Wednesday 10th 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.
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| photo: Keith Fowler |
Finds included (in no particular order): Holly Leaf-miner.
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.
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| photo: Keith Fowler |
One Pine and three Larch Ladybirds, found in a fallen branch from a fir tree.
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| photo: John Martin |
It was a day for contrary shieldbugs. Firstly, a Hawthorn Shieldbug was tapped from… a fir tree.
We stopped for lunch and chose a spot next to this sign, adding a frisson of peril to our sandwiches.
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
and a large quantity of Maidenhair Spleenwort growing on a low ‘cliff’ at the side of the track.
A late find was the remarkable Prickly Snail, Acanthinula aculeata.
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.
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 |
Near to the lunch spot were several species of fern, including: Hard Shield-fern
 |
| photo: John Martin |
 |
| photo: John Martin |
 |
| 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.
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