… of an entomological consultant. Yesterday was a pretty typical day, surveying a site which is proposed for development. I’m not able to reveal the location but it is a site with a mix of unmanaged grassland and secondary woodland. I spent a little over 6 hours in the field, concentrating my efforts on sweeping and beating. It almost goes without saying that I wore full waterproofs throughout though there was sunshine between the showers.
I worked yesterday evening and from early this morning to finish all the identification work and I’ve listed 102 species for the site. It is always my aim to record over 100 species from a day’s survey but I only just scraped over the line yesterday. I would expect more and I’m tending to agree with others who are saying that this is a poor spring for insects.
The list includes one Red Data Book species and five Nationally Scarce species, though, as is so often the case, some of these statuses are in need of revision for species which have become commoner and more widespread. But they are still useful species for assessing the conservation importance of the site.
I was really pleased to find the RDB hoverfly Rhingia rostrata: only the second one I’ve seen after Dave Gibbs showed me one last year. And there were two species which I got the camera out for. They’re just superb beasts and I don’t think I will ever get tired of seeing them!
Centrotus cornutus, a treehopper
Attelabus nitens, the Oak Leaf-roller
Coproporus immigrans is a recent arrival in Britain, specialising in woodchip piles, and I’d only seen it on two previous occasions before yesterday. Here it was in quite an old woodchip pile with thistles growing out of it, though it favours fresh woodchip.
Coproporus immigrans, a distinctive tachyporine rove-beetle
It’s not my aim on survey work to look for species I’ve never seen before: it’s about playing to my strengths and giving the client best value for money, rather than trying to get ticks. But I usually manage a few new species and yesterday I cut open a currant gall on oak for the first time to see the larva of Neuroterus quercusbaccarum within. Also, the common mirid bug Dicyphus globulifer was a new one for me, from a group which I’m tackling more seriously since I acquired Suomen Luteet.
| Species (scientific name) | Species (English name) | Conservation Status |
| Oniscus asellus | Common Shiny Woodlouse | None |
| Porcellio scaber | Common Rough Woodlouse | None |
| Nuctenea umbratica | a spider | None |
| Pisaura mirabilis | a spider | None |
| Glomeris marginata | Pill Millipede | None |
| Cylindroiulus punctatus | Blunt-tailed Millipede | None |
| Forficula auricularia | Common Earwig | None |
| Leptophyes punctatissima | Speckled Bush-cricket | None |
| Centrotus cornutus | a treehopper | None |
| Dicyphus globulifer | a mirid bug | None |
| Deraeocoris lutescens | a mirid bug | None |
| Liocoris tripustulatus | a mirid bug | None |
| Miris striatus | a mirid bug | None |
| Stenodema laevigata | a mirid bug | None |
| Harpocera thoracica | a mirid bug | None |
| Anthocoris confusus | a flower bug | None |
| Anthocoris nemorum | a flower bug | None |
| Kleidocerys resedae | a ground-bug | None |
| Pentatoma rufipes | Red-legged Shieldbug | None |
| Paradromius linearis | a ground beetle | None |
| Ptinella aptera | a featherwing beetle | None |
| Euplectus karstenii | a pselaphine rove-beetle | None |
| Tachyporus hypnorum | a rove-beetle | None |
| Coproporus immigrans | a rove-beetle | None |
| Stenus flavipes | a rove-beetle | None |
| Trixagus dermestoides | a beetle | None |
| Athous haemorrhoidalis | a click-beetle | None |
| Agriotes pallidulus | a click-beetle | None |
| Cantharis decipiens | a soldier-beetle | None |
| Rhagonycha lignosa | a soldier-beetle | None |
| Epuraea pallescens | a beetle | None |
| Meligethes carinulatus | a pollen beetle | None |
| Meligethes nigrescens | a pollen beetle | None |
| Byturus ochraceus | a beetle | None |
| Cerylon histeroides | a beetle | None |
| Rhyzobius litura | a ladybird | None |
| Exochomus quadripustulatus | Pine Ladybird | None |
| Propylea quattuordecimpunctata | 14-spot Ladybird | None |
| Coccinella septempunctata | 7-spot Ladybird | None |
| Cortinicara gibbosa | a beetle | None |
| Mycetophagus piceus | a beetle | Nationally Scarce (Nb) |
| Mordellochroa abdominalis | a tumbling flower-beetle | None |
| Nalassus laevioctostriatus | a darkling beetle | None |
| Ischnomera cyanea | a beetle | Nationally Scarce (Nb) |
| Oedemera lurida | a beetle | None |
| Pyrochroa coccinea | Black-headed Cardinal Beetle | Nationally Scarce (Nb) |
| Salpingus planirostris | a beetle | None |
| Anaspis frontalis | a beetle | None |
| Anaspis fasciata | a beetle | None |
| Anaspis maculata | a beetle | None |
| Bruchus rufimanus | a seed-beetle | None |
| Lochmaea crataegi | Hawthorn Leaf-beetle | None |
| Longitarsus luridus | a flea-beetle | None |
| Crepidodera aurea | a flea-beetle | None |
| Lasiorhynchites olivaceus | a weevil | Nationally Scarce (Na) |
| Tatianaerhynchites aequatus | a weevil | None |
| Attelabus nitens | Oak Leaf-roller | None |
| Aspidapion aeneum | a weevil | None |
| Protapion fulvipes | White Clover Seed Weevil | None |
| Protapion trifolii | a weevil | None |
| Perapion curtirostre | a weevil | None |
| Perapion hydrolapathi | a weevil | None |
| Apion frumentarium | a weevil | None |
| Ischnopterapion loti | a weevil | None |
| Phyllobius roboretanus | Small Green Nettle Weevil | None |
| Phyllobius pyri | Common Leaf Weevil | None |
| Sitona lepidus | a weevil | None |
| Magdalis armigera | a weevil | None |
| Rhinoncus pericarpius | a weevil | None |
| Ceutorhynchus typhae | a weevil | None |
| Ceutorhynchus obstrictus | a weevil | None |
| Trichosirocalus troglodytes | a weevil | None |
| Nedyus quadrimaculatus | Small Nettle Weevil | None |
| Anthonomus pedicularius | a weevil | None |
| Anthonomus rubi | a weevil | None |
| Curculio glandium | Acorn Weevil | None |
| Archarius pyrrhoceras | a weevil | None |
| Gymnetron pascuorum | a weevil | None |
| Neuroterus quercusbaccarum f. sexual | Currant gall causer | None |
| Biorhiza pallida f. sexual | Oak-apple causer | None |
| Lasius brunneus | Brown Tree Ant | Nationally Scarce (Na) |
| Lasius niger sens. str. | an ant | None |
| Myrmica rubra | an ant | None |
| Myrmica scabrinodis | an ant | None |
| Bombus hortorum | Small Garden Bumblebee | None |
| Bombus pascuorum | Common Carder-bee | None |
| Panorpa germanica | a scorpion-fly | None |
| Rhagio scolopaceus | Downlooker Snipefly | None |
| Beris chalybata | Murky-legged Black Legionnaire | None |
| Microchrysa polita | Black-horned Gem | None |
| Empis tessellata | a dance fly | None |
| Melanostoma mellinum | a hoverfly | None |
| Sphaerophoria scripta | a hoverfly | None |
| Rhingia campestris | a hoverfly | None |
| Rhingia rostrata | a hoverfly | RDB3 |
| Neoascia podagrica | a hoverfly | None |
| Syritta pipiens | a hoverfly | None |
| Tephritis neesii | a picture-winged fly | None |
| Anthophila fabriciana | Nettle-tap | None |
| Pieris rapae | Small White | LC |
| Pararge aegeria | Speckled Wood | LC |
| Monacha cantiana | Kentish Snail | None |