Some of the creatures I encounter when leaf fossicking are off in the blink of an eye and I get no more than a tantalising glimpse of something intriguingly colourful disappearing into the undergrowth. For a horrible moment this morning, I thought that was going to be the case when I spotted the stripey underbelly of this Wasp beetle (Clytus arietis) heading behind a leaf.

Luckily for me, it re-emerged on the other side, then proved remarkably tolerant of me and my camera as I took lots of photos. I’ve only seen this wasp-mimicking beetle once before and that was back in 2016, so I was particularly pleased it proved co-operative for me today.