Simon Knott

Leptoglossus occidentalis early instar nymph

Leptoglossus occidentalis late instar nymph

Leptoglossus occidentalis nymphs in Bengeo garden: early instar from Friday & late instar from today. Largest British squashbug uses various conifer trees. @britishbugs.bsky.social #WesternConiferSeedBug

Graphocephala fennahi mating pair

Graphocephala fennahi mating pair today in Bengeo garden, perhaps most striking species here. @britishbugs.bsky.social #RhododendronLeafhopper

Tiger cranefly Nephrotoma flavipalpis female

Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) female

hoverfly Rhingia rostrata female

robberfly Machimus atricapillus female with dipteran prey.

Selection from Bengeo garden today: Tiger cranefly Nephrotoma flavipalpis ♀, Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) ♀, hoverfly Rhingia rostrata ♀ & robberfly Machimus atricapillus ♀ with dipteran prey. @flygirlnhm.bsky.social

Green Alkanet is main host plant here for S.luctuosus. On hot days, some even climb up stem. So far both specimens of S.morio have been in locations where you would not expect luctuosus : one on Dogwood & one attracted to light. Look out for abnormally large Sehirus in unusual places.

Recorded morio here, much larger (c.25%) than luctuosus. Lots of subtle differences but easiest feature to use is morio's relatively longer rostrum that reaches middle coxae. Some useful photos at: www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/Fam_...

Sehirus morio showing its rostrum reaching middle coxae

This specimen was 10mm, much larger than luctuosus. There are some subtle features that distinguish morio from luctuosus but easiest characteristic is that rostrum is relatively longer reaching middle coxae. Useful photos of both species can be found at: www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/Fam_...

Sehirus morio

Hot nights lead to dispersal of other rare invertebrates.

Sehirus morio on Friday night in Bengeo garden. Sehirus morio is european species of shieldbug present in UK in small numbers. It is similar to common Sehirus luctuosus but 25% larger. @britishbugs.bsky.social @bugmanjones.bsky.social

Found it in garden this week on fence post. Species is really well camouflaged on wood. Love "anchor mark" on its head.

Its eyes are fantastic.

Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta) male

Always special when you realise that you are standing right next to dragonfly at rest. Better still if camera is at hand.

Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta) ♂ today in Bengeo garden, only 2nd record of species here.

Mutilla europaea has by reputation worst sting of any UK invertebrate. Maybe not Bullet Ant strength but certainly worse than Hornet. Suspect Smicromyrme punches above its weight in pain department.

Velvet ants rock but they also sting.

Aulonium trisulcus

Hot nights lead to dispersal of rare saproxylic beetles.

Aulonium trisulcus last night in Bengeo garden, distinctive species that occurs in galleries of elm bark beetles. @bugmanjones.bsky.social @nottscoleoptera.bsky.social @kitenet.bsky.social #Zopheridae #attractedtolight

Under-reported species, you need to spend plenty of time near V.vulgaris nests to find them. One year we had nest in roof & loads appeared in house.

Rotting wood which Vespula vulgaris use to construct their paper nests. Quite common in & around V.vulgaris nests but they are weak dispersers & short-lived so are rarely recorded elsewhere.

Oh wow, that's gorgeous.

Wonderful nocturnal longhorn that is occasionally attracted to light. Agreed, female with 11 antennal segments (male has 12 larger more serrated segments). Females are larger than males &, judging by Peppered Moth, your specimen was almost 40mm. They can reach 45mm. Always special to see one.

Lymexylon navale female

48 hrs later it produced its 1st result:

Lymexylon navale ♀ today in Bengeo garden, nationally scarce ship-timber beetle that loves recently-cut Oak heartwood. It is really strange species unlike any other beetle here. @bugmanjones.bsky.social @nottscoleoptera.bsky.social #Lymexyloidea #saproxylic

Oak logpile

On Monday contractors removed some diseased boughs from street Oak. Rather than see this go to waste, I persuaded them to leave wood here to form Oak logpile in front garden.

Chrysopilus laetus female

Chrysopilus laetus ♀ today in Bengeo garden. Until recently this distinctive orange snipefly was a major rarity restricted to Beech of Windsor Forest but has suddenly started to expand its range. @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @flygirlnhm.bsky.social #TreeSnipefly #saproxylic #climatechange

Gasteruption sp. female

Gasteruption sp. ♀ feeding on Bramble (Rubus sp.) today in Bengeo garden, striking cleptoparasite of solitary bees with its amazing long ovipositor.

Wonderful.

If those are Marble Galls then maybe M.dorsalis.

Torymidae something like Megastigmus.

Interesting comparing your current list with list here (13 sp. +2 woodland sp. which I will ignore). Not seen Small Tortoiseshell since 2022, Common Blue is rare, Small Copper is infrequent. Large Skipper still present but Small Skipper infrequent. Also Ringlet, Marbled White & Painted Lady here.

@denisewawman.bsky.social

Lovely species that is attracted to light.

Very similar soil here, hence plenty of Typhaeus typhoeus. Local area is hotspot in Herts for Breckland species.

Plenty of records of laevigata on lawn suggesting local population but only single record of atrata here during last decade. Larva was within 5m of where I recorded adult 17 days later. Occam's razor would suggest it's same individual or one of its siblings given it's wingless species.

Here's adult female from 8th June found on fence post in garden. Adults are very short-lived so are hardly ever recorded though males occasionally turn up at light traps here.