dragonflies and damselflies are now taking to the air and some species of moth larvae have come out of hibernation to feed on their favoured foodplants.


Hairy Dragonfly (Brachytron pratense)
(freshly emerged female)



Hairy Dragonfly (B.pratense)
(a nymph on the point of emerging from the water)



Large Red Damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula)
 (freshly emerged male)



Saucer Bug (Ilyocoris cimicoides)
(basking on floating pennywort)



Garden Tiger (Arctia caja)
(larva resting between feeds)



Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) (female)



A species of Ichneumon Wasp (Diphyus quadripunctorius) (female)

Tuesday 9 April 2019

April Come She Will

Early in the moth-trapping season, massed ranks of Hebrew Characters and Quakers predominate but once April arrives, the variety of species attracted to the light starts to increase.
 
 
Common Plume (Emmelina monodactyla)
 
 
 
Twin-spotted Quaker (Orthosia munda)

 
 
Hebrew Character (Orthosia gothica)

 
 
V-pug (Chloroclystis v-ata)

 
 
Streamer (Anticlea derivata

 
 
Frosted Green (Polyploca ridens)