All about Insects 2020

Unknown said:

Hazel C said:

It sounded like it was transmitting from our bird-feeder pole in the middle of the lawn.

It is actually morse code for "Help, this bird-feeder pole is a lot colder than I thought it was going to be."

LOL

I have to say that I crept into the garden very nervously, the noise was deafening & was convinced it was inside the pole, then the sound moved away & I saw nothing in the torch-light. It was obviously runnng around in it's tunnels (or the mole runs).

Unknown said:

Doh! Forgot to add the photo

One of the Drones - an unidentified hoverfly from the Eristalini family (but possibly the Tapered Drone Fly)

We saw them using drones over a town in France, some people were sat outside their home on a bench next to the pavement (probably no back garden either) & a drone came along & shouted at them to get back inside!!l

I'm afraid I abandoned identifying bees long ago.

Hi,

I've started a scrape / shallow wildlife pond in the back garden. (I'm hoping to weigh the roots down with a paving slab or two.)
Looking forward to lots of insects and amphibians when it fills.

  

I hope you are all staying fit and healthy in the garden and not going too stir crazy.

BW

Good luck with your little pond Russell, am fine here in my little world but at least do see neighbours to have shouty chats with from a safe distance (some are a bit m&j!) & always the garden with interest in ponds & Hoggies & plants bursting into life ... thank goodness no drones yelling orders like H reported .......... yet!

Yes its good to have a chat to neighbours. Strange seeing the daily bus go by, completely empty every time!
I'm so looking forward to the wind changing direction at the end of the week, It's been way too cold!
Bw

Many thanks to Wendy for pointing me in the right direction, here is a slightly edited post I shared earlier today.

I've seen a few bees and hover flies around the garden but none until yesterday were posing for photos, but i's a start, a red tail bumblebee feeding well on some Green Alknet.

Lovely bee & even lovelier blue flowers, what a picture!

Hazel C said:

Lovely bee & even lovelier blue flowers, what a picture!

Thank you.

The flowers are weeds, and were due to be removed but Covid-19 has given them a stay of execution....

WendyBartter said:

No Mike, not weeds just wildflowers, Alkanet very useful to Bees etc, please find a space for them? Also cultivated for the dye from its' roots ... Dyers Bugloss!

There is plenty of alkanet in the garden at the bottom, which is probably where those plants originated from. The garden is planned around nature as well as looking reasonable (but not a showcase) the planned flowers were for bees and butterflies.

That alkanet will remain for this year, then next the planned planting hopefully will take place.