Buggin

A nocturnal visit (well, 7pm anyway)  added a few species to the year list, but also this Nabis ferus to the reserve list as bug #80. Interestingly this is the 2nd species I've added this year which I found in the Cullaloe Hills in February of last year. I can't explain why in all the sweeping of the same area during spring-autumn I've never knowingly seen this one before. However, this is the first year the "flower meadow" hasn't been mown. not sure that will be good for the botanical site monitoring later. Be interesting to see how the area responds to not being mown.

2021 bug #13, 2021 new bug #8 (!)

Reserve bug #80

Bugs

A few bugs around in all the luscious greenery at Cullaloe

These four are a set swept from grass and path verges:
Grypocorus stysi
Leptopterna dolabrata

Leptopterna ferrugata

Plagiognathus chrysanthemi

Despite the apparent hugeness in the photos the Plagiognathus is actually half the size of the others

Hawthorn Shieldbug

Happy to add this to the year list this morning but amazed to find out it wasn't on the reserve list at all. Hemipteran number 63.

Horrible picture, though.

Anthocoris nemoralis a new bug for Cullaloe

A common enough species, but not recorded before, apparently.

Stilt bug

A nice find no the window of my car in the car park - it found me I suppose - was the stilt bug Berytinus minor. According to NBN there are no records for Scotland even for the family, but normal NBN caveats apply and the recording scheme organiser didn't express any surprise at the record.

Hopping mad

OK, so back to the hemipteroid of the other day. I ventured to look at it last night and lo and behold it is of the family Cicadellidae ("leafhopper") and the subfamily Typhlocybinae ("awkward leafhoppers")

Come and have a go ...

To my dismay on searching for a key online I immediately found that the EntSoc one is out of print and freely downloadable. Horribly this puts me into a position where I may actually identify it, but only with a modicum of bothersome effort. What the hell. If nothing better comes along I will. Hemiptera were firmly placed in the de-focussed area for this year, but it's hard to look a gift hopper in the mouth. No doubt it will be one of the family already on the reserve list too.

Orange Ladybird

Among other interesting things encountered last night was this new-for-the-reserve ladybird. New to me too, and a delight to see. I released it this morning.

Other small beasties encountered included the first Owl midge I have looked at under the microscope, a lovely Sciarid fly fungus gnat (try Dynatosoma fuscicorne) that I am cautiously optimistic about, and a small green bug that I also ought to be able to get close on.

Planthopper Stenocranus minutus - 2nd for Scotland

This planthopper was swept from the grass on the flower meadow on Friday. From the redoubtable NBN there appear to be none recorded in Fife. From the less redoubtable Dumbarnie Links zoological list S.minutus has already been recorded in Fife, although noted as a 1st for Scotland at that point!

Bugs and bees

Lest it appear that I am only looking at mushrooms, today's additions included Gorse Shieldbug and Honey Bee (which I have seen but not recorded previously) as well as a small bug called Eracanthus interruptus (see here). Quite a smart looking little thing, and since it's apparently "unmistakable" that's always good news!

Grypocoris stysi - species 482 (and 993)

species page on uk bugs

Some bugs are so apparently well defined that I feel it's worth having a go without even keying. This is mostly, to be fair, because the UK Bugs site and galleries are fantastic (naturally I then mis-identified it as Stenotus binotatus. ID correction credit to RW)

Caught me a bug (Anthocoris nemorum)

A true bug, not a generic sort. Damned if I can find out what it is though. The lovely gallery over at British Bugs is a nice browse but I've missed it if it's there - not surprising if you ever saw me trying to find stuff at the supermarket. I have put out a general alert to the super-mind that is the PSL* facebook page. Fingers crossed.

* Pan-species Listers

Wow - about five minutes. That's  how long it took, and as expected it really was on british bugs at here

More micro pics showing other features, e.g. black pronotum, orange legs