In early October I, and others, began a new leafmine search, for mines on narrow-leaved willows (see Leafmines: Phyllocnistis saligna, 3 October). In the months since, I’ve only found these mines in two locations, partly due to a lack of the host plants and partly, probably, because the moths have yet to spread very far (which may be because of a lack of host plants). I’ll continue the search next autumn but, in the course of my search – and this is one of the brilliant things about staring at leaves – I’ve found many other life forms that were making these leaves their home.

I found two types of galls: the first, above top, have been made by a species of mite, Aculus tetanothrix, and those immediately above are home to the larvae of the sawfly species, Euura proxima.

On the underside of one leaf I found this array of what I think are moth eggs and, on the right, is the pupa of a ladybird, and, below those, is a hoverfly larva.

There was also a different species of leafminer, the tiny moth Phyllonorycter viminiella, and I found a rust, which might be Melampsora caprearum.