Today a first for the garden. A small silvery-underwing butterfly visited my everlasting pea flowers. I couldnt believe it - a Purple Hairstreak miles from any oaks (well a good distance anyway). I was far too slow for a photograph but the record sits nicely with a Green Hairstreak from earlier in the year. Cheers John.

A splendid Red Underwing in my garden today

Cheers John

22nd Feb: Peacock butterfly in my garden

23rd Feb: Small Tortoiseshell on the wing locally (but out of county)

Cheers John

A large dog fox was wandering around my garden in broad daylight this morning.

Cheers John

A Cream-streaked Ladybird in the garden this afternoon was a new insect for me. Supposed to be predominantly SE distribution.

Cheers, John

Hummingbird Hawk Moth on the garden buddlias this evening. Cheers John

I saw a new (for me) hoverfly in the garden on 1st July. Just found it dead in the greenhouse. Field guide says it's a southern species expanding its range probably due to climate change. An interesting wasp mimic with a wasp-like buzz in flight to go with colouration.

Cheers, John



Edit: Forgot to say what it was - Chrysotoxum festivum

-- Edited by John Rayner on Monday 16th of July 2018 06:26:17 PM

The Purple Toothwort on Middlewood Way is much reduced this year. Only one decent clump as the majority of the site is swamped by nettles.

Cheers, John

5th May.

Brimstone, Holly Blue and Green-veined White through garden

Cheers John

27th April.

My first Holly Blue of the year flew through the garden yesterday. (A bit later than last year from the post below).

Cheers John

9th April: First Holly Blue of the year in my garden. Also: Tawny Mining Bee (can anyone confirm this ID from the photo. Ta). Queen Tree Bumblebee. Queen Buff-tailed Bumblebee. 6th April: Hedgehog. Cheers, John

-- Edited by John Rayner on Sunday 9th of April 2017 03:20:44 PM

A Holly Blue visited the garden a couple of times today. Plus Large White, Peacock and yesterday a tatty Meadow Brown.

Cheers John

One morning a couple of years back, I thrust my hand into a bag of peanut granules without looking, and in my half-awake state could not understand why I wasn't feeling pieces of nut, but something furry. Puzzled, I looked inside to find a dead wood mouse which I'm sure had overdosed on them. Try a solid plastic container with a snap down lid John/Roger. They have proved to be impassable since then.

HaHa ! I had exactly the same experience yesterday morning John.

Roger.

Went to refill my bird feeders from a stock box kept in the shed. About 7.5 kilos of sunflower seeds, all still inside their original bags, had been reduced to husks.

3 of the fattest Wood Mice you are likely to see were the culprits.

Also, 14-Spot Ladybird in garden this afternoon

Cheers John

-- Edited by John Rayner on Thursday 10th of September 2015 02:05:06 PM

Small Skipper (on marigolds) today was a garden first.

Cheers John

Originally posted yesterday by John Tromans:

Hummingbird hawk moth in my Hazel Grove garden yesterday. Only my second ever sighting of one. What an insect.
Made my day and hoping it will made a return visit and camera is poised and ready.

Steve Suttill wrote:

---

John Rayner wrote:

---

Here's a question. Do Tree Bumblebees oust or attack native bumblebees? What I can find on the Internet suggests they do not.

But I have a White-tailed Bumblebee nest in the garden in a hole close to the ground. Whenever a White-tailed enters the hole a couple of Tree Bumblebees appear and fly in short left/right/left flights just in front of the hole. Clearly they are paying attention to where the entrance is. I have never seen one try to enter the nest but today found two White-taileds dead near the entrance. May be a coincidence but interesting behaviour none the less.

Cheers John

---

Hi John

have consulted my expert colleague who says that if there was a conflict between the two species, the Tree Bumblebees would be more aggressive. However this would only tend to occur if the other bees approached a Tree Bumblebee nest - but these tend to be high up, not near the ground. Also, the Tree Bumblebee should be regarded as a native as they have colonised by extending their range, not been introduced.

Hope that helps

---

Thanks Steve,

There doesn't seem to be much conflict, it looks more like curiosity. I take the point regarding introduced species and natural colonisation.

Cheers John

John Rayner wrote:

---

Here's a question. Do Tree Bumblebees oust or attack native bumblebees? What I can find on the Internet suggests they do not.

But I have a White-tailed Bumblebee nest in the garden in a hole close to the ground. Whenever a White-tailed enters the hole a couple of Tree Bumblebees appear and fly in short left/right/left flights just in front of the hole. Clearly they are paying attention to where the entrance is. I have never seen one try to enter the nest but today found two White-taileds dead near the entrance. May be a coincidence but interesting behaviour none the less.

Cheers John

---

Hi John

have consulted my expert colleague who says that if there was a conflict between the two species, the Tree Bumblebees would be more aggressive. However this would only tend to occur if the other bees approached a Tree Bumblebee nest - but these tend to be high up, not near the ground. Also, the Tree Bumblebee should be regarded as a native as they have colonised by extending their range, not been introduced.

Hope that helps

Here's a question. Do Tree Bumblebees oust or attack native bumblebees? What I can find on the Internet suggests they do not.

But I have a White-tailed Bumblebee nest in the garden in a hole close to the ground. Whenever a White-tailed enters the hole a couple of Tree Bumblebees appear and fly in short left/right/left flights just in front of the hole. Clearly they are paying attention to where the entrance is. I have never seen one try to enter the nest but today found two White-taileds dead near the entrance. May be a coincidence but interesting behaviour none the less.

Cheers John

4 Red Admirals on garden Buddleia.

Cheers John

A minimum of 25 Tree Bumblebees on garden Cotoneater. Not one native bumblebee in sight.

Cheers, John

My first Holly Blue of the year in the back garden.

Cheers John

Recent garden insects:

Buff-tailed, White-tailed and Tree Bumblebees (queens)
Orange Tip
Cream-spot Ladybird

Cheers John

2 Tree Bumblebee queens around the garden today.

Cheers John

4 Peacock butterflies and a Buff-tailed Bumblebee in the garden today.

1 Small Tortoiseshell at Goyt Valley LNR

Cheers John

Hi John, you may be interested in the following information.

When I was delivering leaflets/magazines etc.. I saw Juniper Carpets many times in residential areas. Now a common species.

Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland quotes :-
Resident. Was originally local and confined to the chalk downs of south-east, south and central England, the Cotswolds, and the limestone of north Wales, Cumbria and County Durham. Since the 1960's it has massively increased its distribution to cover much of England and Wales by exploiting Junipers now popularly cultivated in gardens. Single bushes can support populations for many generations and the eggs, larvae and pupae are transported on plants by the nursery trade. All moths examined from gardens conform to ssp. juniperata which is now probably everywhere junipers are grown, including lowland Scotland.

Ssp = juniperata (common), scotica (local in mainland Scotland, particularly the north-east, and on the Inner Hebrides), orcadensis (Orkney, found on Hoy in the 19th centuary but not recently).

Cheers, David.

Juniper Carpet disturbed from garden juniper bush. Not sure of current status but UKmoths says "A scarce species, restricted to a few scattered localities throughout Britain, though it does turn up in gardens where cultivated varieties of juniper are grown".

Cheers John

29th Sep

On garden Buddleia

1 Painted Lady (13th garden butterfly in 2013)
2 Red Admirals
2 Commas
3 Small Tortoiseshells
1 Small White

Cheers, John

21st August


A Brimstone was the 12th butterfly species this year on the garden .

Also a swirl of 7 Large Whites flying closely together
6 Peacocks
1 Red Admiral

Cheers John

-- Edited by John Rayner on Thursday 22nd of August 2013 08:43:35 AM

A freshly dead Mole at Hazel Grove Golf Club

An urban Fox on my housing estate in daylight.

Cheers, John

New records today with a total of 28 butterflies on the garden Buddleia.

12 Peacocks
4 Small Tortoiseshells
4 Small Whites
3 Large Whites
3 Commas
1 Gatekeeper
1 Small Copper

Cheers, John

3rd Aug

Now a minimum of 9 Peacocks in garden.

Cheers John

2nd Aug.

Now minimum 7 Peacocks in garden

Cheers John

A good selection of butterflies on the garden buddleia yesterday. Minimum counts were:

1 Meadow Brown (unusual here well away from grassland)
3 Peacocks
2 Commas
3 Small Tortoiseshells
3 Small Whites
1 Large White

Cheers John

A minimum of 25 Tree Bumblebees on my garden cotoneaster.

Cheers John

7th June

22 Common Frogs basking in garden pond.

Cheers John

Comma in my Hazel Grove garden today

Cheers, John

9th March:

The first Frog spawn of the year in my garden pond today.

Cheers, John

4th Oct:

Still 1 Small Tortoishell, 1 Red Admiral and 2 Commas on the garden Buddlia. All looking in pristine condition.

Cheers, John

-- Edited by John Rayner on Thursday 4th of October 2012 08:22:05 PM

7 species of butterfly visited the garden Buddlia:

Meadow Brown (scare in the garden)
Holly Blue (2nd generation)
Comma
Small Tortoishell
Large White
Small White
Green-veined White


Making a grand total of 10 species with these 3 added earlier in the year:

Red Admiral
Peacock
Speckled Wood

Cheers, John

A nice Hummingbird Hawk Moth on the garden Buddlia this afternoon.

Cheers, John

Over the past few days there have been good numbers of Tree Bumblebees on the garden cotoneaster, with counts of up 8.

Cheers, John