Sunday 25 March 2012

Recipe for honey

Warm, sunny, windless, perfect for the newly emerged bees. Here's one of the solitary bees, taken in Souter Park, Whitley Bay:

Tawny Mining Bee - female
Tawny Mining Bee - male

Back at the ranch the frog spawn is now turning to tadploes, so the newts are starting to return.

Palmate Newt - this one is an immature (larva) from last year

And in a sunny corner I found a few Spotted Wolf Spiders sunning themselves. I've not seen these in my garden before.

Spotted Wolf Spider

Sunday 18 March 2012

More garden treats

Diurnea fagella
Early Thorn
Two new moth species for my garden this weekend, Early Thorn and Diurnea fagella. The Early Thorn lived up to its name by being two weeks early than the previous first record for Northumberland.

And here's a Marmalade Hoverfly seen a couple of days ago.

Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus

Friday 16 March 2012

Tree Bee - Bombus hypnorum

Tree Bee Bombus hypnorum
Unmistakeable with it's ginger head and white tail - only arrived in the UK  in 2001. Now in my garden today for only the 2nd year.

Thursday 15 March 2012

Cherry Making

Honey Bee on Cherry blossom in the warm spring sunshine, at the bottom of our garden.

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Durham tinea (Acrolepiopsis betulella) re-discovered in England!

0474 Acrolepiopsis betulella - photo courtesy of Tom Tams
Last night Tom Tams and Keith Dover took a specimen of 0474 Acrolepiopsis betulella, from a site in County Durham. This is the first record of this species for over 120 years. It was believed to be extinct in England.

A stonking discovery!

Monday 12 March 2012

Spawn!


Away for a couple of days, and I have returned to a frog frenzy. Spawn is filling the garden pond, two weeks earlier than previous years.