Hummingbird Hawk-moth

A hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) feeding on the valerian in my garden.

The first time I saw this moth, I could hardly believe my eyes. It was buzzing like a bee but looked like a tiny bird.

Hummingbird hawk-moths beat their wings at such speed they emit an audible hum. Their name is further derived from their similar feeding patterns to hummingbirds, collecting nectar with their long tongues. A day-flying moth active in both sunny and overcast conditions, hummingbird hawk-moths are strongly attracted to flowers with a plentiful supply of nectar such as honeysuckle, buddleia and as in these photos valerian. 

Difficult to get clear photos because their wings are just a blur.

There were also tortoiseshell butterflies feeding on the valerian, so although somewhat unruly and invasive, it seems a great plant for attracting moths butterflies and other insects such as hoverflies.

Solomon's Seal Sawfly Larvae

There is a small patch of Solomon's Seal in the garden and yesterday I noticed that some of the leaves had been stripped bare. I thought it was possibly slug or snail damage. However, today I noticed some unpleasant looking grey caterpillars on some of the remaining leaves. The internet soon provided the answer. They are not true caterpillars but the larvae of the Solomon's Seal Sawfly (Phymatocera aterrima).

Adult Solomon’s Seal Sawfly are black, 8-9mm long, and emerge in late spring at about the time the host plant is coming into flower. The female uses her saw-like ovipositor to insert rows of eggs into the leaf stems. The larvae initially make small elongate holes in the foliage (as in above photo), but as they increase in size their appetite also increases. The fully grown larvae go into the soil where they overwinter and pupate in the following spring. Defoliated plants survive but may produce reduced growth in the following year. 

Loch Garten and Loch Mallachie

There is a delightful short walk near Boat of Garten that links Loch Garten and the smaller Loch Mallachie going through mature Scot's pine and birch woods.

 The above four photos are all of Loch Garten and the two below are of Loch Mallachie.

A giant ant heap beside the path near Loch Mallachie.

First Peacock Butterfly of 2014

One of my favourite butterflies, a peacock, on a dandelion flower. I've seen quite a few small tortoiseshell butterflies flitting about, although too fast to get a photo, but this  is the first peacock that I've seen this year.

Late March in the Serpentine Walk

Groups of daffodils line the path in the Serpentine Walk in Largo.

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) is coming into flower. The flowers come out just before the leaves. With hawthorn it's the other way round the leaves first, then the flowers.

Here and there the first celandines are beginning to appear. As we walked along the path could here the buzz of a bumblebee and a small tortoiseshell butterfly flitted past.
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Beneath the Bark

The bark of one of the large old trees in the Serpentine Walk has been damaged at some point probably by disease leaving the tree prone to attack from insects and fungi to which it will eventually succomb.

Close-up photos of the above damaged part of the tree trunk showing holes probably made by wood boring insects.

In some parts of the tree trunk where the bark is no longer present can see the structure of the wood underneath.

Comma Butterfly at Balcarres

I knew that comma butterflies had been seen in Fife since around 2003 but this was my first sighting in Scotland, although I had seen one in England in Shropshire. Balcarres Garden had an open day under Scotland's Garden Scheme and it was there that I spotted it on this origano flower. As well as the comma there were numerous peacock, red admiral and small tortoiseshell butterflies.

A hover-fly has also got into the picture here.

More Hover-flies

The larger fly on the right is a drone-fly (Eristalis tenax). The smaller one is the hover-fly (Episurphus balteatus) - see 8th August post. They are both feeding on ragwort in the Serpentine Walk. 

Hover-fly (Scaeva pyrastri) on a campanula flower in thegarden.

Painted Ladies

 A painted lady butterfly sunning itself on the path at the top of the Massney Braes. Didn't realise I had also captured a wasp at the same time.

Another painted lady on the sandy path through the braes. Unable to survive the European winter, it is a migrant from North Africa.

Hover-fly

Hover-fly (Episyrphus balteatus) on St Johns Wort.

I think this is a male because the eyes meet at the top of the head. The wasp-like colours deter predators although the fly is harmless and does not sting.

A Soldier Beetle

A tiny (10mm) soldier beetle (Rhagonycha fulva) on a thistle head at the beginning of the Serpentine Walk in Lower Largo.

A True Bug

An interesting bug on a scabious flowerin the garden. I believe that it is Globiceps cruciatus - a capsid bug of the order hemiptera.