The 'Active winter invertebrates' thread!

James M · #41 (**permalink**) 29-11-2009, 08:59 PM

Saw a very nice wasp/fly of some kind today, similar to those ruby tailed wasps except it was gold and green, are there any species that are active at this time of year?

Africa · #42 (**permalink**) 29-11-2009, 09:59 PM

Here are two more recent shots:
Winter Gnat (Trichocera sp.) from today:

Pine ladybird?

An unidentified earwig come out of a hole in the wall to sunbathe (7/11/09):

Please help with IDs

JackintheGreen · #43 (**permalink**) 29-11-2009, 10:21 PM

I saw a very large bumblebee in the garden yesterday. I didn't get close enough to identify it.

Jason Green · #44 (**permalink**) 30-11-2009, 12:21 AM

Hi all, thanks for the updates!

Do you have any other shots of the wasp, Africa? You may wish to start a new thread that may catch Eucera's eye

James - Do you have a photo, or could you post a drawing at all?

Africa, I think your first and second is correct, not too sure about the earwig - it may be immature. A new thread may get a response.

JitG - it may be the Buff-tailed Bumblebee, Bombus terrestris, given the size. Can you remember the colour bands?

Bruce Williams · #45 (**permalink**) 02-12-2009, 09:05 PM

Most common insect at Stony Stratford Reserve seen over the last week is the wingless female Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata). I generally come across around 8 to 10 of these most visits. They are starting to look quite weather-worn now. Indeed I found one sorry individual that looked all brown and shiny having lost virtually all her scales.

There are still a few optimistic crab spiders on lookout on the odd fencepost and wingless Giant Willow Aphids prowling up and down the fence rails.

I was pleased to find this fine specimen of a Mesopsocus sp. barklouse on 30th November:

If someone can give a definite species id I'd be very grateful.

Bruce

TheSeagull · #46 (**permalink**) 03-12-2009, 05:17 PM

I've seen only Banded Snail and Common Shiny Woodlouse in the past week.

watsthat · #47 (**permalink**) 04-12-2009, 01:57 PM

We have had a couple of frosts now and about a week ago I saw a very slow hoverfly, on a dandelion flower, with its wings folded over its abdomen, making it quite dark in appearance. I was fairly certain it was Episyrphus balteatus. More recently I have seen bluebottles and other flies on some, still, healthy looking umbellifers. However; this morning I found a definite Episyrphus balteatus quite active, in a friends garden.

Cheers

Pete

charlieb · #48 (**permalink**) 04-12-2009, 03:25 PM

A Two-spot Ladybird on my curtains

pressld2 · #49 (**permalink**) 04-12-2009, 03:32 PM

No photos and no idea what species but I woke up with three large gnat bites this morning!

Never had gnat bites in December before...

Dave P.

Gascar · #50 (**permalink**) 08-12-2009, 04:46 PM

Hi All! - complete noob so I'm bound to dosomething wrong re the rules...
Playing with a new flashgun today all I could find in the garden was a whitish thing which looked like a baby spider, in some moss on the shed roof. It seemed to be rather still, at least. Then something ran through, which looked like a baby ladybird, but with a few hairs. I pressed the button, then it was gone. I didn't stop up there to find it again, it's cold!
The large pic with the whitish thing is 3mm across the frame. The others are exactly the same scale.
Would I find baby spiders this time of year?.
Any clue what the beetle(?) might be?