Do not disturb the birds

 Wednesday 1st September 2021, Venus Pool

September started as August ended, cool with leaden skies.

Our first outing of the month was to the Shropshire Ornithological Society’s reserve at Venus Pool. We were privileged to be granted access to parts of the reserve that are not normally open to the public, with the proviso “Do not disturb the birds!”.

How did we ensure that, you may ask.

The answer was straightforward.

If you can see the pool then you are too close and my cause a disturbance.

OK!

We now knew that we needed to keep some cover between ourselves and the water.

Fortunately this was not too difficult as the fields which we surveyed were well screened by vegetation from the pool.

This outing attracted a good turnout and we did our best to fill the car park.

Photograph: Jim Almond

From the car park we popped through the gate to the first field.

The early finds came in thick and fast and I was fully entertained trying to keep up with the list of species that needed noting down. Eventually it calmed down a little and I was able to do a little exploring of my own.

The hoverfly Epistrophe grossulariae was an very early find.

Photograph: Jim Almond

This was a big field and the group spread across it like a rash but eventually a gathering occurred in its lowest corner where the habitat was wetter. A clutch of insects was found there or close by:

A 2-spot ladybird;

Photograph: David Williams

A tortoise beetle, Cassida rubiginosa;

Photograph: David Williams

A Speckled bush cricket;

Photograph: David Williams

And a Long-winged conehead.

Photograph: David Williams

And this …

Photograph: Jim Cresswell

Is it a flower?

No, it’s a gall, caused by the psyllid Livia juncorum.

We moved into the next field.

A Straw dot was spotted and photographed.

Photograph: David Williams

Believe it or not the time had passed so quickly that it was time for lunch. A suitable spot was found and refreshments taken.

Lunch over and conversations on photographic matters concluded, we proceeded to explore this vast field (being mindful to keep the pool out of sight). The field, like the first was grassland, but seemed to be much drier.

We probably spent an hour or so making our way along the grassland and its border.

Here is a selection of insects that we found in this area:

A hoverfly, Myathropa florea, affectionately known as “Batman” because of the pattern on its thorax;

Photograph: Jim Almond

14-spot ladybird;

Photograph: David Williams

Slender ground hopper;

Photograph: David Williams

A leaf-cutter bee, Megachile versicolor;

Photograph: David Williams

And a Scarab beetle that remains a mystery species. Can anyone suggest what it may be?

Photograph: Jim Almond

Also in the vicinity was a pair of Common blue damselflies.

Photograph: Jim Almond

There now came a choice of where to go next; either cross a stile to exit the field and join the public footpath, or keep in the fields that surround the pool with the hope of escaping somewhere else.

Most of the group took the safe option and joined the footpath which passed through a small wood and then between the two pools to exit into the large arable field that is used to grow seed for overwintering birds.

Others stuck to the field.

Would we ever meet again?

Along the field edge we found an oak with many of its leaves covered in Silk-button galls and several of its acorns affected by Knopper galls.

Silk-button galls are so called as the small doughnut shapes look like buttons covered in silk thread. The gall is caused by the asexual generation (all female) of the wasp Neuroterus numismalis.

And Knopper galls are caused by the asexual generation of the wasp Andricus quercuscalicis.

Remarkably we all did meet up again.

No it was not really that remarkable; you would not have expected anything different!

The last half hour or so of our visit was spent searching the arable field’s marginal vegetation.

Time for some honesty …

Some of the group inspected the margin of the vegetation whilst others found somewhere to sit and watched their activities. (I was not alone!)

Here are some of the late finds that hung around long enough to be photographed:

A fly, Prosena siberita;

Photograph: Jim Almond

A hovefly, Sericomyia silentis;

Photograph: Jim Almond

And a Hawthorn shieldbug.

Photograph: David Williams

Finally an Ivy bee was spotted.

Photograph: Jim Almond

This bee is a relative newcomer to this island, being first recorded in 2001. Since then it has spread rapidly, arriving in Shropshire in 2014. 

After a splendid and exhausting day we made our way back to the cars and returned to our homes.

My thanks to the Shropshire Ornithological Society for granting us permission to explore areas that are normally off-limits. As always I extend my gratitude to the photographers for providing the material for these efforts.

Other News

Here are a couple of moths spotted during a moth night at Bury Ditches towards the end of August:

Black arches;

Photograph: David Williams

And a Dark marbled carpet.

Photograph: David Williams

And a pair of hemiptera who wanted to get in on the action, an Alder spittlebug on the left and Green shieldbug nymph on the right.

Photograph: David Williams

I finish with a photograph from our correspondent in Church Stretton whose garden is clearly a box of delights. 

A Crucifer shieldbug.

Photograph: Graham Wenman

Keep well.