Danger of Death

Wednesday 6th November 2024, Bishop’s Wood

Our site for this outing was across the border in Worcestershire at Bishop’s Wood, a Field Centre run by the Fields Study Council. We were invited to help contribute to their on-site records.

This trip was much delayed as we were due to visit in April this year, but the weather did not oblige and we had to cancel. On this occasion the weather was much kinder.

We were greeted in the car park by our host for the day who informed us that as the Centre was expecting children to be on site we needed passes to confirm we were official visitors. We trooped off to the centre’s main building where we signed in and received our badge of certification for the day. 

The badge dangled from a lanyard adding yet another item to the copious amounts of kit we carry around, in bags, in pockets, in our hands and slung around our necks.

However, immediately the request was vindicated as a coach full of primary children arrived.

Bowed under the weight of the extra baggage we made our way out onto the grounds.

The site is a mixture of woodland, some of which is ancient and semi-natural and other bits are secondary or plantation, and grassland. There are also a number of pools.

Curiously the site surrounds an electricity substation so in your wanderings you can find yourself facing a high metal fence with a sign warning of “Danger of Death”.

After a brief perusal of a small meadow close to the centre, where there were quite a few fungi on show, and a slightly longer visit to the vegetation around the car park, we entered a large area of the ancient and semi-natural woodland.

Unfortunately, our searches of the semi-leafless trees and the ground flora yielded only a few invertebrates of interest but, major finds we did make were a giant mushroom; 

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

And a monkey (or ape).

A Hairy shiledbug, Dolycoris baccarum was found amongst some dead bracken.

A fungus, Helvella crispa, was observed growing next to the path.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

And a pseudoscorpion, Neobisium carcinoides, was found in a suction sample taken from moss at the side of the path.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

The woodland path opened out into a sizeable grassy clearing. 

The vegetation around this area became our focus for some time.

Here we found our favourite tiny wasp, Callitula pyrrhogaster.

Photograph: David Williams

You will notice that the insect in the above photograph has vestigial wings that are glinting in the light. This led our spiderman to describe the wasp as “not wingless but merely aeronautically challenged”!

Another find around this time was a springtail.

Photograph: Jean Young

We are not certain what the species is, or even the genus. It may be a member of the Katiannidae family.

Moving on, through the woods, we came to a much smaller clearing.

Here we found a Devil’s coach-horse.

Photograph: David Williams

And a spider that has turned up at a few sites recently, Diaea dorsata.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Following the path through the woods it led us to a large grassland where we set up camp, lunched and recharged our batteries.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Refreshed and recharged we spent some time looking around this grassland, locating amongst other things:

A Blue shieldbug;

Photograph: David Williams

A ladybird, Rhyzobius litura;

Photograph: David Williams

A large beetle, Phosphuga atrata;

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

And a weevil, Sitona hispidus.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Passing through some more woodland a Mottled umber moth was spotted at rest on the vegetation.

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Emerging from the woodland we found ourselves in a large area of grassland. This was subjected to more searching, beating, sweeping and suction sampling. Some of the invertebrates found in this area were:

Another ladybird, Scymnus haemorrhoidalis, descriptively known as the Red-rumped ladybird for obvious reasons;

Photograph: David Williams

A moth larva that is possibly a Straw dot;

Photograph: Jean Young

And a Larch ladybird;

Photograph: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Spotted in the corner of the grassland were a couple of gentlemen having a chat about the finds of the day, or, perhaps, the result of the United Sates of America's Presidential Election …

I think not!

More likely photographic equipment or electric bikes.

It started to rain and this determined that the day was to be brought to a close.

On the way back to the Visitor Centre a group of Giant willow aphids on the branch of a willow was spotted.

Photograph: Jean Young

Back at the visitor centre we were treated to a drink and biscuits before surrendering our passes and making our way home.

My thanks to the Field Study Council for granting us permission to do what we enjoy doing and their hospitality. My immense gratitude to the photographers for their wonderful images and allowing me to use them in this report.