Wildlife mid 2009

[Armin]

News from my bee hotel.

Today I could observe up to 6 female Ichneumon wasps parallel parasiting the solitary bee larvas.

Ichneumon wasps are important parasitoids of other insects, therefore I do not interfere in the natural regulation process, even I'll lose some potential pollinators for my spring crocus

It is very exciting how the female Ichneumon wasps proceed.
After landing the wasp is 1st. sensing or smelling (this is not yet scientifically cleared) a living larvae behind the closed camber.
Then the wasp turns around and starts sensing with its ovipositor the right sting position. In a 3rd. step the ovipositor is carefully pushed and drilled into the breeding chamber. The process of pushing and pulling the ovipositor, often the wasp is moving in cycles, took more then 5 minutes. Then one egg is layed per larvae.
After job done - the next chamber will be screened...

There are more then 60.000 species worldwide. I'm unable to identify the species name. Any help is welcome.
I believe my wasps could belong to the subgroup Branchinae, maybe a Lissinota sp..

[Gerdk]

Hi Armin,
What a sequence of firstclass pics, showing an fascinating behaviour!

Gerd

[Armin]

Hello Gerd,

thanks for the compliments.
3 more pictures from this unknown species.

[mark smyth]

brilliant. That looks like the wasp that was in my garden this week

Last year we saw photos on spiders webs where the spider had used grit as an anchor for parts of suspension lines. Today in my green house one has used grit

[Armin]

Mark,
looks a bit magic!

[Anthony Darby]

Armin, that is a superb set of pics. May I use them with my Advanced Higher biology pupils? Parasitism is in the course.

[Armin]

Armin, that is a superb set of pics. May I use them with my Advanced Higher biology pupils? Parasitism is in the course.

Anthony,
please go ahead, I'm very glad. If you need "high resolution pictures" please send me an e-mail.

[mark smyth]

Is anyone in the UK watching Tough Guy or Chicken on BBC3. The editors must think were are stupid. Picture this - tough guys are in Namibia, it's night and a Great northern diver aka loon for North America is calling 

[Tony Willis]

two different hover flies on a pot of Crocus hadriaticus.They appeared to be eating the pollen.

[Armin]

Tony,
nice shots.
The first hoverfly looks like Eristalis tenax (Mistbiene), the second Helophilus pendulus (Gemeine Sumpfschwebfliege).
Sorry don't know English common names.

[Armin]

Summer goes to end - and butterflies become rarer...

Here some impressions from recent 2 walks I did in the local fields.

Colias hyale - Pale Clouded Yellow/Goldene Acht: A typical butterfly of the open field and meadows. Often sits on Trifolium.
Lycaena phlaeas - Small Copper/Kleiner Feuerfalter: A wee beauti often to find on dry meadows. The last picture shows one sitting on the seed heat of a rare endangered plant in Germany, Armeria maritima ssp. elongata -?-/Sand-Grasnelke.
Armeria maritima ssp. elongata flower: growing in alkaline sandy, dry meadows.

[Anthony Darby]

two different hover flies on a pot of Crocus hadriaticus.They appeared to be eating the pollen.

I suspect these flies barf over the pollen and suck up the dissolved liquid?

[Armin]

Summer goes to end - and butterflies become rarer...

Plebicula dorylas - Turquoise Blue/Wundkleebläuling: a wee beauti too. Not easy to photograph - very nervous and shy. Often sits on Trifolium in dry meadows.
Dianthus carthusianorum -Carthasian Pink/Karthäuser-Nelke: still in flower, in dry meadows. The first picture is the typical flower form. But I found one single plant showing lots of brown pollen - I question if this this specis is bisexual? Or is it a decease i.e. fungus?
Can anybody explain?
Evonymus europaeus -Common Spindle/Pfaffenhütchen: This deciduous shrub/small tree can grow up to 6m height. Now full of bright cherry-red fruits. But attention! Fruits are poisonous/toxic Ingestion can result in liver and kidney damage and even death.

Unknown yellow moth: A bit curious pictures. I took it in the evening around the outdoor lamplight. A large yellow moth is sitting on a small yellow one, and a very small fly was sitting on the edge of the moths wing!
I have no idea why that piggy-pack.
Anthony or any other, any possible ID of the yellow larger moth, please?
 

[Anthony Darby]

The moth is a Large Thorn (Ennomos autumnaris), which I have not seen in Scotland. The larvae feed on hawthorn. The fly is a fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), though why it's there is anyone's guess!

[mark smyth]

On Friday there was a silver Y moth feeding on my Crocus and Colchicums in the green house. It got scared every time the camera tried to focus