This is the carry on thread from "All about Insects 2018" here https://community.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/f/all-creatures/196071/all-about-insects-2018
I had a lovely Minotaur Beetle around the UV trap this morning, my first ever!
Apparantly this is their time of year!
All insects, spiders, beetles, flies etc etc welcome,
Best wishes
Hazel in Southwest France
I found this colourful combo at the weekend.
It looks like one of the green arboreal weevils on a Bluebell. It's tiny - dwarfed by one bell, but fabulous colours.
I was looking at bees in a gorse bush and saw this. I didn't see any activity but at a couple of inches across I assume it is the beginnings of a wasps nest.
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Nige Flickr
Fabulous shots & colour Nige. I had some bright beetles yesterday on Iris leaves
& then another pair, up to no good too!
Thanks.
I was thinking of shooting rain drops on the bluebells so I was looking closely at them otherwise I would have missed the little weevil. There's a related species which looks as if it was cast in metal but can come in different colours which I'd love to find.
Nice beetles too Hazel
I presume at this time the females are bigger because they are full of eggs, like this dock beetle couple taken over Easter, where her wing covers don't even fit any more. That's the most extreme case of larger females that I've seen though.
I thought this insect was in trouble on the water and was sort of hoping a Pond Skater would come in and finish it off, which is why I got down to photo it.
Then I realised it wasn't in trouble at all, but had just emerged and was getting ready to fly (and the many Pond Skaters weren't interested). I originally thought it must be a Mayfly, but, of course, we're still in April so it can't be I don't think I've ever seen one still resting on the surface before at least not in this much detail.
Those pics are pretty amazing Nige ... Looks like Mayfly to me, just read on 'buglife' that they can appear all year & typically swarm in June!