On my Newchurch Patch pm, all on Shemmy Moss, very warm and sunny.

There were 3 Common Lizards basking and a Common Toad was also seen.

There were four butterflies of three species, 2 Red Admirals, a Speckled Wood and a Small White.

Even more impressive was a count of 91 dragonflies of 7 species! These were 2(1m) Common Hawkers, 2m Southern Hawkers, 2 Brown Hawkers, 5 Migrant Hawkers, 1m Ruddy Darter, 15 Black Darters (inc. 3 pairs in cop, 2 of which were ovipositing), and an amazing 64 Common Darters (inc 4 pairs ovipositing)!

Two moths were noted, a Silver Y and a Nettle Tap.

Lots of hoverflies were on the wing and those noted included Sericomyia silentis, Eristalis tenax (Common Dronefly) and Episyrphus balteatus (Marmalade Hoverfly).

A final instar Green Shieldbug Nymph was seen as well as an Awkward Clusterfly.

Two Four-spotted Orb-weaver Spiders were on Shemmy Moss, their stronghold.

A new fungus, almost certainly Common Cavalier (Melanoleuca polioleuca) was seen, 2 fruiting bodies being on the edge of the mosses.

A few late records for my Newchurch Common Patch for 31st August 2024:

A late ID, due to it being a difficult species was a new moth for my patch, Blastobasis adustella (Common Masoner) near the main track between the pools. Also here was a Dingy Footman moth.

The plants Musk-Mallow (new for the year) and Tansy were in flower in the Big Pool SW Corner Glade.

Both am and pm on my Newchurch Common Patch, sunny and dry.

A Stoat was seen just off patch near Nunsmere.

An amazing 8 Common Lizards were basking in one small area on Shemmy Moss.

Odonata included 3(1m) Black Darters, 2 Migrant Hawkers (Shemmy Moss), a Common Darter, a Ruddy Darter (Gull Pool), Emerald Damselflies and Common Blue Damselflies.

The most significant moth find was a huge Elephant Hawkmoth Caterpillar. This was in it's final stage and looking to burrow underground to pupate. At least 3 Nettle Tap moths were seen.

Red Pea Galls were on small oaks by Shemmy Moss, seen for the first time ever these are the galls of the Red Pea Gall Wasp Cynips divisa. A Leafcutter Bee photographed on Shemmy Moss is likely to be Megachile versicolor. The Hornets nest is still active with over 100 Hornets seen. At least 10 Sericomyia silentis hoverflies were on Shemmy Moss. There were 6 Xylota segnis hoverflies on Big Pool Island Cut meadow.

Around 25 Dock Bugs were seen and 1 Hairy Shieldbug was photographed.

A Bog Bush Cricket showed well on Shemmy Moss.

A Four-spotted Orb-weaver was on Shemmy Moss.

A good fungus day with 25 Tawny Grisettes found, and 2 Blushers were in the same area of Gull Pool Wood. A cluster of 65 Glistening Inkcaps were also in Gull Pool Wood with around 8 Artist's Bracket fungi also here. Coral Brittlegill was in Gull Pool Wood. Variable Oysterling was near Big Pool Island Cut. Birch Woodwart was also in Gull Pool Wood.

Plants seen included Small Stinging Nettle (Urtica urens) in the former leek field and Crimson Clover in the Beetle Bank near the Pine Belt. Enchanters Nightshade was seen near the Pine Belt.

On the Shemmy Moss section of my Newchurch Patch this morning. Dry and warm.

Just 2 butterflies. a Red Admiral and a Meadow Brown.

Better for odonata. For dragonflies a male Common Hawker (the heathland specialist) was seen plus a female Emperor,  Brown Hawker, 8 Black Darters with 2 pairs 'in cop' of which  was ovipositing and 11 Common Darters with 4 pairs 'in cop' of which all 4 were ovipositing. Just a Common Blue Damselfly was seen.

Two moth species were noted, the first was new for the year and a heath specialist micromoth species Phiaris schulziana also known as the Large Marble (pictured). This species was last noted in August 2020. A Silver Y was also seen.

There were 2 Hornets quartering the moss looking for prey. At least 3 male Ashy Mining Bees were seen. At least 18 Helophilus pendulus hoverflies were seen as well as 10 Sericomyia silentis.

A Green Tiger Beetle was still present as was a Bog Bush Cricket. Common Field Grasshopper was also seen whilst still searching, without luck, for Mottled Grasshopper.

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Monday 26th of August 2024 03:55:32 PM

A bob onto Newchurch Common and just non animal reports to be honest.

A group of 3 Field Mushrooms in the Big Pool North Meadow were the first of the year.

Water Mint was by Small Pool and Common Vetch subspecies segetalis was in the beetle bank near the Pine Belt.

Andy I also live in Appleton, we have had a few bats over our garden (5 mins walk from Red Lane) that we noticed in the very early morning (4-5am)  but had also noticed the lack of them generally and much much scarcer than previous years when they were common. There were normally also some around the carpark of the Baptist Church when on an evening stroll but I haven't been there that much this summer so not noticed. There are definitely less wasps, bees, butterflies, moths around us too though, I hope it is an anomaly due to the weather this year and not the new trend :(

Warrington South: neither ourselves or a few neighbours have seen any bats around here this year (bottom end Stockton Heath / Bridgewater Canal / Appleton up to the Reservoir). Used to get regular bats. Not even had wasps this year or the regular bees.

A shortish morning walk on the Shemmy Moss part of my Newchurch Patch. Bright and warm. Nice to bump into Dave, a member of these forums, and to have a chat.

There were 3 Common Lizards basking together, nice to see. Also a few small Common Frogs and Common Toads.

Just a few odonata seen, a Common Hawker, 4 Brown Hawkers, a Migrant Hawker, a Common Darter and 6 Black Darters.

For moths a Dingy Footman was seen as well as a Common Carpet.

A large number of the hoverfly Helophilus pendulus were seen as well as several Sericomyia silentis.

A new species ever on patch was a scentless plant bug (related to shield bugs) Rhopalus subrufus, one of only 4 species in this family in the UK. A Dock Bug was also seen.

A Common Horsefly was again photographed after she tried her luck with me, after my blood but I caught her before she managed it!

Again Bog Bush Cricket was seen.

An afternoon on my Newchurch Patch on Shemmy Moss. Warm and dry.

Quite quiet with the odonata highlight being a male Common Hawker again. There were only c.7 Black Darters, maybe the Hobby I saw had taken lots!

A Beautiful Yellow Underwing moth was photographed, and I got my best ever pictures of this flighty species.

A Common Field Grasshopper was new for the year and Common Green Grasshopper and Bog Bush Crickets were seen again.

Newchurch pm, hot & sunny and v.little of note, just firsts for August!

Seven butterfly species but the only things of note were 50 Large Whites, mainly in the beetle bank and 10 Small Whites.

There were 9 Silver Y moths, 5 Shaded Broad-bars, 2 Common Carpets and a Six-spot Burnet.

 

A short morning visit to Newchurch Common, around Big Pool. Sunny and warming up but not sweltering yet by midday!

Ten species of butterfly with the highlights being 2 Essex Skippers in Big Pool North Meadow and a Purple Hairstreak in  a new oak for this species, halfway down the main track to the north of the former leek field.

A Blacklet Hoverfly species, Cheilosia albitarsus/ranunculi was near Beach Peg. A Thick-headed Fly species Conops quadrifasciatus was also in the same area behind Beach Peg. A Sawfly species Tenthredo notha/acuata was in the North Meadow.

Tansy was in flower in the Big Pool SW Corner Glade and was recorded for the first time this year.

All day on my Newchurch Common Patch, hot & sunny.

A Common Lizard was seen again.

Plenty of butterflies, both in numbers of species and individual numbers.... at last! Ten species wee seen : Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, Comma, Peacock and Red Admiral. Numbers of note were 12 Peacocks in total including 10 in the 'Beetle Bank' planting north of the Pine Belt, and c.35 Large Whites and c.40 Small Whites in a total of 75+ whites using the same 'Beetle Bank'.

Odonata seen were Southern Hawker near the car parking area, 5 Brown Hawkers, male Emperor on Shemmy Moss, a Common Darter, 10 Black Darters, Common Blue Damselflies, Azure Damselflies, Red-eyed Damselflies, Blue-tailed Damselflies and Emerald Damselflies.

A Riband Wave moth was on Shemmy Moss and was a new species, 3 Silver Y moths were also here.

A Red-sided Eriothrix Tachinid Fly was a new species ever on Patch, on Shemmy Moss. Black Garden Ants (Lasius nigra) were seen emerging from underground nests with winged males.

 

Newchurch afternoon, all on Shemmy Moss, dull, cloudy but mild.

A nice trio of reptiles / amphibians with 2 Common Lizards, Common Frogs and Common Toads seen.

Around 10 Black Darters were the best odonata.

I finally managed a decent picture of the micromoth Eupoecilia angustana. A Silver Y was seen again.

A Heather Shieldbug nymph was found which was the first ever for me on Patch, NBN has a record here for 1991!

Totals of 6 Bog Bush Crickets and 12 Common Groundhoppers were seen.

The cranefly Nephrotoma scurra was seen, this was seen in previous months but not photographed as well as it was today!

Creeping Cinquefoil was confirmed as previous photographs had been inconclusive

 

Pickerings Pasture CP, Hale Bank, Widnes. 14.00-16.30

Spent a couple of hours viewing Hale Marsh from the nicely restored screen.

I've often found this spot a good place to view butterflies, especially on a

sunny afternoon like today, I was not disappointed this time either.

A patch of flowering Ragwort really attracted them, especially Large Whites,

but also 5 Comma, 1 Peacock and 1 Painted Lady.

The newly mown verges to the parkland paths attracted lots of Meadow Browns too.

A brilliant morning with fellow all-round naturalists Fungalpunk Dave & Gill on Shemmy Moss, Newchurch Patch today. With them bringing sweep nets an extra dimension was added to the walk, sweeping the low vegetation for 'tiny things'!!!

A couple of Common Lizards were again seen, and the usual odonata and a few butterflies were seen too, but nothing new of note on this search for smaller fauna.

Notable moths were recorded including my first ever Narrow-winged Pug and the first Mother-of-Pearl of the year for patch. The years' first Dingy Footman was also found. A looper caterpillar that was probably a Light Emerald moth larva was found, but was a hard ID. Another Beautiful Yellow Underwing caterpillar was found. A Silver Y was seen again.

An Ichneumon Wasp was IDed as Hepiopelmus melanogaster, but confirmation is being sought as it quite rare in the UK. Spangle Gall Wasp Galls were on oak leaves and Artichoke Galls (another wasp) were on oaks too.

A Nedyus quadrimaculata weevil was on nettles. An interesting Leaf Bug was Populicerus populi. A Spiked Shieldbug nymph and adult were found. A Dock Bug nymph was netted. New for the year was Bishop's Mitre Shieldbug. The Mirid bugs Stenotus binotatus and Grypocoris stysi were found. A Tree Damsel Bug was new for the year too.

Over 20 Bog Bush Crickets were seen as well as 2 Common Groundhoppers.

Several Linnaemya vulpina tachinid flies were still flying. A Tipula lateralis Cranefly was netted. The small black fly Lauxania cylindricornis was found and photographed. Several Midge Galls were noted, Little Black Pudding Gall on bracken, Jaapiella veronicae galls on Germander Speedwell, Trioza remota galls on oak and Dasineura urticae galls on Nettles.

Spiders found included at least 4 Four-spotted Orb-Weavers and 2 Evarcha falcata Jumping Spiders.

A Russet Toughshank fungus was found as well as a Mycena sanguinolenta, the Bleeding Bonnet.

Enchanter's Nightshade and Dove's-foot Crane's-bill were noted. Colarado Spruce had cones at the edge of the moss, aiding ID.

A morning trip on Newchurch Common with wildlifing mate Paul Hill. Sunny intervals and warm.

A dead Common Shrew was on the patch by Shemmy Moss.

A nice Southern Hawker Dragonfly was on the track between the two main Pools. On Shemmy Moss only about 20 Black Darters today, male Emperor, 2 Four-spotted Chasers, 6 Emerald Damselflies, 4 Blue-tailed Damselflies, 4 Common Blue Damselflies and an Azure Damselfly.

Some good moths, all micromoths and all on Shemmy Moss and the first three being heathland specialists, were seen. A Cheshire rarity Aristotelia ericinella was new, but repeats included another Neofaculta ericetella, another Eupoecilia angustana and another 2 Diamond-backed Moths. A cracking Beautiful Yellow Underwing caterpillar was found.

A Spider Hunting Wasp, probably Auplopus carbonaria was on Shemmy Moss.

Again lots, probably 20 Bog Bush Crickets on Shemmy Moss plus 3 Common Groundhoppers.

A Common Horsefly Haematopota pluvialis was on Shemmy Moss and swatted by Paul as it bit him. We examined it as dead, looking at antennae for firm ID and handling it for ages with it looking lifeless. I potted it up to take home to photograph only to find it buzzing around the pot an hour later!! They are impossible to kill it seems

On Shemmy Moss (Newchurch Common Patch) again very briefly pm, very overcast but warm.

A Common Lizard was seen basking as well as 4 Common Froglets and 1 Common Toadlet.

Even though it was dull I still counted 22 Black Darters but even better I saw my first (male) Ruddy Darter of the season here. Also seen were 10 Emerald Damselflies and an Azure Damselfly.

A new micromoth was added to the overall patch list and was a lifer for me, Neofaculta ericetella, a heathland specialist whose larvae feed on heather. It is common but hard to ID as it is tiny, zips about and is very nonedescript. Also seen were 7 Pearl-banded Grass Veneers.

At least 3 Bog Bush Crickets were seen.

 

Gatewart
Slight increase in Butterfly numbers this morning.
Whites (most /all Large Whites) widespread, Meadow Browns 10+ , Small Tortoiseshell, Gatekeeper, Red Admiral singles only.

On Newchurch Common Psatch pm, Shemmy Moss all the time, dull but mild.

A Common Lizard was again seen basking. There were 3 Common Froglets on the mosses too.

Again there were c.30 Black Darters and 5 Common Emerald Damselflies seen.

A new moth for patch was another heather specialist, the Cheshire scarcity micro-moth Dark-barred Straw (Eupoecilia angustana). A big influx of a migrant micromoth gave a count of 20 Diamond-back Moths. Another new moth for the year was The Chevron, another scarce local moth. Again there were at least 3 Pearl-banded Grass Veneer moths.

A new Shieldbug species was added to the overall patch list with a Blue Shieldbug nymph found and photographed. A Common Froghopper was also seen.

Again 2 Red-banded Sand Wasps were around their nesting area. Hoverflies included 2 Sericomyia silentis and a Marmlade Fly. 4 Tachinid Linnaemya vulpina were seen. A new cranefly species Prionocera turcica was on the moss too.

At least 12 Bog Bush Crickets were noted.

An unidentified yellow Slime Mould species was seen around the stem of a heather shoot.

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Sunday 14th of July 2024 11:28:39 PM

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Monday 15th of July 2024 02:07:15 PM

A morning visit to my patch, all on Shemmy Moss today. Dull, no sun but not cold, surprisingly good for invertebrates.

Had a pregnant female Common Lizard, not basking just moving through dead bracken but looking huge near the rear end. Also rescued 4 Common Toadlets crossing the Abbot's Moss Nursery road.

A few butterflies were seen, my first mosslands Gatekeeper and Small Skipper, also Ringlet, Meadow Brown and Green-veined White.

There were at least 20 Black Darters including Black males, a male Emperor and a female Common Darter seen. Also seen were 6 Emerald Damselflies, an Azure Damselfly, a Blue-tailed Damselfly and several Common Blue Damselflies.

Just 2 Common Heath moths and around 5 Crambus pascuella Inlaid Grass Veneers were found, both seen previously.

The biggest find was a nationally very rare fly - Cheshire Horsefly (Atylotus plebeius) (pictured), found now in the UK at only 2 known locations and a specialist on quaking bogs (which Shemmy Moss is). This is a threatened species and not seen very often at all, a really good find. The ID has been verified by UK Diptera but I was confident in my ID which I put forward to them. Amazing!!

A new species was a tiny bee Colletes daviesanus, that I've never seen before.

Also seen were 4 Bog Bush Crickets, a Sericomyia silentis hoverfly, and the hoverfly Eristalis nemorum.

The first decent pictures were taken of the ants under refugia on Shemmy Moss and these lead me to believe that the species is Formica lemani.

A surprise find was Coral Brittlegill fungus.

 

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Thursday 11th of July 2024 12:08:10 PM

Another sunny afternoon on Newchurch Common, all in Big Pool Meadows.

An amazing butterfly day with 11 species seen, by far the best day for them this year!! The best in show award goes to my first male Essex Skipper, followed closely by the first 3 Gatekeepers, both for the year, not ever! Also seen again was a Purple Hairstreak in the same oak canopy as on the 5th. Other species seen were Large Skipper, Small Skipper, Meadow Brown, 16 Ringlets (inc a mating pair), Speckled Wood, Large White, Green-veined White and Red Admiral.

Odonata were less well represented with 4 Brown Hawkers, Common Blue Damselflies and Blue-tailed Damselflies the only species seen.

A Six-spot Burnet Moth and a Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet were both seen.

A Welsh Chafer Beetle was new for the year. The Roesel's Bush Crickets are getting bigger so I took another picture!

A Nursery Web Spider was photographed and several more seen.

A new group of 6 Common Spotted Orchids was found in North Meadow.

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Tuesday 9th of July 2024 09:37:13 AM

Seal in the Mersey , bang centre of the river in the town centre , spoted from car nr the cenotaph 

No 6 Tank Frodsham Marsh (Morning visit)

Butterflies :- 1 Gatekeeper, 1 Comma, 4 Red Admirals, 4 Small Tortoiseshells and numerous Meadow Browns.

Also 1 White Ermine moth resting on a Ragwort flower head.

My first trip onto my Newchurch Patch for a while this afternoon. Sunny mainly and actually q.warm.

Another six-species day for butterflies, exactly the same ones as the last 'six' day!!

The area close to Big Pool Island Cut held 2 Common Toadlets, they were deep in vegetation 'litter' so probably lots lots more here, the pool here had the huge amount of toadspawn earlier in the year, so not a surprise.

An excellent odonata day with my first Southern Hawker and my first Common Darter of the year for patch both in Big Pool Island Cut Meadow. As well as there I had 4 Brown Hawkers and a worn male Emperor. The only damselflies were c.150 Common Blu Damselflies and 15 Blue-tailed Damselflies.

A Silver-Y Moth was in Island Cut Meadow and 2 Shaded Broad-bars were in the North Meadows. A Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet was seen, the edges of the wings definitely showing a narrower black border than last weeks moth!

A new Tachinid fly was photographed, a Thelaira nigripes, in Island Cut Meadow.

In the North Meadows I had 20 Roesel's Bush Cricket nymphs and 2 Common Green Grasshopper nymphs. Also in he North Meadows was a new species for Patch, a Meadow Plant Bug (Leptopterna dolbrata). A Green Shield Bug was in Island Cut Meadow.

Lots of Spear Thistles were in flower by the main track, a great nectar source.

-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Wednesday 3rd of July 2024 09:55:48 AM