Hi Nick, If the larvae were feeding upon garlic mustard Alliaria petiolata , see if you can find any of last years stems. They shall be dried and withered by now. Searching these old stems is a good place to start... Late last summer I found several using this method in areas where I had observed fe...

In which case surely the size is a dead give away?

Hi A_T If you prune your buddleia davidii bushes in late Spring, they will flower slightly later than if they are pruned early. However, your best bet is to grow one of the buddleia x weyeriana hybrids (such as 'sun gold', 'honeycomb', 'moon light', 'bicolor', etc.) which flower profusely for a very...

WLH ova are so very difficult to locate in the wild (having spent countless hours at known sites and locating just a hanfull per hour), they are so well camouflaged to be untrue. I have a whole bunch at home on some elm twigs, which shall emerge any day now and even though I know exactly where each ...

Great photographs Vince, I have wondered in the past how many brown hairstreak ova counts have been skewed by the presence of blue-bordered carpet ova (a fairly widespread species) erroneously presumed to be those of betulea.

Felix.

Gibster wrote:Google "Cayuga" and "Indian Runner" for a couple of common Mallard freaks.

That's a little strong isn't it Glibster? Runners are a marvellous breed...! Pure Runners are a rarity now as well, having been polluted by such lesser fowl as Mallard...

Although some have doubted whether LT ever was a true British breeding butterfly the evidence from Suffolk suggests very strongly that it was. The species has been abundant in the past (the beginning of the 20th century, for example) and its Suffolk numbers have not correlated with immigration year...

I love that photo Zonda, Nutties are such enigmatic little characters. We have a pair on our feeders several times daily, but this photo of one in a wild setting is a cracker. I've got to say (from a total novice) that your bird photographs are simply excellent.

Felix.

I second that Nick; coverage of Caledonian 'doings' will be very interesting and most welcome. I do love Scotland.

Felix.

The first spring nettles are appearing in my village, a month after the first small tortoiseshells flew here. Tortoiseshells were flying near them today. It will be interesting to see when the larval nests appear. Guy Have you looked for any egg-masses Guy? Emerald masses of summer promise... Felix.

Re the isle of Wight Large Tortoiseshells Yes,I believe so. Hopefully,someone more in the know will be able to supply detailed information on the sightings at this location This is an interesting development that hopefully someone will be able to provide further information on. Something isn't quit...

Excellent, thanks Guy. That explains my confusion over why the reference to 'hooked' was plural; it wasn't

My comprehension of latin is sketchy, but it gets me by within my fields of interest. My usage however is deplorably poor.

Felix.
Ps. Pedantry is always a good thing

Certainly ab. uncilinea, fron the latin linea (line) and unci meaning hook-shaped, from the latin uncus; unci being the plural.

Very nice indeed Trev, apologies for not seeing this thread earlier.

Felix.

I'm a little confused, but I am easily muddled. In my addled mind, images for the species pages and stock photographs are at differing ends of the spectrum. The poorest quality image could in theory be one of the most valuable in the species pages, where as stock photographs need to be perfect in ex...

As the season fast approaches (but not fast enough for many of us I expect!) now is probably a good time to remind contributors of the requirements for the Species Albums. General guidelines can be found here , and could I draw attention to a couple of specific points: Data. A photograph really need...

Susie wrote:Look at the feet, I'm confident it's a male Anthophora plumipes, Nick.

I think you're right Sooz, but to be honest that means little from me when it comes to aculeate Hymenoptera...

Felix.

Happy Birthday Kipper, 50 today.

Felix.

A diaethria sp. Commonly known as 88's or 89's. There are 15 or so species in the genus if memory serves, ranging across the neotropics.

Felix.

Do you not bother to read the replies to the questions that you post on this forum Firstrees?

FFS.

Felix.

Hmmmm....try telling that to the poor chaps who have the temerity to question the motives of said hunters. Having the tyres shot out of your car in the middle of nowhere is not what I would call friendly or welcoming. ...but it is to be expected if you have do have the temerity to have a pop at the...