STONEFACTION BIRDING: 0180 : Macro-Safari Time Again (5/7/15)

0180 : Macro-Safari Time Again (5/7/15)

July is generally rather quiet on the birding front, so for an increasing number of birders and bird photographers, attention turns to other winged creatures such as butterflies, moths, dragonflies and damselflies. The sheer variety of insects around is staggering with the chance of seeing something new almost every time you go out looking. A macro lens is a handy tool for photographing these sometimes tiny creatures and it can be a challenge to even get the beasties in focus. Riverside Nature Park is one of my regular insect hunting sites, so with nowhere else particularly offering an alternative I decided to take the macro lens (a Tamron 90mm) out for the day.

Common Blue

Although birds weren't the main focus, I would still be paying attention, just in case something unexpected appeared, though my eyes would be focused towards the ground more often than not. I headed out at around 1050 and Blackbird and Herring Gull were the first birds on the list for the day, closely followed minutes later by Swifts. Lesser Black Backed Gull and Feral Pigeon were seen in the City Centre with Carrion Crow seen from the bus out to the Nature Park.

House Martins swept low over the park as I crossed the main road to enter the park at the eastern end. My first insect of the day was a new one for me. It was a Soldier Beetle but rather than being orange-red as the ones I usually see (Rhagonycha fulva, I believe) this one was black. I found more of these dotted around the park as the day progressed. As far as I can tell from books, it appears to be Cantharis Nigra, and the maps don't show it occurring in Dundee, so maybe this is evidence of range expansion. See what I mean about insects and new things....?

A male Blackcap scolded me from above as I stopped to photograph the Soldier Beetle and two species of grey coloured flies nearby. I had better views of one of the black Soldier Beetles. Rather than sticking to the paths around the park, I would be spending most of my time 'off-piste' among the vegetation. A Whitethroat sang from the wires along the edge of the park. As I walked I was looking for movement among the plants and I spotted a bit of a tussle between what I think was an Ichneumon wasp species and either another different species or maybe a Sawfly species, though the photos I managed to get are rather inconclusive, at least to me. Something red andf black flew by, and I eventually caught up with it as rested again among the greenery. A Cinnabar Moth.

More foraging found an Orchid species (I'm not much use at plants) and the first 'grass moth' of the day. This one landed on a stalk of grass, head downwards. I think it is probably a Grass Veneer moth species. Next up was a rather smart Common Blue butterfly, a male, which posed well for me in the sunshine. Another find nearby was another insect species I can identify (assuming I'm correct!), Empis Tessellata - a species of fly with long legs, eyes close together on a tiny head and a long snout it uses to poke around in plants. Close by was another 'known' bug, a Green Capsid Bug. I was led a merry dance by the next find - a brown moth with white flashes on the wings. I was convinced it was something new for me, but having struggled to find it in the books I own, I concluded it was actually a Shaded Broad Bar moth missing some scales on both of the wings.

Next I found what looked like a small orange ball shaped net with something inside it attached to the underside of a leaf. I suspected it was some sort of insect larva, and a post on flickr by a contact confirmed this. Apparently it is the larva of some sort of Weevil. A 7-spot Ladybird wandered up the stem of the plant I was looking at. Wandering on a bit I kept flushing small grey micro moths, which so far I haven't found an ID for. There were lots of these around. One of the Carpet moth species was next, possibly Silver-Ground Carpet. A brown coloured Grasshopper attempted to hide from me but I eventually managed a few photos, before being distracted by another Common Blue butterfly. A species of Sawfly was the next find, this one had an orange coloured abdomen. Another Ladybird and more grass moths followed before the next new species for the day was found. This was another one I recognised, a Silver Y moth.

Walking through the vegetation I could see small Leafhoppers jumping out of the way and crouching down I managed to spot a few and get photos. A Woodpigeon flew over, and a few minutes later a juvenile Starling flushed from just in front of me. Bumblebees occupied a few minutes and another grey coloured Fly was found hiding below the head of a thistle. A Chaffinch showed in the bushes and a rather large queen Bumblebee appeared a bit too big for the Buttercup it was attempting to feed on. A different bumblebee species showed for me, all black with an orange tail. The flooded area by the path was the next port of call and some small metallic green flies could be seen along the edges, with Pond-Skaters on the water. I watched 3 or 4 Diving Beetles swimming around along the edges, and even got some film footage of one.

The 'hedge' in front of Buzzard Wood distracted me from insects for a few minutes as I watched Reed Bunting, Goldfinch and Greenfinch among the branches. Back to the insects and it was a small metallic-looking Hoverfly which was next. A species of Bee and a Ladybird larva were found close together and my first Meadow Brown butterfly of the year flitted by as I wandered near the fence. Another Shaded Broad Bar moth was found and a Ringlet butterfly tangled with a different Meadow Brown. The first Swallows of the day zipped over before I spooked a second Carpet moth. I had a second look at the flooded area and a Damselfly (most likely Common Blue) flew through my line of sight as I peered through the camera viewfinder but I failed to find it.

A Sawfly species which seems to favour umbellifers was first of the new stuff. A small brown patterned micro Moth was next. This was a species I have seen before, but I'm not sure whether I managed to identify it before. What looked like a second species of Orchid with a Hoverfly species in attendance was next to be photographed. More Ringlets flitted around by the sides of the path, and the first Small Tortoiseshell caterpillar of the day was discovered. A species of grey coloured Fly was found next near the car park, and I decided to try to use the flash on the camera to photograph a tiny black Fly on a leaf. As it happened it took flight and I captured it in flight, along with an even smaller Leafhopper species still on the leaf.

Another Micro-Moth species was the next discovery but I have so far failed to find one like it in the books, (though it may be a very faded individual of a species I've seen in the park since). A black Fly species was photographed stood on a leaf, while the stalks of a nearby plant were absolutely coated in black Aphids. Yet another Leafhopper was found, and the first Nettle-Tap moth of the day was next up. An unidentified Spider was found in its web among the brambles. A metallic green Fly was seen nearby, with yet another Micro-Moth species, a swafly and at last, the first Rhagonycha Fulva Soldier Beetle of the day.

More grass moths and a Bee species were seen before I looked up to see a pair of Oystercatchers overflying. The second Grasshopper of the day appeared next, before a small Picture-Winged Fly with coloured eyes was spotted on a plant. A Bluebottle gave me a decent photo opportunity as it rested on a fencepost. In addition to more leafhoppers and a few more Nettle-Taps I found another interesting looking Fly. It appeared to be from the same family as Empis Tesselleta but was smaller and orange all over. I think this may be Empis Stercorea.

It was more of what had been seen before - grey Micro-moths, Ringlets and a Crane Fly species. Surprisingly the first Blackbird in the park of the day was seen next. A Greenbottle showed really well and allowed me some decent photos. A few Mallards were sleeping at the Lochan with a party of 6 ducklings on the water. A Bumblebee with an orange back was a new species for the day, even if I didn't know what species it actually was. I found another of the Picture-Wing Flies and snapped a photo (blurred) of a Yellow Shell moth as it flew past without settling. I reached the bay and my focus moved to the birds for a while. Black Headed Gulls, Herring Gulls, Shelduck, Lapwings, Lesser Black Backed Gulls could all be seen, dotted about from the hide. A bit more scanning added Common Gull and Sandwich Tern to the bird list. Curlew and Redshank eventually showed too, before I headed back along the path towards the hill.

Jackdaws overflew, and another Carpet moth was seen. A Shaggy Inkcap fungus was found just off the path. I scanned out over the bay from near the hill paths picking out a Goosander on the pipe and a Grey Heron closer in, as well as Cormorant flying downriver. More Meadow Browns and Ringlets were seen, as well as what appeared to be a Common Carpet moth (different to the earlier species seen). A black and red moth in flight gave me a bit of a runaround before it finally settled among the grasses in the compost area. Photos showed it to be a 6-Spot Burnet Moth. A rather colourful Hoverfly posed nicely and I managed to ID it at home as a female Leucozona Lucorum. A large patch of nettles further round by the compost area held large numbers of caterpillars - Large Whites and the much larger Small Tortoiseshells. It has been years since I've seen so many caterpillars together in such a small area.

A Large White butterfly was seen a bit further on. A Swift flew over as I neared the car park. Another small Hoverfly species was photographed and a strange looking Fly turned out to be Empis Tessellata from an unfamiliar angle. As I headed out the gate I stopped to photograph 3 Spiders sunning themselves on a large stone.While waiting for the bus home, I managed to add two final species of bird to the list - Collared Dove and Woodpigeon.

A rather enjoyable day out with some interesting insects seen - and plenty to try and ID still. A shorter than usual bird list, but a nice mixture of insects.

Birds seen at the park - Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Goldfinch, Goosander, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, House Martin, Jackdaw, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Mallard, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Sandwich Tern, Shelduck, Starling, swallow, Swift, Whitethroat, Woodpigeon, Yellowhammer.

Birds seen outwith the park - Blackbird, Carrion Crow, Collared Dove, Herring Gull, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Feral Pigeon, Swift, Woodpigeon

Insects identified - Common Blue, Large White, Meadow Brown, Ringlet (butterflies)
6-Spot Burnet Moth, Cinnabar Moth, Shaded Broad Bar, Yellow Shell, Silver Y, Common Carpet, Silver Ground Carpet (moths)
Empis Tesellata, Empis Stercorea, Leucozona Lucorum, Greenbottle, Bluebottle (flies)
7-Spot ladybird, Cantharis Nigra, Rhagonycha Fulva, Green Capsid Bug (bugs/beetles)

Anything with sp. in the description needs identifying, so suggestions welcome....