A question about perception of insect abundance & variety

[exo]

I used to beat tree branches overhanging country pathways, paticularly oak,
- - about 30 years ago

You're right it used to produce large hauls - I always remember being chuffed
whenever I got a few of the larger longhorn beetles.

Still, it seems a bit habitat invasive to me now, & I'm not sure I
could put up with the odd looks doing this as an adult might get nowadays.

I've convinced myself to have a go at Moth light traps, at least a sort of version
= attic-room velux window open with one actinic & one blue tube lamp +
hanging bed-sheet inside.

Certainly it seems there are loads of moths flying, when the butterfly numbers
seem almost non-existant, can't understand that at all

[Jason Green]

I beat frequently; open spaces, parks, paths, farmland - even roadsides! I've never had any 'looks', only interested members of the public who approach and politely enquire. I can guarantee to have an insect in the tray they'll never have seen who I can then go into about, and hopefully sew seeds of interest in them.

Conversely it's a better method of spreading the good word of conservation. People rarely approached when I just had a camera with me as they knew what I was doing. This way they ask and will approach you again in the future. I've made many 'field-contacts' this way, joggers or dog-walkers who stop by when they see me in the future and I update them on the latest find I've made in the area.

As for 30yrs ago; you'll be able to identify what you catch in the tray the more experienced you become. The more experienced you become naturally the more you'll have aged. I doubt people would consider age when they see you in action, just someone becoming increasingly proficient!

[Jason Green]

The green fly is the Dull Four-spined Legionnaire soldierfly, Chorisops tibialis.

[exo]

Thanks for that, I had no idea where to start, kept meaning to ask, but forgot.

Mind you, not sure how you can tell exactly, is it the leg colour/banding ?
I mean it looks very similar to 4 or 5 of the photos on this page alone:
Stratiomyidae - Soldier flies | NatureSpot

[diggleken]

you asked about seeing more originally.
Its all to do, like birding, with using your eyes properly and watching carefully - and with experience, but really, you should have that if you used to bush beat and look!
take your time, look closely, wander slowly and get an idea of what may be good to watch - umbellifera , as mentioned, are tops.
Cheers
Ken

[Jason Green]

Originally Posted by exo

Thanks for that, I had no idea where to start, kept meaning to ask, but forgot.

I meant to at the time, but I was struggling with my own Chorisops specimens under the microscope.

They were (that being Chorisops tibialis and C. nagatomii) originally treated as a single species - C. tibialis, and could vary. In the 70s they were split into two species and the variation acknowledged the morphological characters that were then to separate them. Those with a fair bit of flecking and dull metallic colouration was decided to be the original C. tibialis - the Dull Four-spined Legionnaire. However, those that are brighter and cleaner-looking are C. nagatomii - the Bright Four-spined Legionnaire. The main point of course is the colour of the 'shoulders', the humeral angles. Those with a weakish creamy-yellow are C. nagatomii and the ones where this specific area is are concolorous with the rest of the thorax are tibialis. Yours clearly has pale humeral-angles and apart from the 'dirty'-looking hind legs the frons appears greenish too rather than dark so I now believe your fly is the Nb, C. nagatomii.

Both are pretty widespread though nagatommii is more local and adorns Notable-B status. I have found that one frequently by beating trees particularly Oak, and only found the more common tibialis once oddly-enough.

[exo]

So much great detail

Presumably the final definition of a species is that it only breeds within that species,
so the two that were originally one species can't interbreed.

Do scientists do that sort of experiment to test this, i.e. collect specimens of each & see if they breed true only with the right ones, to prove the two are seperate ?

diggleken, thinking perhaps these days I get my camera to do the looking for me,
the old eyesight ain't what it used to be.
See an insect at 1/2 to 2 m, snap some pictures & figure out what it is on the screen.
That sort of thing anyway.
Sure seems to be a dearth of things to find at this time of year.

[Jason Green]

Originally Posted by exo

Do scientists do that sort of experiment to test this, i.e. collect specimens of each & see if they breed true only with the right ones, to prove the two are seperate ?

Yes to the previous question, and I believe it's settled on DNA sequencing.

[exo]

I think there's less than 1% diff. between chimp DNA & H. sapiens,
makes you wonder what the per-billionth difference in DNA is between
C. nagatomii and C. tibialis.

Probably the info exists somewhere.