Wednesday 19th August 2026, The Villa,
Betchcott
The Villa is an upland holding of about 11ha, managed for
conservation and wildlife, set in rolling Shropshire countryside just beyond the northern limit of the Long Mynd. We parked at
Picklescott Village Hall and were then ferried to the site by our hosts. The
reason for this became clear as we ascended the lengthy driveway to their
house, which would serve good use as a Land Rover test track! We arrived well
and truly awake and immediately set about our investigations. Some ascended into the first
field from whence this view looking back at the house is taken.
Others dallied in the garden area, investigating several Scots
Pines, which duly produced a couple of Pine Ladybirds
plus several Conifer Ladybirds, Scymnus suturalis, one of the
micro ladybird species, which are generally much smaller and less spotty than
their more familiar relatives.
Up in the first field, attention was drawn immediately to the
panoramic vista it afforded.
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| photo: John Martin |
In the first picture The Wrekin can be seen on the horizon to the
left of the frame, with the Lawley in a similar, but closer, position to the
right.
This field had been cut, which, in combination with the inevitably
dry, golden nature of the vegetation meant that there was not a great deal to
detain us. We moved on into the next field. This had also been cut, but had the
advantage of an uncut margin leading down to a small stream, plus some other
slightly damper areas. These produced a few Common Green Grasshoppers
and a micro moth, Udea ferrugalis.
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| photo: John Martin |
We worked our way around the margin of this field. In addition to
the straw colour of the grassy areas, another alarming result of the drought was
the distinctly autumnal look of the trees, hawthorns and rowans in particular
having suffered, their foliage brown and their berries stunted and shrivelled.
Not good news for autumn migrants.
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| photo: John Martin |
Looking through these distressed trees into the next field, we spied
uncut grass and wet, rushy flushes. A gate was located and in we went, the
other side of the dividing boundary looking every bit as frazzled as the side we had just left.
The wet flushes were our primary aim, though Roesel’s Bush-crickets
seemed almost as happy in the drier areas of uncut grass.
This third field did indeed prove to be more productive than the
first two and detained us for longer. A trio of weevils was photographed:
Exapion fuscirostre
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| photo: John Martin |
Perapion violaceum
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| photo: John Martin |
Sitona regensteinensis
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| photo: John Martin |
A tortoise beetle, Cassida flaveola, appeared from one of the
wet flushes,
as did a snail-killing beetle, Phosphuga atrata
and another beetle, Sermylassa halensis.
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| photo: John Martin |
This sort of habitat is always likely to host Drinker Moths, which
at this time of year are young larvae:
A Broom Moth larva was also spotted and recorded.
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| photo: John Martin |
Lunch time approached. We congregated at the top of the field. Also
congregating were some slightly threatening clouds. Their threat level
increased until finally something almost unbelievable happened: it started to
rain! The business of unpacking lunches (with the addition of some very warmly received
cake from one of our participants) had to be briefly shelved while coats were
donned and an umbrella unfurled. A thankfully unfrazzled Hawthorn was cowered
under by some. This was a novel experience! For a few minutes the rain was
really quite fierce, but before long it had passed overhead. From our lofty
position at the top of the field we watched the storm moving away from us in a
north-eastward direction.
Lunch and weather interruptions over, our next target was the
boundary stream. This, though, was in a valley of remarkably vertiginous
proportions. We considered the drop and christened it ‘Valley of Death’ (though
it is more properly known as High Park Hollow)! A path along the top edge of
the valley proved illusory, fizzling out before we had gone far and requiring
us to climb back into the field again, over the fence. Before we did, a Small
Heath...
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| photo: John Martin |
and a Field Grasshopper...  |
| photo: John Martin |
posed in the gorse which fringed the drop. Back in the field again, more gorse finally produced a couple of
Gorse Shieldbug nymphs.
By this time the group had fragmented, with people heading in
various different directions. A couple of determined souls found another, only
marginally less alarming route downwards and finally made it to the stream. Here
Water Mint was flowering, attracting insects which included Volucella pellucens,
a large, black and white hoverfly which used to be quite reasonably known as
the Great Pied Hoverfly but has now been re-christened as the Pied Plumehorn.
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| photo: John Martin |
Another hoverfly was also enjoying the flowers. I wonder if Syritta
pipiens would be pleased to know that it has been labelled the Common
Compost Fly? Mind you, the next fly in the book is called the Hairy Thickleg,
so perhaps it got off lightly?
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| photo: John Martin |
A Grayling was also seen down by the stream, somewhat surprisingly,
but not photographed. A Speckled Wood was more co-operative.
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| photo: John Martin |
Back up in the fields, the direction of travel was homing in on our
starting point at the house. Smaller creatures were being vacuumed from the
undergrowth. This is that rarest of things, a distinctive mite, Leptus
trimaculatus.
The small wasp known properly as Callitula pyrrhogaster but
christened by us “The Boy” had been common in vacuum samples all day. The red
abdomen and vestigial wings are unique in combination.
Today we also found its fully winged relative Callitula bicolor,
which has been named (can you guess?) the Winged Boy. It hardly
needs saying that they can both be either male or female…
Time to head back to our hosts through the golden grass, occasionally
punctuated by the lilac-blue of Harebells…
…and a return taxi ride back to the village hall. But not before we
were served some delicious cookies by our hosts. A fine end to a very enjoyable
day.
Photographs © the author except as noted.
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