Narcissus Fly

Hunting in the garden for Hoverflies again. Found what I think is Meredon equestris a bumblebee mimic that also exhibits polymorphism and has at least four named variants and multiple examples with mixed characteristics. All very exciting although I don't think my wife was over impressed. It is also known by a number of common names Narcissus Bulb Fly, Greater Bulb Fly, Large Bulb Fly, Large Narcissus Fly.


The four named variants are Batesian mimics of different bumblebee species. This one probably closest to variant narcissi and would I assume pass as a Buff-tail or White-tail Bumblebee. We may not be completely fooled by its appearance but we cannot know what the predator sees and reacts to and the evidence does seem to show that Batesian mimicry does work.


Interesting though that the different variants must recognise each other as being of the same species as they still interbreed and give rise to the multiple examples with mixed characteristics.


Fortunately, as a species, it has a distinctive wing loop in vein R4+5 which can be seen in the picture below. Only one other British hoverfly exhibits this wing pattern and that one can be eliminated on leg colour.


As a bee mimic it is quite effective. The eyes are a bit of a give away but it's robust behaviour and flight pattern gave more of an impression of a bee than of a hoverfly and it had to be seen close up to confirm what it was. Listen out for the buzzing it makes, it is at a  higher pitch than the bees, making it a little easier to spot.

Merodon equestris

Now for something a little less complicated. White markings on black makes the Scaeva pyrastri below one of the easier hoverflies to identify. It is a migratory species with numbers variable from year to year.

Scaeva pyrastri

Scaeva pyrastri

The next is a Sphaerophoria of which there are eleven British species. Six of these have matched spots on the abdomen with the other five being banded as with this specimen. Given the body looking longer than the wings this looks like Sphaerophoria scripta which also happens to be the commonest and most widespread of the eleven species. Also referred to, for obvious reasons, as the Long Hoverfly.

Sphaerophoria scripta  Female

To confuse matters Sphaerophoria.scripta can also present with darker colours and matched abdominal spots which are the result of temperature variations particularly in the earlier spring specimens.

Sphaerophoria scripta  Male

There is only one British species of Syritta and with nothing looking similar the Syritta pipiens below is another hoverfly that is easy to identify. It is small and dark with a slender abdomen but the key feature is the greatly enlarged hind femora. There was a better picture of one of these in my 11 June blog but this one shows the markings on the abdomen which were not clear in that earlier picture.

Syritta pipiens

The example below shows whiter spots on the abdomen. Possibly an older and more faded specimen. Note also the two white triangles on the thorax just behind the head, a key identifier, these also appear to be faded.

Syritta pipiens

As the year moves on I am coming across a few new hoverflies. Below is Meliscaeve cinctella a new one for me and a bit unexpected in the garden as it is a woodland species. I checked the identification a couple of times and am reasonably confident. It is a widespread species and does occur in large numbers some years.

Meliscaeve cinctella

I have also included another picture Myathropa florea. This one a robust looking specimen and displaying a nice example of the "Batman" markings on the thorax.

Myathropa florea

The next hoverfly is probably a new one for me. It is certainly an Eristalis and in this case I think it is Eristalis arbustorum the Plain-faced Dronefly. The dark markings do not extend along the rear of Tergite two to enclose the yellow spots as seen on other members of the genus and there are no dark markings across the centre of the wings as found on E.horticola. It looks good but not a certainty.

Eristalis arbustorum - Plain-faced Dronefly 

The next one I have photographed before. Helophilus pendulus, known as the Sunfly or Tiger Hoverfly. It is unusual in that both male and female have the eyes separated on the head. To tell the sex of the specimen you need to look at the shape of the rear end which unfortunately in this case is not clear in the picture.

Helophilus pendulus 

The final specimen is Volucella pellucens - Large Pied-hoverfly. Again one I have photographed before but it is always a nice one to find.

Volucella pellucens - Large Pied-hoverfly

A Confusion of Bees

Not the correct collective noun for bees but rather an appropriate one for where I am at the moment. 

I thought bees would be easy. I’ve got the Field Guide, there are plenty of bees around the garden to practice on, and thanks to the lockdown I have had the time to study them. So what progress am I making. Well, I have managed to identify a few and I even have recognisable pictures for some but I have also taken hundreds of useless pictures and I have spent hours trying to identify what I have seen.

What have I learnt? I do now understand that bees are difficult to photograph, they move too fast, vibrate a lot and are the wrong shape for the narrow depth of field on a macro lens. I also realise that there are a lot of species that look very similar and when combined with variations in the markings within  species, very few map easily onto the drawings and pictures in my field guide.

I am not even sure that I can tell the difference between Buff-tailed and White-tailed Bumblebees. The queens, if I could see them, would be recognisable but workers are giving me real problems. My only hope is to spot a male White-tail with yellow face hair.

Anyway here goes - but please recognise my usual health warnings on the labelling of the different specimens.

Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris

At a distance you think White-tailed but close up there is a narrow buff band between the black and white on the rear of the abdomen. My difficulty is, that I haven’t yet seen a specimen that I am really convinced is a true White-tailed.

Can’t really go wrong on the next one. The very distinct markings on the Wool Carder - Anthidium manicatum make it easy to recognise. This one was also easy to photograph as it appeared to be roosting in the shelter of the flower head.

Wool Carder - Anthidium manicatum

  

I found the next one a bit more difficult as there are a number of similar bees but in the end I came down in favour of the Clover Melitta - Melitta leporina

Clover Melitta - Melitta leporina

  

And another Carder Bee. This one looks good for the Common Carder – Bombus pascuorum.

Common Carder – Bombus pascuorum

I then had to check to see why you find Carder bees in two different families, The Wool Carder in the Megachilidae with leaf-cutters and mason bees whilst the Common Carder is a Bombus in with the Bumblebees. Apparently they both get the name Carder from their behaviour of scrapping hairs from leaves which they then bundle and carry back to the nest to use as a lining.

I had real difficulty photographing the next one The Green-eyed Flower Bee – Anthophora bimaculate. Easy to identify as it seems to be the only UK bee with green eyes but the one I was after was hyperactive. It favoured hovering whilst nectaring rather than landing on the plant and it only stayed for two or three seconds before moving on at speed. It was a case of predict where it was going next and wait for it to arrive. So three pictures of this one. None of them perfect but I can’t wait for it to return to the garden so I can have another go.

Green-eyed Flower Bee – Anthophora bimaculate

Green-eyed Flower Bee – Anthophora bimaculate

Green-eyed Flower Bee – Anthophora bimaculate

Another Megachiliade this one I think is the Patchwork Leafcutter Bee - Megachile centuncularis but I am happy to be corrected if anyone knows better. It seems to be running a high risk strategy in our garden as Sue is trying to identify what is causing lots of circular holes in the edges of the leaves on her new cherry tree.

Patchwork Leafcutter Bee - Megachile centuncularis

  

Three pictures for the next one as well. A shiny bum bee? After much delving all I can come up with is a possible Forest Cuckoo Bee - Bombus sylvestris, but it’s probably another Buff-tailed that has had a close shave with something!

Possible Forest Cuckoo Bee - Bombus sylvestris

Possible Forest Cuckoo Bee - Bombus sylvestris

Possible Forest Cuckoo Bee - Bombus sylvestris

  

The next one fits the description for the male Red-tailed Bumblebee – Bombus lapidaries. Unfortunately it didn’t stay around for long but it’s another one I would like to see back in the garden again.

Red-tailed Bumblebee – Bombus lapidaries

 I have one final bee and I have no idea what it is. A bumblebee and probably my old favourite the Buff-tailed but it is either very faded or or a colour variant. Nice looking bee though. 

It's probably noticeable that I am sticking mostly with Bumblebees. That is really driven by the fact that all the sightings were in my garden so the the species variety is limited. I need to get out into some different environments particularly if I want to see things like the Nomada bees. 

I have to say I am a bit worried by the the Andrena family the miming bees. I already have pictures of a couple but with a few exceptions they are going to be really difficult to identify. However rest assured, no bees are harmed or will be harmed in my pursuit of an identification.

Red-footed Falcon

There were reports of two different Red-footed Falcons up on the Downs north of the Shoreham and Portslade areas. This is not a bird that I get to see very often so having given it a couple of days for the initial rush to die down I went up to have a look on Thursday morning. I parked up just before 06.30 and headed off over Beeding Hill.

It didn't look at all promising. There was a light drizzle and a mix of low cloud and mist that was reducing visibility. Decent photographs looked unlikely but I was still hopeful. I just wanted to see the bird and be able to add it to my meagre year list.

There was no problem in finding it. A couple of people were already up on the hill watching it as it hovered in the wind searching for food. I have to be honest, if I had not known that it was in the area I would have just dismissed the distant sighting as a Kestrel and moved on. It was only when it drifted a little closer and you could get a decent view in the bins, that you could pick up the different markings and in particular the large white collar.

Red-footed Falcon emerging from the gloom

As expected picture quality was poor. I took a couple of hundred shots but even then had difficulty finding any to use in the blog. The one above being washed out by the mist and the one below not much better.

I felt as though I had missed a good opportunity so there was only one option and that was to go back the next morning for another go. The weather had improved and although not perfect did at least offer some promise. I had the place to myself, no people and unfortunately no bird but I did eventually find it a little further east down in the valley.

A few people turned up and the falcon gave occasional views and flyovers but no real picture opportunities. People came and then drifted away and eventually I had the bird to myself again. It makes all the difference.

I picked my spot and waited and eventually he flew in close and appeared to be checking me out. He obviously didn't see me as a threat and commenced hunting in the grass along the fence line close by. He probably just had me down as a funny coloured sheep and paid very little attention to me.

I took another couple of hundred shots during this time. The ones with him on the fence came out well although they all looked very similar and are a little soft due to a very light mist in the air. Most of the ones of him flying down into the grass didn't really work. The shots below are from this period.

Earlier in the morning I had taken a few shots of the bird hovering and flying past. Most where silhouetted against the sky and looked like rejects but I had some free time so decided to see if I could rescue them in Photoshop. I was quite pleased with the outcome. I have lost the sky but the colours on the bird are close and if I added a sky as a backdrop they would come out well.

Overall a couple of interesting and unexpected mornings birding. The bird is, I think, a second calendar year and is in moult so it was never going to look perfect in the pictures but I am happy with the results.


The Red-footed Falcons really do seem tolerant of people. I have only ever seen three and two of those have given very close views. The shot below is of the Barcombe Mills female back in June 2015. In that case she flew in and sat in a nearby tree seemingly to observe us. I have seen hundreds more Hobbies but have never managed to get close to any of them.

female Red-footed Falcon taken at Barcombe Mills June 2015

Lets hope the Beeding Hill bird comes back next year in full male breeding plumage and completes my set of pictures.

Thick-legged Hoverfly

There have been a few different hoverflies through the garden over the past two or three weeks, including four that were new to me. The first of those is the Thick-legged Hoverfly Syritta pipiens. As with many of the hoverflies I am finding, they are said to be widespread and abundant. Maybe so, but I cannot recall seeing this one before. It is yet another example of wildlife all around me that I am failing to see.

Three found basking in the sun on the Heuchera. They were around for a couple of days but then disappeared. The field guide suggests occasional mass occurrences that may be the result of immigration (across the channel I assume) so I may get more passing through as the season progresses. Great hoverfly and takes a nice photograph.

Thick-legged Hoverfly -  Syritta pipiens

Thick-legged Hoverfly -  Syritta pipiens

Next up Rhinga campestris, another common and widespread species but again new to me. Like the Thick-legged above it has the benefit of being both photogenic and of being easy to identify. A good combination.

Rhingia campestris

The next one is not so easy. I did get a couple of other shots looking down on the hoverfly but they were out of focus. The markings on the abdomen suggest a female of the genus Melanostoma and the length of the body suggest scalare but I cannot be certain. Again the field guide says widespread and abundant.

Possible Melanostoma scalare but could be mellinum

To complete the quartet of new species I have Sphaerophoria scripta. Often found with yellow bands rather than spots. However colouration is influenced by the temperature at which the larvae develops and early specimens will often exhibit this darker colouration and spots instead of bands.

This one seems to be common and widespread in Southern England and Wales but not further north so slightly rarer than my first three.

Sphaerophoria scripta

Then comes one I cannot identify. I can get it down to genus Eupeodes and I would have liked to call it a female luniger  but it is missing the Y shaped dust marking on the fons that I would need to confirm it.

Eupeodes sp

I have other examples of Eupeodes, one that looks more like luniger and one that is definitely not. However I am pushing the limits of my knowledge here.

Showing faint Y shaped dust markings on the fons so probably luniger

Male with the top of the fons showing an angle of greater than 90°. For luniger it should be less than 90°

To finish I have two examples of the most populous hoverfly in the garden Episyrphus balteaus the Marmalade Hoverfly.  The first, a tiny female specimen, dwarfed by a Clematis flower. The second a much bigger male with a deeper orange colouration. Again the colour variations are the result of temperature during the laval stage.

Marmalade Hoverfly - Episyrphus balteatus

Marmalade Hoverfly - Episyrphus balteatus

It would be a lot easier to just take the picture and add the caption of here is another pretty hoverfly but researching, even at this basic level, does at least give me something to do during lockdown!!!

Wingless Bee

Travel restrictions seem to be gradually easing and I am looking forward to being able to get out birding a bit more in the near future. Up to now I have been trying to play by the rules, so my photographic efforts are still very much based around the insect life in the garden. There is a lot to learn and as always identification is an issue. I have done my best to put names to the pictures but treat them with a degree of caution and let me know if there are any that are obviously wrong.

The first few shots are of Bumblebees and these are not an easy subject. Their tendency to adopt a curved shape when nectaring, with head and tail buried in the flower, makes it is very difficult to get the front and back end detail into one picture. They also move very fast and vibrate a lot so you need a high shutter speed to stop the action. However, the biggest problem I have is the type of plants in the garden. We planted a lot of bee friendly flowers but being bee friendly does not make them photographer friendly. Most are bell shaped or tubular so that the bees land head first and disappear into the flower leaving only their bums sticking out the back. They also reverse out at speed giving you no chance of a picture. You really need daisy type plants where the bee sits out on top of the flower head and then has to spend time gathering nectar from the multitude of tiny florets.

The first of my Bumblebees is not too difficult.  Bombus hypnorum the Tree Bumblebee, is unique in having a ginger  thorax, black abdomen and white tail.

Tree Bumblebee - Bombus hypnorum 

Tree Bumblebee - Bombus hypnorum - showing the white tail

Next up Bombus terrestris the Buff-tailed Bumblebee. It has a white tail but can be separated from that species by the narrow buff band between the white tail and black of the abdomen.

Buff-tailed Bumblebee  -  Bombus terrestris

Even more interesting is this wingless Buff-tailed Bumblebee. I suspect born without wings probably as a result of the Deformed Wing Virus rather than lost its wings to a predator. The bee seemed well adapted to its way of life. I first spotted it travelling at great speed across the patio and out onto the lawn to feed on the clover flowers. I found it again the next day following a similar pattern.

There are a lot of Buff-tails in the garden at the moment but I am not sure where their nest is. It would be interesting to know if this individual is still part of the collective. Does it return to the nest or is it is now forced to live the life of a solitary bee? It seems to be healthy and fit and could live for weeks, possibly months, but its survival raises all sorts of issues. I think I need the help of a bee psychologist.

Wingless Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris

Another view showing the deformed/damaged wings on its left side. There is no wing structure on its right side.

Wingless Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris

So far so good but what about the next two. Very similar colour patterns but in both cases there is a yellow patch, or part band, between the black and white on the abdomen. It is much thicker than the fringe on the Buff-tailed above. This suggests Vestal or Gypsy Cuckoo Bees and if I am on the right track probably Vestal as it is more common in the area I live in.

Vestal Cuckoo Bee  -  Bombus vestalis   ???

Vestal Cuckoo Bee  -  Bombus vestalis   ???

The next one is not a Bumblebee but as the picture was so good I had to include it.

Honey Bee  -  Apis melifera

The last shot is of a Heath Sand Wasp. There were some good clues to help identify this one, such as it was found on a Sussex Heath and it was just disappearing into a hole in the sand. 

There is always something new to learn. I am now intrigued by how it can construct a narrow tunnel into the sand that does not collapse as it enters and reverses out.

Heath Sand Wasp  -  Ammophila sabulosa

I have also gathered a few more pictures of Hoverflies but these will be in the next blog.