Despite this supposedly being a widespread and locally common species, I had never knowingly seen Tipula fascipennis, the White-barred long-palp cranefly, until very recently. And, though many craneflies are difficult to identify, this one has some very distinctive characteristics. According to Alan Stubbs in British Craneflies, ‘the discal cell is unusually short’, ‘the male genitalia are very prominent’ and ‘the female has a very short ovipositor’. While I might notice the latter, I’m not likely to pick up on the previous two features, but, fortunately, there is one other very obvious characteristic: ‘the wings are unique’ due to the fairly obvious white bar across them. Tipula fascipennis adults can typically be seen between May and August, peaking in late June, in meadows and along the edges of woodlands.
Although I’ve seen the occasional adult Tawny and sometimes hear them calling at night in the woodland adjacent to my building, I hadn’t seen one for a couple of years and had never seen a fledgling. So, understandably, it only took me a moment to decide that I simply had to go for a look, soaked or not.
As it was still raining, I didn’t want to damage my camera so only managed to get a few quick photos, and I also didn’t want to disturb the bird, though I’m sure one, or both of its parents were perched nearby, well hidden amongst the foliage, keeping a close eye on their offspring. What a special sight this was – a bundle of fluff, perched on a branch, looking sleepy and making the occasional low chirruping sounds.
