Another Hot Day

Wednesday 15th July 2026, Llynclys Hill

Holidays and rival field trips reduced the number of participants this week, and the continuing hot weather provoked an earlier than usual finish for those who did make it to Llynclys.
The first task for the small band of attendees was to decide which part of this large site should be the focus of our investigations.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

We decided upon Ant-hill Meadow, an area in which a lot of scrub clearance work has recently been undertaken. Reaching it involved a walk along a wooded path which provided some welcome shade. The most striking feature of this woodland was the extensive carpet of Dog’s Mercury under the trees, all of it laid flat and wilted due to the heat and dryness.
Arriving in the meadow, the grass was predictably dry and parched.

Despite this, butterflies were numerous, the most numerous of the lot being Gatekeepers

Others present in good numbers included Meadow Browns and Ringlets, various whites and a couple of Common Blues

For some time it seemed that we might have a rare, Painted Lady-free day. But no, one materialised on the knapweed.

Among the other, larger and more conspicuous invertebrates, multiple Common Green Grasshoppers could be heard (this one is a ‘brown form’ male).

Plus similarly abundant Field Grasshoppers.

Common Greens prefer a damper, more humid microclimate than other common grasshopper species, which makes me wonder how they will fare in the long term. There is already anecdotal evidence of their decline in southern England as summers become warmer and drier. On the other hand, Field Grasshoppers like it dry and hot. They must be loving it!
 
Our attention turned to the smaller invertebrates. We start with a parasitised aphid, found on oak. These identifications are a bit tentative, but the aphid may be Tuberculatus querceus and its parasite a Praon species, possibly flavinode.

photo: John Lyden

Two micro moths were found here, both recorded rather infrequently. First we have the Hypericum Neb, Oxypteryx atrella (classified as ‘local’). It feeds on St John’s Wort, of which there was plenty in the meadow.

photo: John Lyden

Whilst this is Hellinsia osteodactylus, the Small Goldenrod Plume (‘Uncommon’).

photo: John Lyden

Still with moths, though somewhat bigger, we were pleased to see a couple of Six-spot Burnets on the wing.

We move on to bugs. This year has seen an increase in the number of Tortoise Bugs that we have encountered and today was no exception. Here is an adult, swept from the vegetation.

And here are some of the several nymphs which were vacuumed over the day.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Talking of the vacuums, they were hard at work and producing finds aplenty as usual. Here are just a few of them, all Hemiptera save the final one, which is a wingless species of Psocoptera (a barkfly).

Myrmus miriformis

Ant Damsel Bug nymph

lacebug, Derephysia foliacea

Mocydiopsis attenuata

Cymus glandicolor. Photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

barkfly, Bertkauia lucifuga

Other finds included this weevil, Trichosirocalus troglodytes.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Several spiders were also photographed. The familiar Garden Spider, Araneus diadematus

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

The Buzzing Spider, Anyphaena accentuata

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Finally a jumping spider, Evarcha falcata.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Time for lunch, taken in the shade of a handily placed tree. While we ate, we contemplated several hawker dragonflies which circled relentlessly over us. I attempted photos but was utterly defeated by them, so their identities will remain mysterious. A Hummingbird Hawkmoth also zipped about in front of us for a while and proved similarly impossible to photograph. Lunch over, the keenest member of the group headed off into the quarries. The rest of us dallied, mostly, I think, due to my ongoing but fruitless photography efforts. Our minds were eventually returned to the task in hand by a message from our advanced party – Silver-washed Fritillaries in Upper Butcher’s Quarry! Off we hurried (well, staggered slowly upwards in the heat). Some minor directional confusion in the trees notwithstanding, the quarries were ultimately achieved. Good and less good news followed. The good news? The butterflies were putting on a fine display. The less good news: it seemed to be about 10 degrees hotter in there, the sun beating directly into the rocky amphitheatre. We soon flagged, but did get some fine views of the fritillaries

At some point a couple of particularly long-legged harvestman species appeared and were photographed: Leiobunum rotundum...

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

...and Opilio canestrinii.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

The trees produced several Tree Damsel bugs, both as adults...

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

...and nymphs

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Some more vacuuming was done but before long an unspoken group lethargy became universal and the day drew to a rather premature, but hot, close. Rather than slog back uphill, we exited downwards through Lower Butcher’s Quarry. Here, Meadow Grasshoppers were present in numbers, along with Fragrant Orchids and one of the twayblades. The day’s third micro moth of note also appeared here, Nemophora minimella, the Small Scabious Longhorn (‘Rare’), helpfully sitting on its larval foodplant (Devil's- bit Scabious). Llynclys Common is the only known Shropshire site for this moth, with three records, all this century.

Small Scabious Longhorn. Photo: John Lyden

From here, our route took us out onto the road and back to the parking spot. A shortened, but enjoyable day. Thanks to Shropshire Wildlife Trust for allowing us to survey this varied nature reserve.
 
 
Photographs © the author except as noted.

Cloudless Skies, Clouded Yellows

Before we arrive in Bicton, a brief return to Middle Spoad. The wonders of the IT age caused some photos of last week’s visit to arrive late, as they spent a couple of days loafing about in cyberspace before landing in my inbox….
You may remember the exceptional haul of creatures that were extracted from the River Clun. Well, here is another one: a River Limpet

Near, rather than actually associated with it, was a Walnut Orb-weaver spider

And this is a shot of what remained of the otherwise dry pond that was examined at the end of the day. The low water level had caused the pond-dipping platform to assume rather vertiginous proportions!

Photographs © Liz Roberts
 

Wednesday 8th July 2026, Dingle Farm, Bicton

This week saw a return visit to an arable farm, with free range chickens, sheep & Zebu cattle among other animals, and bounded to the north by the River Severn. It was another hot, sunny day, so we were keenly aware that there was also significant, shady woodland on site. Which was just as well, because the arable looked like this:

We nevertheless began in the fields, but chose a spot at the margin of one which was shaded by a line of mature trees. These were, of course, examined (from the shaded side) and produced a couple of photogenic species.
Hazel Leaf-roller

Oak Bush-cricket (a female nymph).

Down at ground level, vacuuming produced Target Number One from the grassy margin: The Boy aka Callitula pyrrhogaster

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Among a number of bugs were Capsus ater

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

And a Hairy Shieldbug

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Two small ladybirds next. Firstly a 16-spot

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Next an even smaller ‘micro’ species, Scymnus haemorrhoidalis, the Red-rumped Ladybird

A Swollen-thighed beetle (this one is a female; only males have the big thighs)

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Oulema obscura,

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

And a spider, Neottiura bimaculata.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Meanwhile, some of us had retraced our steps to the polytunnels, bravely (or insanely) intent on examining them before the day heated them up any further. The only invertebrate which I photographed before escaping to the outside world, which suddenly seemed remarkably cool in comparison, was a Painted Lady larva, chomping its way through what I think was a Globe Artichoke but might have been a Cardoon. Either way, something like a giant thistle, their usual foodplant of choice.

Next destination was the farm’s dung heap, something else which generates heat. What was I thinking?? My target was the Lesser Earwig, a species which lives in such places. Within a couple of minutes I’d seen one but it dived into the depths and was gone. Much further fruitless searching followed before Sonia, our host, spotted one, a female, and grabbed her. And here she (the earwig) is.

Triumph! Sonia departed to clean up, having bravely gone in bare handed. I removed my gloves and did similar. I’d just about finished when I received a call: back at the polytunnels a Clouded Yellow had appeared on the thistles and was posing, slightly skittishly, for photos. Off I hurried. It was still there. Some mediocre shots of it sat on the thistles having been bagged, attempts were then made to capture it in flight. This proved to be rather challenging, my best being this one of it about to exit from view. There is a similarly flighty skipper in there too.

Oh, and who had initially spotted it and raised the alarm? Sonia, of course!

Time moved on and the day grew hotter. A plan was hatched to move to the shade of the woodland near to the river. This would also serve as the lunch spot. Our baggage was ferried across the parched fields in the farm’s Land Rover, as indeed were some of the participants. Others walked it, slightly downhill and relieved of the burden of their backpacks. Arriving at our destination, the field margin against the woods was a sea of flowers, mostly thistles.

photo: Keith Fowler

Butterflies abounded here, particularly Painted Ladies.

photo: John Martin

Also spotted here were several White-legged Damselflies, a sign of the proximity of the river.

Other, vital items had also been ported in the Land Rover: a magnificent lunch, laid on by our hosts! As we had also brought our own lunches, an extremely jolly time was had over the next hour! We didn’t, in truth, move a great deal for the rest of the day, the attractions of the shade and the food rather outweighing the desire to explore. But our spot did have a river view…

photo: Keith Fowler

…complete with a small, sandy beach which we explored instead. This beach afforded views of duelling male Banded Demoiselles, as well as more White-legged Damselflies.

It also produced some finds for the vacuum, notably this ground beetle, Asaphidion curtum.

Further finds from either the beach or the adjacent woodland included Pithanus maerkelii

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

A rove beetle, Tachyporus obtusus 

Another rove, Tachynus cf rufipes

And a spider weevil, Exomias araneiformis.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Late in the day a large harvestman was captured and proved fiendishly tricky to identify. Eventually, after much scrutiny and photography, it has been declared to be a female Mitopus morio.

With that, we exited the woods and reverse-migrated across the fields, some using the Land Rover, others under their own steam. Those on foot were rewarded for their efforts by an encore Clouded Yellow performance. The same one? A different one? Who knows? It appeared, posed on a thistle and was gone again. A super end to a hot, not very active but thoroughly enjoyable day. Many thanks to our hosts for allowing us to do what we do and for feeding us, transporting us, and finding most of the best finds!

 
  
 
Photographs © the author except as noted.