andrew
A sunny weekend in the Highlands (it does happen sometimes), which presented a good opportunity to go out and brush up on invertebrate ID. Spent a fantastic couple of hours at a small lochan surrounded by bog and wet woodland looking at dragonflies and damselflies. Common darter, black darter,...
andrew
The Shetland bumblebee is one of my favourite invertebrate species I have encountered in Shetland and I have written about them previously.The Shetland bumblebee (Bombus muscorum agricolae) is a subspecies of the Moss Carder Bumblebee. They are very distinctive with an orange thorax and yellow...
andrew
One of the things I miss up in Shetland is the number of invertebrates such as butterflies, moths and dragonflies that I would typically see in England. Today I got a fix of dragonflies including some great views of migrant hawkers. They are widespread across much of England and Wales, apart from...
andrew
The ‘Shetland’ bumblebee (Bombus muscorum) are found between May and October in a variety of habitats but most commonly around roadside verges and in meadows. A very distinctive species, with its orange thorax and contrasting yellow abdomen. The orange can usually be seen when they are in flight...
andrew
Plants like buddleia and thistle are fantastic food plants for butterflies and other invertebrates. I spent an enjoyable hour today watching brimstone, small tortoiseshell and a very worn red admiral feeding. ﾿...
andrew
Walking in Glen Feshie the other day and came across this funky looking beetle. It is a red-breasted carrion beetle (Oiceoptoma thoracicum). They are often found under the carcasses of birds and mammals, mainly in woodland habitats. ﾿ The post Red-breasted...
andrew
What an amazing day today was. I never thought I would see a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) in the wild. Today I saw loads of them at Pacific Grove.These western Monarchs are found west of the Rocky Mountains and often migrate to sites in southern California, but has been found in...