When is a Slug not a Slug?

Wednesday 28th October 2026, Lambart Wood, Berrington

 
This was our first outing in a fortnight, the trip to Brown Moss which was scheduled for October 21^st having been called off due to the very wet forecast. Lambart Wood, a new site for us, is part of the wider Attingham Park Estate. I’ll let the National Trust explain further via a sign on the entrance gate:

The weather had been alarmingly wet as we made our way to site. By the time we arrived it had cleared to sunshine, but the sky was still rather threatening.

photo: Liz Roberts

There was also a brisk, cold wind which the rather open and elevated nature of the site did little to obstruct. It did offer some fine views as compensation, this one of The Wrekin taken over the fence seen in the previous picture.

But what of the actual finds? Just inside the entrance gate, a very small pond contained a stand of bulrushes, in which copious quantities of European Cinchbugs were making their homes. This photo shows both the short-winged and fully winged forms.

A number of empty pupal cases were also discovered, which have been identified as those of the Bulrush Veneer moth.

photo: Caroline Uff

In the grassland itself, the vacuumers got to work. The ladybird species of the day was a close call between 16-spot

And Rhyzobius litura (Meadow Ladybird).

Here are another couple of them, along with what I think was the only 24-spot seen all day.

One vac sample produced three 22-spots, the only ones of those seen all day too.

Two commoner invertebrates next. 7-spot Ladybirds were as ubiquitous as usual.

As were Nursery-web Spiders.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

More distinguished, perhaps, was the bug Berytinus minor.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Along with another bug, Peritrechus geniculatus.

A sign of the lateness of the season was this abandoned bumblebee nest, of species unknown.

photo: Liz Roberts

Another week, another Anthicus antherinus. This must be the 5^th or 6^th consecutive field trip in which we have found this hitherto hardly seen beetle. What is going on? 

Still on beetles, the only weevil of which I have a photo this week is Sitona lineatus.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

Moving on up the fence line, I found an oak which was pushing a few branches through it and rewarded them with a good thrashing. This odd creature fell into my tray.

I took a photo, flipped it over and took another. Barely any discernible difference! I think this is the dorsal view, but I wouldn’t put money on it. I believe it is the larva of a micro moth: Tischeria ekebladella, the Oak Carl and I fear I dislodged it from its mine in an oak leaf.
Time was moving on. I paused to take a distant shot of a male Stonechat, one of a pair which had been shadowing me along the boundary, then returned to the main group, who were pondering a lunch spot.

The sunshine was very pleasant but as soon as it weakened the wind was cutting. We decided to head for the shelter of the central hedge line (the site being two fields separated by an internal hedge). Camp was made and provisions consumed. The hedge was interrogated and admitted to being in possession of a Hawthorn Shieldbug.

It also asked for several barkflies to be taken into account, including Graphopsocus cruciatus.

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

In the vegetation at the base of the hedge, larvae of Angle Shades Moth

photo: Nigel Cane-Honeysett

and Ruby Tiger were discovered,

photo: Nigel Jones

as was a 3.5mm love beetle, identified as Astenus lyonessius.

A grass tussock produced this little snail. Or was it a slug with a shell?

We believe it is Vitrina pellucida, called variously the Winter Glass Snail or Winter Semi-slug. Consulting the excellent FSC AIDGAP guides to slugs and land snails reveals that it is in both of them. So it seems that the molluscophiles (is there such a word?) can’t make their minds up either!
 
In time a few brave souls decided to see what was happening on the other ie windward side of the hedge. A ferocious wind, straight out of Siberia, seemed to be the main finding. We retreated sharpish, but not before a magnificent example of a Diplolepsis rosae gall (Robin’s Pincushion among other names) was seen and recorded.

photo: Nigel Jones

A couple of very late-season Field Grasshoppers were also lurking in the grass at the edges of a dry pond.

Returning to the shelter of the first field, we made instead for the middle of it, where several heaps of deadwood have been placed deliberately to attract wildlife. They attracted us, too.

Here are some of the finds from under and within the timber. First, a Bank Vole (one of several).

photo: Caroline Uff

A Toad 

photo: Caroline Uff

The larva of a cardinal beetle – Black-headed Cardinal I believe.

The biggest Devil’s Coach-horse any of us could remember seeing, measuring fully 30mm when a rule was held (carefully) next to it.

A fine display of Discus rotundatus snails.

And a fungus which Obsidentify declares to be Calocera cornea.

photo: Liz Roberts

The day was drawing to its natural conclusion, inevitably in the best weather of the day.

There was time for one last sighting, equally surprising and forlorn: a ‘Spring’ mining bee, Andrena nitida (Grey-patched Mining Bee). Nectaring on ragwort, she was either six months early or six months late. The camera’s inbuilt stacking firmware has given her multiple antennae.

photo: Nigel Jones

And that was that, concluding our Summer programme. Next week, the start of the Winter one! Many thanks to the National Trust for inviting us to survey this newly created site.
 
 
POST SCRIPT
I have been sent this photograph of events which occurred after our trip to Oaks Wood a couple of weeks ago. It needs no further explanation.

photo: John Martin

Some of us refrained from this diversion and went straight home, feeling superior. And thirsty. 
 
Photographs © the author except as noted.