Staring at willows

21 Friday Mar 2025

Posted by sconzani in insects, spring, trees

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Bombus hypnorum, Bombus terrestris, Brimstone, British butterflies, Buff-tailed bumblebee, butterflies feeding on willow flowers, insects feeding on willow flowers, insects on willow, Small tortoiseshell, Tree bumblebee, willow

This is your occasional reminder, if you are interested in spotting flying insects, that it is a very good idea at this time of year, when the various willows (Salix species) are coming in to flower, to spend a little staring at these trees. That is partly how I came to find so many butterflies yesterday. Several of the Brimstones I saw, in particular the two females that were feeding up prior to egg-laying, and the beautiful Small tortoiseshell were all found initially on willow flowers.

The fluffy yellow flowers were also providing much needed sustenance for a variety of flies, for honey bees and hoverflies. Due to their larger size, I was also able to see at least two species of bumblebee, Buff-tailed (Bombus terrestris) (left below) and Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) (below right).

Elm bark beetle

19 Wednesday Feb 2025

Posted by sconzani in insects, trees

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dead Wych elm, Dutch Elm disease, elm bark beetle, elm bark beetle tunnels, Large elm bark beetle, Scolytus scolytus, Wych elm

After last Friday’s post about the Velvet shanks I’d found on a dead Wych elm, it occurred to me that I couldn’t recall seeing any traces of the elm bark beetles (likely the Large elm bark beetle Scolytus scolytus, according to an article on the Forest Research website) that carry the fungus that killed the tree. So, I went back for another look, and it turns out I hadn’t looked closely enough: there were signs of beetle activity all over the exposed areas of trunk where bark had fallen away and this showed up much more clearly on the darker underside of the bark itself.

During the summer, the female elm bark beetle drills a hole through the tree’s bark, then creates a long straight burrow (called the mother tunnel) under the bark. As she excavates, she lays eggs and, when the larvae hatch they create their own tunnels outwards from the mother tunnel. If the effects of their presence weren’t so deadly, the tunnels could almost be viewed as tiny works of art.

Velvet shanks and a Wych elm

14 Friday Feb 2025

Posted by sconzani in fungi, insects, trees

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British fungi, Flammulina velutipes, fungi on dead Wych elm, fungi on standing dead wood, Velvet shanks

The tree where I found these lush Velvet shanks growing was the Wych elm where, in October 2021, I found my first ever Elm zigzag sawfly larvae (Aproceros leucopoda), the first of this invasive species to be recorded in Wales (see my blog post Zorro comes to Wales). Now, that tree and several other young Wych elms growing in the margins of this field are all dead, presumably as a result of another invasive species, the fungus that causes Dutch elm disease (Ophiostoma novo-ulmi).

The Elm zigzag sawflies have spread well beyond this field now so won’t be affected by the tree’s death, and, though, presumably, the Dutch elm disease fungus dies when its host tree has died, it will continue to spread as it’s carried to new trees by Elm bark beetles (Scolytus species).

Yet, as with all living organisms, the death of one brings life-giving opportunities for others. So, though dead, the Wych elm is now providing sustenance to invertebrates that thrive in decaying wood and to the lovely Velvet shanks (Flammulina velutipes) that are specialists in devouring standing dead wood. Some of the clumps of Velvet shanks had already completed their lifecycle and were themselves rotting away but, as you can see in my photos below, more were oozing from the cracks in the tree’s trunk and branches.

Leafmines: Stigmella atricapitella

02 Monday Dec 2024

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British leafminers, British moths, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafmines on Oak, Stigmella roborella

This is the third of the three new leafminers in ‘green islands’ on fallen Oak leaves that I found during one 30-minute period checking leaves in a local park. These are the work of the moth Stigmella atricapitella, the larvae of which you can see inside the mines shown below.

241202 Stigmella atricapitella

This moth breeds twice each year, so the mines can be seen in June – July and again between September and November, though the mines differ slightly each time (see the information on the British Leafminers website). It is possible to confuse these leafmines with those of Stigmella roborella but, fortunately, S. atricapitella has ‘dark prothoracic sclerites’, the dark marks you can see just below the head of the larvae in my images.

Leafmines: Ectoedemia subbimaculella

25 Monday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British leafminers, British moth larvae, Ectoedemia subbimaculella, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafmines on Oak, Oak leafminers

This is the second of the three new leafminers I recently found in ‘green islands’ on fallen Oak leaves during half an hour’s fossicking in one of my local parks. And this one, both the adult you can see on the UK Moths website and the mine of its larva, is very similar to the first of the three I blogged about (Leafmines: Ectoedemia heringi, 18 November).

241125 Ectoedemia subbimaculella (1)

Active during October and November, today’s leafmines were created by the larvae of the moth Ectoedemia subbimaculella, and the difference between the mines of the two species is the slit in the lower part of the mine, on the under side of the leaf, of this one. If you want further information and to see additional, better photos, check out the entry on the British Leafminers website.

241125 Ectoedemia subbimaculella (2)

Leafmines: Ectoedemia heringi

18 Monday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in leaves, trees

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British moths, Ectoedemia heringi, leaf-mining larvae on Oak leaves, leaf-mining moth larvae, moth larvae on Oak, Oak leafmines

There’s a local park I don’t often visit as it’s a bit too managed for my liking but, recently, when I didn’t have time for a longer walk, I headed in that direction. And I’m very glad I did as, during one 30-minute period of fossicking through fallen Oak leaves, I found three new leafminers, all feeding in the ‘green islands’ their own chemicals had induced in the leaves. This is the first, Ectoedemia heringi, distinguishable from a similar species Ectoedemia albifasciella by the brown head seen here on the larva in the mine. You can read more about this species on the British Leafminers website and see the very attractive adult moth on the UK Moths website.

241118 Ectoedemia heringi

Autumn in Bute Park

17 Sunday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in autumn, leaves, trees

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autumn colour, autumn in Bute Park, autumn leaves, autumn trees, Bute Park

As mentioned in yesterday’s post, I recently enjoyed a long meander around Bute Park, in Cardiff, delighting in the kaleidoscope of autumn colours.

241117 autumn in bute park (1) 241117 autumn in bute park (2)

The 130-acre park is part parkland, part playing fields, part woodland, and part landscaped garden, including an arboretum full of spectacular trees from around the world, so my photos include not only native but also exotic trees.

241117 autumn in bute park (3) 241117 autumn in bute park (4)

Leafmines: Gypsonoma dealbana

13 Wednesday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British leafminers, British moths, Gypsonoma dealbana, Gypsonoma species, leaf-mining moth larvae, moth larvae on Oak, Oak leafmines

Two leafmine posts on one week may be a bit much for the uninterested amongst you, but this is really just a postscript to my recent post on the leafmines of two possible Gypsonoma species of moths (Leafmines: Gypsonoma species, 28 October). As I outlined in that blog I hadn’t been able to be precise in my identification as there are two Gypsonoma species that mine the leaves of Poplar. Fortunately for me, there is only one that mines Oak leaves and I managed to find several examples on an Oak sapling at Cardiff’s Grangemoor Park during a walk last week.

241113 Gypsonoma dealbana (2)

I was investigating any signs of leaf damage, which may have been caused by munching beetles or snails or various other hungry mini-beasties but, in this case, I was lucky to spot these four examples of Gypsonoma dealbana, where the moth larvae have used silk and their own frass to spin themselves tiny tubes to hide in (I’ve shown the upper and lower sides of the leaves so you can get an idea what to look for, if you’re so inclined). I’m not sure if the larvae were still present – I didn’t prod them to find out, though it’s likely they’ve already moved down into the soil below the tree, spun a little cocoon, and begun hibernating the winter months away.

241113 Gypsonoma dealbana (1)

Leafmines: Ectoedemia argyropeza

11 Monday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in autumn, insects, leaves, trees

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Aspen, British leafmines, Ectoedemia argyropeza, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafmines on Aspen

The new leafmines are coming thick and fast this year, not because my skills are improving but rather because I’m following the right people on social media and take my inspiration for searching from what they’re finding.

241111 Ectoedemia argyropeza (1)

Today’s leafmines, made by the larvae of the moth Ectoedemia argyropeza, can be found on Aspen (Populus tremula) between July and November. They are easier to spot later in the season when the leaves turn brown and begin to fall as the mines cause the surrounding leaf area to remain green – the so-called ‘green islands’ that some moth species have the ability to create through the chemicals they secrete, which allows them to continue feeding in their portion of the leaf. The other thing to look for with these miners is the brown mark in the leaf petiole, where the mine originated.

241111 Ectoedemia argyropeza (2)

Though I don’t often bring home the mines I find, in this instance I had been unable to get good photos along the busy road so brought home one leaf. I temporarily forgot about the leaf for a couple of days and , when I opened the little pot it was in, found the larva had left the mine so I am also able to show you what it looks like, below.

241111 Ectoedemia argyropeza (3)

Leafhopper: Tremulicerus vitreus

06 Wednesday Nov 2024

Posted by sconzani in insects, trees

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British leafhoppers, bugs on Poplar, Cicadellidae, leafhopper, leafhoppers on Poplar, Poplar, Tremulicerus vitreus

The hours I’ve spent fossicking around trees and turning over leaves have really paid off this year. As well as finding lots of new leaf-mining moth species, I’ve also been lucky with my search for new leafhopper species. Here’s the latest: Tremulicerus vitreus (previously known as Idiocerus vitreus). Looking at Aderyn, the Welsh biodiversity database and the NBN Atlas, there’s only been one previous Welsh record, back in 1989, and that’s showing on NBN as unconfirmed, so mine appears to be the first confirmed Welsh record. And I’ve now found around a dozen specimens, in two locations. I get the impression that I’m the only person checking for these creatures!

241106 tremulicerus vitreus (1)

The British Bugs website stresses that leafhoppers in this group are often difficult to identify but, luckily,

there is usually a pale midline on the pronotum and top of the face. Pale marks on the forewings are mostly restricted to the inner margin and the inner parts of some of the long veins….

241106 tremulicerus vitreus (2)

Though the best time to find these stunning little leafhoppers is between June and October on Poplar species, the adults do overwinter, and the females can sometimes be found on conifers during the winter months. Oh, and can you see why a photo of this leafhopper was posted on social media on Halloween, labelled the ‘Dracula bug’?