What a beautiful afternoon it has turned out to be, after a rather cool and breezy morning. However, one of the advantages of cooler weather at this time of year is that insects will sit still for longer, enabling photo opportunities that usually don't present themselves! Here are a few from today....
This stunning male southern hawker, or Aeshna cyanea, was perched on guelder rose by the woodland. It's bright coloration and blue stripes on the last two abdominal segments identify this as a male - the female has duller green colouration and pale green/blue stripes on the last abdominal segments. It is a very common species in southern England and Wales, becoming local into northern England.
This is a female common darter, or Sympetrum striolatum to be scientific. One of the most numerous and widespread darter species in the UK, they are abundant at Langford. The mature male common darter can be distinguished from the female by it's bright red colouration on the abdomen.
This white moth is a small china-mark, also known as Cataclysta lemnata. It is a 'micro-moth' and a member of the Family Crambidae. The china-marks, along with the related species the water veneer, are unique among UK moth species as their larvae are aquatic, feeding underwater on various species of aquatic plants. There were hundreds of small china-marks around the water's edge of Phase 1 this afternoon.
And finally, everyone is familiar with whirligig beetles - they are all over the place on Phases 1 and 2 at the moment. There are actually several species of whirligig, all members of the beetle Family Gyrinidae, these specimens would need closer examination to identify them to species level. They get their name from their habit of swimming in circles on the water's surface, although they can also swim underwater.