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Glapthorn Cow Pastures

5th June 2026

Today we decided to take a short walk around Glapthorn Cow Pastures as it was possible the small population of Black Hairstreak Butterflies were to be seen. It was a lovely day, mostly sunny and we enjoyed a potter in the woods

A Black Hairstreak Butterfly with folded wings showing the pale brown undersides with bright orange markings towards the rear edges of the wings.
A white umbelliferous flower is hosting a large plump Pellucid Hoverfly with it distinctive cream coloured midsection.
A long and fairly slender Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle which is mostly black in colour except for the dull yellow legs and elytra with black markings.
A slender metallic green Thick Legged Flower Beetle is inspecting a yellow Buttercup flower.
A bright yellow Creeping Cinquefoil flower with five broad slightly divided petals and a darker yellow centre.
A brown Speckled Wood Butterfly is resting with its wings open displaying the black and white circular markings around the edge of the hind wings.
A large nymph of the Red Legged Shieldbug which is broad bodied and a dark almost purple brown colour with pale markings around the edges and dark legs and antennae.
A Hairy St Johns Wort plant in full bloom with bright yellow flowers each with 5 long slender petals and long yellow stamens with bright yellow anthers.
A cluster of Wild Honeysuckle flowers pale yellow to cream in colour with long white stamens.
A Blackberry Flower is providing lunch to a Black Hairstreak Butterfly with folded wings showing the pale brown undersides and orange markings towards the rear edges of the wings.
A rather hairy pale blue Lackey Moth Caterpillar with long narrow stripes of black orange and white along its length.
A Meadow Cranesbill flower with five large broad violet blue petals a creamish centre leading to pinkish stamens and dark blue anthers.
A long and slender Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle mostly black but with darker yellow legs and elytra than most we have seen.


A Black Hairstreak Butterfly keeping lookout in the woods

A Black Hairstreak Butterfly with folded wings showing the pale brown undersides with bright orange markings towards the rear edges of the wings.





Our Wildlife Garden

31st May 2026

May has been a very busy month in the garden for both visiting insects and our resident insects. Lots of activity all round and far too many photographs so these are the ones I found most interesting, they are roughly in order of date

Reposing on a crinkled leaf is an adult Common Green Shieldbug mostly a bright lime green colour with red tips to its legs and antennae.
A Holly Blue Butterfly with folded wings showing the pale blue almost white hairy body and the pale blue underwings with small black markings.
A Large Red Damselfly possibly female with black and yellow thorax and red and black abdomen is at rest holding on the edge of a Honesty flower seed pod.
A small black bee with lots of white hairs and a broad dark red band across its abdomen.
A trio of small white and bronze with crimson colouring Woundwort Shieldbugs are gathered on a leaf and two of the bugs are mating.
A yellowish brown and yellow Broad Bodied Chaser Dragonfly that has recently emerged from the pond and has yet to open its wings.
Feeding on a yellow flower is a Small Copper Butterfly vibrantly coloured in a coppery bright orange with brown markings.
A recently emerged Broad Bodied Chaser Dragonfly with open wings and a golden yellow and brown colouration.
An old seedhead of interest to a Hairy Shieldbug which is riot of colour with black and white antennae head and connexivum with purplish brown and mustardy gold elsewhere.
A White Campion flower which has five deeply divided large white petals and long white stamens.
Enjoying the morning sun is a Box Bug which is a fairly slender but angular Leatherbug with its upper half various shades of glossy brown and a much lighter underside.
Then Caterpillar of the Brimstone Butterfly is mostly bright green although paler underneath and the top sides are covered in tiny black dots.
With dark brown to black markings over a creamy beige body this female Common Blue Damselfly stands out against the green foliage she is hunting in.
A large bright green and red Hawthorn Shieldbug is at rest on a dark green leaf.
A Sun Fly which is a medium sized golden yellow and black Hoverfly with a giveaway vertical striped thorax.
A metallic green Thick Legged Flower Beetle is posing on a yellow Buttercup Flower.
A 7 Spot Ladybird Larvae the segmented body of which is a pale grey colour with four orange spots and a grey and orange head.
This young male Common Blue Damselfly is yet to turn bright blue and is a sort of blend of lilac and blue with the black mushroom shaped markings on the top of the abdomen which are a feature of this species.
Superficially similar to the darker coloured Red Admiral this Painted Lady is a pale brown and orange colour with a few lighter markings towards the tips of the front wings.
A slender Toothed Tiger Ichneumon Wasp mostly black with bright yellow markings on its head and abdomen and matching yellow and black legs.


We have had quite a bit of Shieldbug activity in the garden this month, this is a Common Green Shieldbug

Reposing on a crinkled leaf is an adult Common Green Shieldbug mostly a bright lime green colour with red tips to its legs and antennae.





Summer Leys

29th May 2026

We chose a sunny but not too hot day for a trip to Summer Leys Nature Reserve. The insect season was well and truly underway and there was lots to see

A tiny bright crimson red glossy beetle with long antennae the same colour is exploring a leaf.
A rather immaculate black and golden yellow Hoverfly is resting on what looks like a Holly leaf.
A Small Eggar Moth Caterpillar mostly a blueish black colour with black and crimson markings bordered with cream.
A Brown Argus Butterfly is at rest with unfolded wings which are mostly brown with small orange markings just inside the white fringed edges.
A dark golden brown and very fluffy Large Skipper Butterfly is feeding from a Thistle Flower.
A Speckled Wood Butterfly at rest with folded wings which are in various shades from cream to dark brown.
This is most likely a female Blue Tailed Damselfly with a delightful salmon pink thorax leading to a dark abdomen with the signature bright blue band towards the end.
Feeding on flower is a medium sized Hoverfly mostly yellow and bronze in colour with a darker abdomen which has yellow horizontal curved markings.
A Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle long and slender with pale yellow wing cases decorated with black markings getting larger towards the end.
A Brimstone Butterfly at rest with folded wings showing a fluffy white head and large wings in various shades of pale green and yellowish green.
A dark cream and brown Mayfly is resting vertically on a stem of grass.
Feeding on a Blackberry Flower is a rather hairy Small Heath Butterfly with folded wings whose abdomen is a greyish brown and the wings shades of brown and bright orange.
A Green Veined White Butterfly with folded wings is feeding from a Blackberry flower with the intricate pattern of darker veins standing out from the white undersides of its wings.
A Holly Blue Butterfly with folded wings showing the pale blue undersides speckled with small black markings.


We saw huge numbers of Soldier Beetles near the Car Park.Trying to identify which species of Soldier Beetle this is was quite tricky. We have settled on Cantharis livida as the colours on the legs is indicative of this species although it is missing the black spot on its head