Pauline

[Maximus]

So sorry to hear that you lost Merlin, Pauline, Cathy and I know how hard that will be for you.

Take care,

Mike.

[Pauline]

Cheers Mike - appreciate that. I've lost so many long term animals in the last 18 months my diary is starting to look like an obituary! Things don't seem a whole lot better on the moth front. The little Sallow (?) Kitten that I posted a short while back - well, I decided to rear it. I have tried to take such good care of it especially during the storms we have had, making sure the little Sallow tree (in the cage outside) is safe and has some shelter, checking that it is eating enough (I know!!! ), etc. I was horrified when I checked it this morning to find it writhing about on the bottom of the cage. I have only seen that behaviour once before when a Comma I was rearing, almost ready to pupate, burst open to reveal a large egg or larval sac of some parasite. I carefully started to examine the cat and to cut a long story short I have been watching it on and off all day with a sort of weird fascination as some parasite (lots of them actually) is erupting from several places along it's back. I have been tempted to put it out of its misery (it is still alive) but not sure I could do it and it did occur to me that perhaps once the parasites have left the host perhaps it might recover? Anyway, just to try to give a sense of scale, the little cat is about 0.5cm. The little things emerging from it - well, I can barely see them with the naked eye but I have tried to show what is going on with these shots:

'Things' erupting from the back - I think there might be one on the face also.

Parasite marked with red ring

As close up as I can get.


PS Is it too early to look for potential Large Tortoiseshells at North Stoke?

[Goldie M]

Just catching up on my posts Pauline, so sorry you lost Merlin, we enjoyed seeing your parrots whilst visiting you last year, one was very quiet then, was that Merlin.? Goldie

[Pauline]

Thank you Goldie. The quiet one was April who has also just been to the vet . Merlin was the noisy one, strutting his stuff, flashing his eyes and showing off his tail feathers. He is a great miss. I've not been able to get out much recently but I have had the opportunity to rear a single Holly Blue this season so a few shots of development so far below:

[Wurzel]

Great life cycle sequence Pauline Also the parasite images are fascinating and gruesome in equal measure - it must have been like watching a real time version of Aliens

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Lovely early stage images again, Pauline.

So sorry to hear about Merlin.

[Allan.W.]

Hello Pauline,
Found something unusual this morning ,you may be interested in .Was out on an early morning plant hunt near Hythe (Kent), coming off the motorway (M20) and heading in towards Westenhanger ,passed , an unusual looking road casualty ,didn,t look quite right for a Brock ,but couldn't resist
nipping back for a look, when I found it , soon apparent that it was a Badger ,a very white one ! not a complete albino ,but close ,with just one grey bar on its back ,very sad ,and unusual ps; it also had pink eyes ! Regards Allan.W.

[Goldie M]

Hi! Pauline, I do hope April is okay, it's a worry for you when all these things seem to happen at once Goldie

[Pauline]

Cheers Wurzel - it is all in a sealed container now so if they develop into something identifiable I'll report back.

Thank you on both counts David.

Hi Goldie - she's in the garden at the moment soaking up the sun with Heidi (an Amazon). The medication seems to be kicking in - shall I send you some up? Seriously, take it easy!

Hi Allan - I appreciate you thinking of me and yes, of course I am interested. Did I ever tell you I found a dead one on the road once and picked it up. Organisations were fighting over it! It was subsequently stuffed and used for educational purposes but they seem to be in great demand generally by taxidermists. Before I started this post I looked on Ebay and there is a stuffed albino badger going for £275.00. Perhaps you should have put it in your boot! Just in case anyone is wondering, I would do anything for a live animal but I am not (usually) overly sentimental about them once they are dead. Thank you again for taking the trouble to post about it.

Following a 'tip off' this morning I made a return visit to Wrecclesham and I'm pleased to be able to report that the Glanvilles seem to be hanging on there. I saw 3, possibly 4 in the hour or so I was there along with other fresh butterflies - Small Tortoiseshell (a couple), handful of fresh Large Skippers, loads of Meadow Browns and half a dozen Common Blue, including an egg-laying female. I tried hard but couldn't get in the best position for a shot of her down in the grass - even tho' she gave me 3 chances!!!!! Quite a few Ladybird larva - I think they may be Harlequin and some lovely Demoiselles. A few shots from earlier:

[Wurzel]

Great shots Pauline - though they do seem to be not exactly pristine It would be good there are some Glannies still there as it's a bit closer than Hutchinson's Bank and the Isle of Black - so better in terms of carbon emissions

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Morning Wurzel - yeah, with the exception of one which I couldn't get close to, they were worn and battled scarred.... but then they have been out at least 12 days here and the credit must go to Hazel who initially spotted them, both this year and last. I THINK all those I saw were male(?) so I am hoping that some females are yet to emerge.

Now I have long wanted to rear a Puss moth. I had the opportunity a couple of years ago when a friend passed a final instar larva over to me but I only had it a couple of days before it pupated. Despite the hard casing and protective cage, at some point over the winter it was predated I really wanted to rear them from young so when I came across this I was quite hopeful that I was looking at a Puss moth early instar:

One of the reasons for my optimism is that I spotted this close by:

The little cat was secured by silken threads so I wondered if it was about to shed its skin and that was exactly what happened a few hours later. A few shots before it consumed the waste product. Presumably this is to avoid attracting predators but I wonder if it also contains important nutrients?

... and another rather splendid larva was also seen:

[bugboy]

Just catching up on your diary/life Pauline. Sorry to hear about Merlin .

A few posts back you posted a picture of a couple of beetles mating, they were Click Beetles.

Interesting that the Glanvilles are hanging on at Wrecclesham, from what I've heard about Hutchinson's bank it seems they have crashed there with only 2 or 3 seen this season

[Goldie M]

Hi! Pauline , glad April has found the Sun, that's what I need a good dose of Sun and an injection of Energy! Goldie

[Pauline]

Don't we all Goldie! At the moment I seem to be surviving on sugary drinks

Thanks for the ID Buggy. How I wish my life was made up of butterflies and animals. Trust me Buggy, you really wouldn't want to know about the rest of the cr*p! Yesterday I lost a tortoise. I couldn't see how he had got out of the garden. I crawled through next door's hedge, trawled the pond, asked the neighbours, spent 3 hrs searching - and found him in the garden!!! As a result it looked like I might have to forego what seems to have become an almost daily outing (albeit mostly short). However, at 6.45pm the weather was better than it had been all day so I decided to pop up to Bramshott for 30 mins. Between 7.00pm and 7.30pm I saw dozens and dozens of SSB in a small area, watched egg-laying and saw 3 different mating pairs. At this time of year I would guess the number of SSB's are easily into 3 figures. I thought catching them roosting would aid a count of them but they were still too active. As they started to settle I counted 13 from where I was standing and tried to take a photo. If anyone has the patience to enlarge it and count then good luck

... and a bit closer up:

Male lacking scales

Little fat female that was egg-laying. The sun was so bright it was hard to avoid shadows.

[Wurzel]

More lush Silver-studs Pauline I better get a wriggle on as some of those males are starting to look a little tired

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Must be an incredible sight seeing all those SSBs roosting communally, Pauline.

[Pauline]

Thanks Wurzel - Bramshot is a great site for them and one of the earliest, so you still have plenty of time elsewhere. I'm not even sure they are out at Broxhead yet which is a very late site for them (and more typical with loads of heather). I saw the males back in May so yes, some are looking worn but there were plenty of fresh ones too. Seems the ladies prefer the older more experienced males tho'

Thing was David, not many were actually roosting. As I walked across the Common the majority were still on the wing and going about their business. It was still very warm and sunny tho'.

It won't come as any surprise to learn that today I have been scrutinising honeysuckle as time is running out. It is surprisingly wet and muddy near Camilla Corner and as I approached a patch that was impassable, I decided that rather than go back I would take a chance, put one foot lightly in the middle and spring across. Well, the foot I put down lightly on the mud immediately sank in and as I sprang I left my boot behind in the mud, landing in yet more mud in just my sock. I almost took a shot of my shoe but by then my sense of humour had deserted me. Anyway, the first creature of interest is below. I would be very grateful if ANYBODY (Buggy?) can throw any light on what it is as I have never seen the likes before. I initially thought it was a pupa but closer investigation showed it to be more like a caterpillar:

It wasn't a bad trip out with 4 new species being seen, all difficult to get close to - SWF, WA, Marbled White, Ringlet - snapshots below:

The Large Skippers were amusing to watch, defending their territory and searching for females:

Across the road there weren't too many butterflies but this young larva - pretty little thing (a couple of sallows seem to have been blown down since my last visit):

My biggest surprise tho' was to have a large bird take off from the ground only about 8 ft away from me. I couldn't see it because of the long grass and it didn't go far. I realised it was a Buzzard but as I took off the close up lens that 'squeaking' noise it makes spooked the bird and as it flew past me this was the best I could do:

[trevor]

You've had a great few days recently. Sort of good news about the Glanvilles
( I understand the site has been trashed ) and good to see Marbled Whites.
Went to BB today, the whole place was deathly quiet. Did see my first Silver Washed though.

Keep well, bound to see you soon,
Trevor.

[Pauline]

Thanks Trevor. Don't think you'll miss much ......and I'll probably see you next week

And a BIG thank you to Paul. 5 seen between 9.00 and 10.30. Quality of the images not great. They were either miles away and heavily cropped, shooting into the sun most of the time (no choice) and one hand holding camera as quite high up. I think another visit might be on the cards:

[Maximus]

Very nice Glanville Frits, Pauline superb WLH too one that I've struggled to get close to

Mike