More Mince Pies!

 Wednesday 17^th December 2025, Dingle Farm, Bicton

This week we paid a return visit to Dingle Farm, an arable farm with sheep, cattle and free-range chickens among other animals. An area of the farm has been set aside to encourage improved biodiversity. The north of the site is bounded by the River Severn. A small tributary runs down the western edge in an area known as Bicton Ditch. This was the initial focus of our visit, before we moved northwards and examined various field  margins.
 
A foreboding weather forecast threatened continuous rain. In the event, this forecast proved to be about as accurate as usual ie it remained almost completely dry throughout our visit. Generally rather overcast, patches of blue did appear from time to time.

photo: Keith Fowler

Flocks of winter thrushes swirled around us all day; a few can be seen in the above picture. Early finds from the vacuumers included several species of springtail, among them Orchesella villosa,

and its relative, Orchesella cincta.

Moving into an area of denser woodland, a Birch Shieldbug was discovered clinging to a rucksack onto which it must have been brushed.

A fungus, presumed to be Velvet Shank, Flammulina velutipes was spotted on a dead Elm - typical habitat for this species.

photo:John Martin

Also spotted was White-tipped Bristle-moss, Orthotrichum diaphanum.

photo: John Martin

and the micro moth Ypsolopha ustella.

photo: John Martin

We moved out of the Bicton Ditch woodland and back up into the fields. This gave the resident livestock the chance to eye us with a mixture of curiosity and wariness. First up were the three resident Zebu cattle…

who were then joined by the sheep, who came and stared meaningfully at us as we pitched camp for lunch.

Lunch over, we progressed northwards along the field margins, the vacuumers’ efforts being appreciated by all. 

photo: Keith Fowler

Finds included the weevil Taeniapion urticarium,

 various ladybirds including Red Marsh,

Red-rumped,

22- and 16-spot.

Meanwhile a Cream-spot Ladybird was tapped from an area of dead dock plants.

Two small ‘non-ladybird’ beetles found were Paradromius linearis

photo: John Martin

and Demetrius atricapillus.

photo: John Martin

By now it was approaching 3:30pm and the daylight was showing signs of disappearing, so we began our retreat. The decision to call it a day was very much assisted by an invitation from our hosts to return to their abode for refreshments. For the second week running we were plied with mince pies (among other delights), these ones literally hot from the oven and very gratefully received!
 
This was our final trip of 2025. We will reassemble at Harton Hollow on 7th January. It only remains for me to wish everyone a Merry Chrismas and a Happy New Year!   
 
  
 
Photographs © the author except as noted. 

Getting Fat on Cake

 Wednesday 10^th December 2025, Colstey Wood and Red Wood

Colstey Wood and Red Wood lie to the west of Bury Ditches hillfort in south-west Shropshire. Both are Forestry England conifer plantations on the sites of ancient woodlands. Given our customary rate of progress and the short, winter day, we entirely failed to make it as far as Red Wood, so all the following events took place in Colstey Wood only!
 
After our two consecutive cancellations in November due to poor weather, this visit continued the welcome recent trend of benign conditions, the day being largely dry and sunny, overnight rain adding extra colour to our arrival with a rainbow.

We tore ourself away from the view & got down to business.

photo: Keith Fowler

Finds included (in no particular order): Holly Leaf-miner.

photo: Keith Fowler

The harvestman Nemastoma bimaculatum.

One Pine and three Larch Ladybirds, found in a fallen branch from a fir tree.

Several pseudoscorpions appeared from the moss. These included the inevitable Neobisium carcinoides which we find almost everywhere. But we believed some (including the one photographed below) to be Chthonius ischnocheles, merely the second commonest pseudoscorpion species.

photo:  John Martin

It was a day for contrary shieldbugs. Firstly, a Hawthorn Shieldbug was tapped from… a fir tree.

Then a very brown shieldbug appeared. It is (naturally enough) a Green Shieldbug - they turn brown in autumn, then back to green again the following spring.

 
We stopped for lunch and chose a spot next to this sign, adding a frisson of peril to our sandwiches.

photo: Keith Fowler

I should add that we kept to the ‘safe’ side of the boundary. You can have too much excitement! Lunch was royally enhanced by copious quantities of mince pies and cheese straws, devoured enthusiastically - it must be Christmas!
 
Near to the lunch spot were several species of fern, including: Hard Shield-fern

photo: John Martin

and a large quantity of Maidenhair Spleenwort growing on a low ‘cliff’ at the side  of the track.

photo: John Martin

A late find was the remarkable Prickly Snail, Acanthinula aculeata.

photo: John Martin

 Eventually we began our return to the cars. On arrival we  were plied with yet more mince pies before departure! I can’t say whether the calorific excess was responsible for an outbreak of creativeness, or whether it was just the scenery, but the following haiku was composed in celebration of the day:
 
Searching in the wood,
Joyful entomologists.
Nothing special - yet.
 
This was modified almost immediately to
 
Searching in the woods,
Joyful entomologists,
Getting fat on cake.
 
Well - mince pies actually, but that doesn’t scan as well!
  
  
Photographs © the author except as noted.

Blue Sky Thinking

 Wednesday 3^rd December 2025, The Isle, Bicton

Our venue this week was a large, mainly arable farm which is encircled by a meander of the River Severn, close to Bicton. The farm's practice is to reduce reliance on bagged fertiliser, improve soil health naturally and benefit the natural environment.
I left home in south Telford shrouded in fog but this had already given way to sunshine by the time we had reached the M54 and fortunately we spent most of our time on site under blue skies. Having parked and made our way through a small wood, we arrived at a field which had a wide, uncut margin.

photo: Keith Fowler

We set about examining this area for finds…

 

photo: Keith Fowler

 ...which included 16-spot Ladybird,
 

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Meadow Ladybird
 

 and The Mirid bug Stenodema laevigata.
 

The first Callitula pyrrhogaster of the day was also found in this area. A tiny, parasitic wasp, the females are virtually wingless and (exceptionally for the Parasitica) easy to identify. For some unfathomable reason this female wasp has become known to us as “The Boy”!
 

photo: John Martin

Having reached the bottom of this field we made our way into the field next door and settled down to eat our lunch in the sunshine.

 

photo: Keith Fowler

This attracted the attention of a small flock of uncharacteristically bold sheep, who advanced and eyed us with interest.

 

Lunch over, we made our way around the edge of the field, vacuuming and beating as we went. Low vegetation produced several 22-spot Ladybirds…
 

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

…and the attractive hopper Allygus mixtus.
 

photo: John Martin

A Hawthorn Shieldbug was persuaded from the hedge.
 

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

A Larch and a Douglas Fir were growing together. These produced one or two Larch and Harlequin Ladybirds, plus copious quantities of Pine Ladybirds.

Larch Ladybird (photo: John Martin)

Pine Ladybirds

Tiny creatures, less than 0.5mm long were spotted on the Douglas Fir needles. These are overwintering female Douglas Fir Adelgids, Hemipteran bugs related to aphids.
 

photo: John Martin

We reached the end of the field and passed through a gate into a field abutting the River Severn.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Vegetation in the area was investigated, the group settling to examine their finds in the sunshine.

These included several Water Measurers,

the rove beetles Paederus riparius

and Stenus bimaculatus,

and the moss Syntrichia latifolia, growing on the trunk of a willow.

photo: John Martin

From here it was a short walk back to the cars, pausing to admire a passing Long-tailed Tit

photo: John Martin

and thence home. However some of the group decided to walk the short distance to Isle Pool, a large fishing pool, where an overwintering Great Crested Newt was found under a log and quickly covered over again.

photo: Neil Nash

 A very pleasant day in the winter sunshine.
   
 
Photographs © the author except as noted.