Organic Riches

Wednesday 7th October 2026, Fordhall Farm

 
A return to Fordhall Farm this week, an organic, community owned farm near Market Drayton in North Shropshire. I was absent for this trip but fortunately have some words from John M & Nigel J in addition to a good number of photos of some of the day’s finds. So without more ado, over to John…
 
We first headed down to a marshy area that was so wet we couldn't go far into it, even in this year of drought.

photo: Nigel Jones

But Jim's vaccing produced large numbers of critters.

photo: Neil Nash

Here is a selection of finds from this area, starting with Himacerus major

Cymus melanocephalus

Peritrechus geniculatus (nymph)

Conomelus anceps

Stenus bimaculatus

Psammoecus bipunctatus

Nebria brevicollis

Taeniapion urticarium

Red Marsh Ladybird, Coccidula rufa

Red-rumped Ladybird, Scymnus haemorrhoidalis

A tiny Straw Dot larva

 Of course, not all finds were vacuumed. Here is a selection of those that were swept, beaten or just spotted as they flew past. Among the latter group is this Comma, a classic late-season butterfly

as well as this rather high-mileage Speckled Wood

Very much not flying past was this pair of Arion ater slugs, caught in flagrante delicto.

photo: Neil Nash

Also not flying past, nor indeed beaten or swept was this Harvest Mouse nest (empty, of course). A splendid thing to see.

photo: Neil Nash

Later we continued to a hill with Bracken and some more acidic grassland. Here, Field Grasshoppers were to be seen jumping about in the sunshine.

A planted Box tree had various Diptera on the sunlit trunk, including Stomoxys calcitrans (the Stable Fly). In the below photo the stiletto like mouthparts can be seen sticking out in front of the face.

Lunch was declared but Jim carried on vaccing with minimal pausing for food as usual so we added a bunch of extras there including a couple of weevils: Strophosoma melanogrammum,

and Notaris cf acridulus.

A bug, Ichnodemus sabuleti

And a  psyllid, Eupteryx aurata

 Then down to the wet woodland where Nigel swept diverse Platypezids from the sunlit leaves.
On which subject, over to Nigel:

The Protoclythia rufa…

…is a rather nice record. An uncommon species – just the second for Shropshire. The finding of four species from five specimens, in about a twenty minute session,  is brilliant. By comparison, the next day we spent five hours searching for Platypezids near Minsterley and found eight specimens of just two species. The Fordhall Flat-footed Flies flies were all found below Castle Embankment in the woodland along the edge of the stream (after lunch). The sunshine brought them forth.
Here are two more of them: Platypeza consobrina (male)

Platypeza hirticeps (female)

Another nice find was the Dolichopodid fly Campsicnemus pusillus – a 4^th county record. Amongst numerous yellow dung flies Scathophaga stercoraria was its much scarcer cousin Scathophaga decipiens.
 
Time was already marching on, so we decamped to the cafe where we were treated to hot drinks and some very nice ginger cake, and thence home!

Many thanks to all concerned for allowing us to return again to this always productive property.
 
 
Photographs © John Martin except as noted.