Geoff Wilkinson

📢 Brachyopa insensilis records have fallen, likely due to changes in recorder behaviour, not a real decline. The easiest way to help? Target sap runs for larvae—they’re year-round, easier to spot than adults, and verifiable with photos. 🖼 ID sheet included! #hoverflies @dipteristsforum.bsky.social

Today I came across several Dinocampus coccinellae cocoons being guarded by ‘zombie’ 7-spot Ladybirds along a wooden panel fence beside a woodland belt. This ladybird is looking a bit worse for wear #parasitoidwasps #ladybird

Last week I found a 7-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata) with a Dinocampus coccinellae larva wriggling from its rear. This wasp parasitises ladybirds, the larva feeding inside before emerging to cocoon. I kept it in a Petri dish for a week, but it failed to cocoon and died. — Montrose, Angus

Epistrophe grossulariae

Syrphus

Fence line with much overhanging Sycamore

After Storm Amy, a fence line by Sycamore woodland was dripping with aphids. Count: 66 Syrphus larvae and 1 Epistrophe grossulariae larva. Also watched a female Syrphus ribesii on a Sycamore leaf seeking an oviposition site. — Craig Braes, Montrose, Angus #hoverflies

Epistrophe grossulariae (left), Syrphus (right). A great time of year to see syrphine larvae on gravestones and railings. Strong winds shake them from the last leaves and they climb back up in search of fallen aphids. Sites under Sycamores can be productive. #hoverflies @dipteristsforum.bsky.social

Epistrophe grossulariae (left) and Syrphus (right).

Rhamphomyia tarsata

I specialise in Diptera (true flies) and offer a postal ID service for consultancies, universities & charities. Send preserved samples and receive species lists with ecological & conservation notes. Get in touch to discuss your project.

Episyrphus balteatus feeding on Hogweed, clinging on against the sea breeze. Numbers seemed up today — perhaps a local mass emergence, new arrivals from the Continent, or both. - Scurdie Ness, Angus. #hoverflies

♀ Scaeva selenitica feeding on Field Scabious—looks to be a good year for this migratory hoverfly. Montrose, Angus. #hoverflies

A Hummingbird Hawk-moth has been visiting the Buddleia in my garden over the last two days seemingly part of a recent influx in NE Scotland. My goodness they are fast! - Montrose, Angus #moths

To target Cheilosia albipila and C. grossa larvae, split Marsh Thistle stems and roots. After checking, return larvae to the stem and lay the plant down to continue development. Or bring stems into captivity for rearing—you might even get a bonus parasitoid wasp! #hoverflies

Melangyna cincta can be easily targeted in the larval stage by walking along a beech hedge, spotting Woolly Beech Aphid leaf curls, and gently unfolding them to check for larvae inside. Getting a photo for verification is usually straightforward too.

Brachyopa insensilis: sap runs allow focused searches for both adults & larvae, but targeting larvae is arguably the more effective recording method. Larval activity isn’t constrained by weather or flight period, and B. insensilis larvae are generally easier to identify than the adults. #hoverflies

Solitary Bee Identification Workshop at Grantown-on-Spey in Highland on Thurs 7th Aug 2025. #solitarybees #hymenoptera

♂ Rhagio lineola perched politely on the outside of my kitchen window. - Montrose, Angus #Rhagionidae #Diptera

If you have recorded this species, please consider adding to whatever recording platform or schemes you currently use though preferably via UK Hoverfly Recording Scheme, iRecord, iNaturalist or Syrphboard where we can access the records. #hoverflies

An extensive sap run on a sprawling Horse-chestnut in a estate garden in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

Even if you don’t find any Brachyopa, it’s still worth recording trees with sap runs. These valuable woodland features can be revisited in future years, and noting them may help highlight individual trees of conservation importance—potentially preventing unnecessary felling or pruning.

There are few records of Brachyopa insensilis on iRecord, and even fewer verified—all adults. The Hoverfly Recording Scheme has seen fewer recent submissions—likely due to changes in recorder behaviour, reduced fieldcraft, and the challenge of identifying adults from photos rather than specimens.

Brachyopa insensilis: sap runs allow focused searches for both adults & larvae, but targeting larvae is arguably the more effective recording method. Larval activity isn’t constrained by weather or flight period, and B. insensilis larvae are generally easier to identify than the adults. #hoverflies

Interestingly, based on iRecord submissions, there seems to be less enthusiasm for recording M. cincta larvae compared to Parasyrphus nigritarsis. Perhaps the lack of rarity status and the relative ease of finding adults means there’s less incentive to seek out larvae?

Melangyna cincta can be easily targeted in the larval stage by walking along a beech hedge, spotting Woolly Beech Aphid leaf curls, and gently unfolding them to check for larvae inside. Getting a photo for verification is usually straightforward too. #hoverflies

Verified Parasyrphus nigritarsis records from iRecord separated into life stage from 2020 to 2025.

Just checked iRecord after a week—Parasyrphus nigritarsis remains at 52 records for 2025 with no new additions. Their peak has passed, so any activity now is likely at higher elevations like the Scottish Highlands. Still worth checking promising leaf beetle colonies, wherever you are. #hoverflies

At least eight Long-finned Pilot Whales seen off Scurdie Ness, Angus, between 11:15 and 13:30, slowly heading south. Behaviours included spy-hopping, logging, blowing, and sideways cruising with the long lateral fin held above water. Patch Gold! Also: a pod of Bottle-nose Dolphin and 2 Minke Whales.

A friend manages an old fly-tipped bathtub as a flowerbed and added a 'no spray' sign to deter the overzealous. I checked the tub today—a fine teasel growing, an aphid colony on its stem, and nearby, a fat Episyrphus balteatus larva sleeping off an aphid meal. Fabulous #hoverflies

The sap-run dwelling larva of Brachyopa insensilis is one of the more distinctive in the genus and can be identified in the field, especially with a 10x hand lens. Other hoverfly species also inhabit sap runs, so if your larva doesn't match this one, the references provided may assist. #hoverflies

I actually think these are Leucopis (Chamaemyiidae). The posture most larvae are in gives the impression of a single rear breathing tube but there is one in dorsal view that shows there are actually two projections.

Got a beech hedge near you? Why not check it for Woolly Beech Aphid leaf curls? Gently unfurl the curls and you may be fortunate enough to find Melangyna cincta larvae within. The larvae prey on these aphids and are often easy to ID, even in poor weather when adults aren't active. #hoverflies

Verified Parasyrphus nigritarsis records from iRecord separated into life stage from 2020 to 2025.

Checked iRecord just now: 50 verified Parasyrphus nigritarsis records so far in 2025, up by 2 since last update. Just 3 are adults. If you've found eggs, revisit for larvae—and check other sites like leaf beetle colonies on willow & alder. Plenty of time left to find them. #hoverflies

Scaeva - alas, need a clear view of the rear breathing tube. In the dorsal view it might be possible to see a pair of dorsal spurs (selentica) otherwise you need to look at the orientation of the spiracular slits. Bit of a photography challenge!