Wildlife October 2010

[David Lyttle]

I was moving some pots and found this rather nice spider. I sure it is a female.

[ranunculus]

I was moving some pots and found this rather nice spider. I sure it is a female.

Shapely legs anyway, David!   

[Stephenb]

     Just come back from a holiday in Scotland and north Northumberland. I am a keen birder (birdwatcher) and was surprised to be still seeing Swallows so far north at this time of year. I saw a couple in Scotland but what really surprised me was at least 25 of these birds at the b and b i was staying at in Northumberland on 9th with at least 15 the following day as i was departing.

Still a few hanging around up here too. Even a couple of sightings north of the arctic circle over the last couple of days! Not really unusual though. Swallows can still have young in the nest well into the autumn. Last year there was even a record in this area of adults feeding 4 large young in the nest on 24th October, so I guess late sightings are these late breeders and the last young of the year and some probably don't make it...

[Anthony Darby]

Dave's little spider (or should that be Dave Lyttle's spider?) looks like a Dolomedes sp., but they tend to be aquatic, living near water and trapping insects that fall in the water.

[David Lyttle]

Thanks Antony,

I googled the name and was able to identify it as Dolomedes minor, the nursery web spider. It builds its nurseries on vegetation and is reasonably common round here.

[Maggi Young]

Have a tootle over to the wildlife section of the  Forum of our Friends in the Flemish Rock Garden Club to see a great series of photos of a Humming Bird Hawk moth in flight, approaching a monkshood (aconitum) flower .... the pix are by Frankie Wulleman and the last in the series is my favourite  ......
 http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?topic=57.msg4475#msg4475


 I should add, on the previous page to the series of moth pix, Frankie has a lovely shot of his cat sharing a dinner date with a hedgehog. 

[Paul T]

Very nice.  I love the cat and hedgehog shot.

[Maggi Young]

Yes, I liked that.... always nice to have friends round for a meal, isn't it? 

[Maggi Young]

I was moving some pots and found this rather nice spider. I sure it is a female.

Shapely legs anyway, David!   

The legs may be shapely but they're little too hairy for my liking....

Dolomedes minor, the nursery web spider.....

Hmmm, makes it sound so innocent and caring, doesn't it? Why am I  not convinced? 

[Anthony Darby]

Dolomedes minor sounds like the name of some swot in a Billy Bunter book! The female great raft spider (Dolomedes plantarius) from the fens of eastern England has a leg span of about 7cm  and D. minor is not much less impressive at 6cm, so why minor? Perhaps it is smaller than the NZ fishing spider (D.aquaticus)?

[Arykana]

an unnamed
would you help me to found his name?

[Anthony Darby]

Heliconius erato, and you won't find that in your garden as it's South American!

[Anthony Darby]

I've been watching the India/Australia test match this week and wondering how they avoid the dozens of huge dragonflies that can be seen on every close-up shot!?

[Arykana]

Thank you Anthony, the photo was taken in the Zoo's butterfly garden

[Anthony Darby]

I love those butterflies. They have very short larval stages (two weeks) but the butterflies live for months. They supplement nectar with pollen, which they breakdown using some liquid on their proboscis. The pollen adds protein to their diet, necessary for longevity.