Category Archives: insects

A parasitised aphid

19 Tuesday Sep 2023

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*** This post has been edited to correct previously wrong information. ***

I’ve seen these odd sights previously but only recently learned what they were and have been searching for an example to show you since then. Finally, during last Friday’s walk, with a little Oak-leaf-turning, I found another. Unfortunately the light wasn’t great so my photos aren’t as crisp as I would’ve liked but hopefully you’ll get the idea.

230919 tuberculatus parasitised by Praon flavinode (1)

The creature is an aphid, most likely a Common oak aphid (Tuberculatus annulatus), but my poor photos mean I can’t be sure of that. The aphid has been parasitised by a tiny wasp that has laid its egg inside the aphid’s body. When it hatches, the larva cuts a hole in the aphid’s body and spins silk to attach itself and its host to the leaf. Then, once it has sucked the life out of the aphid and grown sufficiently, the wasp larva builds its cocoon beneath the aphid – I guess the aphid’s body acts as camouflage and protection for the wasp pupa.

230919 tuberculatus parasitised by Praon flavinode (2)

The Praon genus of parasitic wasps are the only ones that create this puff-pastry-like attachment beneath their host, and, according to a local expert I’ve consulted, this is likely to be the species Praon flavinode, which is known to parasitise aphids on Oak and Birch. I’ve a mind to try to find another of these and, if the adult wasp hasn’t emerged, bring it home, put it in a jar and wait to see what emerges. Watch this space!

Enjoying the scabious

17 Sunday Sep 2023

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Monday’s blog featured the typical late summer/early autumn sight of a Meadow brown feasting on Devil’s-bit scabious. It’s one of the few plants that flower in abundance at this time of year at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park and, as you can see below, the east paddock is a sea of purple.

230917 scabious (1)

On Wednesday I noticed that the previous week’s heat had brought a small influx of Painted ladies, and counted four during my walk along one edge of the paddock. I’m sure there were, in fact, many more.

230917 scabious painted lady (2)

And, during Friday’s wander, the migrating Red admirals were pausing in the field to fuel their journey with slurps of scabious nectar. It’s such a valuable plant for the insects at this time of year.

230917 scabious red admiral (3)

Named for a German entomologist

15 Friday Sep 2023

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I was very excited to find a Roesel’s bush-cricket (Metrioptera roeselii) earlier this week, only my second ever sighting of one of these handsome beasts, so I was quite surprised to read on British Wildlife Wiki that it is ‘becoming one of the most commonly found Orthoptera in the country, and makes up about 16% of records.’ The entry goes on to state that this bush-cricket

used to be found uniquely on the inland side of saltmarshes, and in coastal regions around estuaries, on the North Sea coast. It is becoming increasingly common in southeast England, as well as spreading further north. Over the past 50 years it has ranged further to the west, and large numbers have settled in areas of urban wasteland, especially near railways. It is generally found below 100 metres altitude. Extension to the species range has increased substantially since 1985. [The Orthoptera & Allied Insects website has a particularly interesting map that shows this range extension.]

230915 roesels bush-cricket

Once I got over my excitement, I couldn’t help wondering who Roesel had been. Turns out August Johann Rösel von Rosenhof (1705-1759), was a German entomologist, who was also interested in many other creatures and was a talented painter – his illustrations of frogs look particularly fine.

Box tree moth

14 Thursday Sep 2023

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The gardeners amongst you will not welcome the sight of this moth in your vicinity, at least not if you grow any species of Box (Buxus) in your garden, as its larvae eat the leaves of Box and cover the plant in a webbing like thick cobweb. This is the appropriately named Box tree moth (Cydalima perspectalis), a native of east Asia that established itself in Europe and hopped across the Channel to Britain in 2007. From the Aderyn biodiversity records database, the first Welsh sightings were recorded in 2016 and, in the seven years since then, a further 260 records have been added to the database, with most sightings along the coast of south Wales and a smattering across the top of north Wales.

Euura pavida

13 Wednesday Sep 2023

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After last week’s heatwave (which kept me indoors a couple of days – I do NOT like the heat!), Monday’s walk was deliciously cool, if a little damp from un-forecast rain, and, even better, I found two new-to-me creatures. The first was a new species of sawfly larvae that I spotted when I saw this barely-there leaf. I’m always curious when I see leaves like this to find what has caused the damage.

230913 euura pavida (3)

It didn’t take long to find the culprits this time – at least 20, possibly more, hungry larvae munching the tough leaves of a willow species right down to their veins.

230913 euura pavida (2)

Previously known as Nematus pavidus, their species name has now changed to Euura pavida. The larvae are usually found chewing on willow leaves but can also be found on Alder and Poplar. You can see what the adult sawfly looks like on The Sawflies (Symphyta) of Britain and Ireland website.

230913 euura pavida (1)

Spider survivors

04 Monday Sep 2023

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I was entranced, and relieved, to spot these two Wasp spiders during a recent meander around Cardiff’s Grangemoor Park. The park, which was once a landfill site, was closed for a long time while repairs were done to its infrastructure, to stop contaminated water seeping from its interior rubbish. The repair process was conducted without any regard for the local flora and fauna and, during previous recent visits, I’d not managed to find any of these stunning spiders, first discovered at the park in August 2021. It’s good to know they’ve survived the upheaval.

230904 wasp spider

Flea beetle

01 Friday Sep 2023

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This ruddy creature is my first ever Flea beetle but, just as with my recent new leafhopper, I haven’t been able to put a specific name to it. There are two very similar species, Sphaeroderma rubidum and Sphaeroderma testaceum, and, though the UK Beetles website maintains that ‘they are easily distinguished, with a little experience, by sight; the colour and shape being unique’, I don’t have the necessary experience.

230901 flea beetle (1)

The website explains:

Body strongly rounded, often almost circular, pronotum very strongly narrowed from the base and very finely punctured. 2.3-3.5 mm.  –  S. rubidum
Body less strongly rounded, slightly but distinctly elongate, the pronotum less strongly narrowed from the base and more strongly punctured, especially towards the basal margin. 2.5-4.2 mm.  –  S. testaceum

230901 flea beetle (2)

Without seeing the two beetles side by side or, perhaps, knowing in advance specifically what to look for, I find myself unable to identify the beetle I found.