Fireworks

Rough-stemmed Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa)

One of the plants that's attracting lots of attention in the garden at the moment is our Rough-stemmed Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa). It's not a native plant here; it's actually North American. The big reason we chose it was not to remind us of our six years in Cape May, New Jersey, though that is a nice side benefit. We planted it to provide a source of nectar and pollen for autumn insects. And provide it does! We've documented 50-60 insects at a time (including dozens of Ivy Bees) visiting the gracefully arching flower spikes over the past few weeks.  It's a clump-forming perennial that prefers sunny conditions in wet (or at least moderately damp) soils. It doesn't really get its preferred soil type in this sunny corner of the garden, but (judging by the number of stems it has sent up this year) it seems to be coping okay nonetheless. The name routinely used by nurseries for this plant is "Fireworks" and, to be honest, that's actually a pretty good name. Its curving sprays of flowers do rather look like the trails left by exploding fireworks. Those spikes grow on hairy, typically unbranched stems, as do the toothed, lance-shaped leaves. The flowers should continue to provide sustenance through much of October, bringing the season's last insects in for a bite to eat.

Prickles

West European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus)

While taking the clothes down off the line down the other afternoon — I do so love the scent of sun-dried laundry — I heard a rustling from the nearby flowerbed. Imagine my surprise when I spotted a prickly, round, little backside among the weeds: a hedgehog! A West European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) to be precise. I sprinted back to the house to get Mike and my camera, and together we found not one, not two, but FOUR youngsters snuffling among the still-thick plantings. We also found their cozy nest (a carefully tended pile of dead leaves under the elevated oil tank), so hopefully they'll be rummaging around the garden for a while. The Woodland Trust website says litter sizes range from 3-7, and that the youngsters spend about a month and a half with their mothers before heading off on their own. They'll breed at 12 months, and live up to seven years (though most only survive 2-3 years). They're largely nocturnal, though they sometimes make short forays early or late in the day. Apparently, they spend much of their lives asleep.

They're exciting to see, because hedgehog populations are in freefall across Britain, losing more than 65% of their numbers in the past 25 years. Loss of habitat is a primary problem. Hedgehogs need woodland and hedgerows for food and shelter, and modern agricultural practices often involve ripping both of those out. Hedgehogs and roads don't mix either; curling themselves into spiny, immobile balls for protection doesn't work out well for hedgehogs when they're faced with a car. Loss of food sources is hurting them too. Recent studies have shown a catastrophic loss of insects across much of the world. That means invertebrate eaters like hedgehogs (which also eat earthworms, slugs, carrion, fallen fruit and the occasional bird egg, as well as insects)  have less and less to nibble on. Hopefully, the buffet remains well-stocked in the garden, and we'll be seeing these little bumblers for years to come!

Inky

Common Inkcap (Coprinopsis atramentaria)

A couple of weeks ago, several rings of these distinctive mushrooms popped up near a dead stump in the back corner of the garden. They're Common Inkcaps (Coprinopsis atramentaria), so named for the inky liquid that drips from their edges. They start egg-shaped, then split and flatten out as they age, reaching up to 7 cm (just under 3 inches) across at maturity. Their dark gills slowly digest themselves, forming a drippy, liquid mass of spores. In the past, that inky exudate was used for drafting important documents; microscopic examination revealed the spores that proved the validity of the document, showing that it had not been forged. Though edible, these mushrooms have a potentially fatal result if combined with alcohol. Effects vary from nausea, shortness of breath, hot flashes and tingling of the limbs to heart attack — and these can occur for up to three days after consumption. Probably best to avoid chomping on any unless you're a teetotaler; there's a reason they're also known as "Tippler's Bane"! Common and widespread across Britain, they're found in gardens, pastures and parks from spring to autumn. Judging by the number of insects attracted to these mushrooms, and the number of nibbles taken out of them, plenty of our garden residents find them irresistible.

Carrion beetle

Shore Sexton Beetle (Necrodes littoralis)

Our moth trap turns up quite a few non-moth species on most nights. While most are various species of flies, occasionally we get something larger, like this Shore Sexton Beetle (Necrodes littoralis). It was lurking underneath one of the egg boxes when we emptied the trap in the morning. The long ridges on the elytra (the hard cases that cover the wings) and the distinctive bumps towards the posterior end of those elytra help to identify it. So do the orange tips to its antennae — tips that are the more or less the same width as the rest of the antennae stalks (as opposed to being larger, rounded clubs). These big beetles are carrion specialists. They travel for distances up to a mile, following the smell of dead animals. Unlike some species of sexton beetles, they do not bury their finds. Instead, the female lays her eggs in the soil near the body; within a few days, the larvae hatch and move to the body. She stays with her brood, feeding on the carrion, and on the eggs and larvae of other insects attracted to the carcass. Shore Sexton Beetles are fairly local in England. Though they're most common along the coasts, they're also being increasingly reported inland. They're particularly attracted to lights, and regularly turn up in moth traps, like ours did. And, for a bit of grossness that you can share at your next dinner party, forensic pathologists can determine the age of a cadaver using the presence and size of the larvae and adults of this species found in the body.

Birch bug

Birch Shield Bug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)

When we opened the moth trap the other morning, we found this colourful bug trundling around among the egg boxes. It's a Birch Shield Bug (Elasmostethus interstinctus), and it's another new species for the garden. Like many other shield bugs, it sucks the juices out of plants — in this case, primarily (and appropriately) the catkins of birch trees. Presumably, it was attracted by the Silver Birch at the foot of the garden; it will also feed on hazel, if it can't find birch. It's widespread throughout the British Isles, as well as across Europe, North America and northern Asia. A smaller version of the Hawthorn Shield Bug, it lacks the pointier projecting "shoulders" of its larger cousin, and what projections it does have are seldom red-tipped. It also shows more red on its scutellum (the triangular plate in front of the wings), and at the tip of the abdomen (just visible under the wings in the picture above). Though adults are found from May through October, they are most common in early autumn. They'll hibernate in leaf litter overwinter, emerging next spring to lay their eggs. Formerly considered to belong to the "stink bug" family, they've now been moved to the "parent bug" family, Acanthosomatidae. Females guard their eggs, and travel with their young for at least part of their lives. We'll have to keep a closer eye out for them on the birch next year.

Migrant blowfly

Male Locust Blowfly (Stomorhina lunata) on Common Ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris)

While wandering around in the garden recently, I spotted what I thought was a hoverfly I'd never seen before. I snapped a few shots and scurried to the house to get Mike, so that he could get some photos as well. However, when I tried to look it up later, I couldn't find it in our hoverflies field guide. So Mike undertook an internet search, and discovered that it wasn't a hoverfly at all. It's a Locust Blowfly (Stomorhina lunata). Once you know what to look for, it's a fairly distinctive insect. The combination of striped back (see below), banded abdomen (orange in males, grey in females) and "pushed out" lower face help to identify it. Adults feed on nectar and pollen, visiting a variety of flowers in the umbellifer and daisy families. But the larvae are voracious predators, specialising on the eggs of several species of locusts — including some that are serious agricultural pests. To date, there is no evidence that the larvae are predators of grasshopper species in the UK, so the occasional adults found here are all thought to be vagrants; they're widespread across much of Europe, Africa and Asia. It's amazing to think of such a tiny creature making its way across the English Channel, which stretches 21 miles at its narrowest point. They remain quite rare here, but sightings are increasing in southern England, and the species has been found as far north as Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire. Quite an unexpected one to add to our list!

Speckled Wood

Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)

These days, our Crab Apple (Malus 'John Downie') is shedding fruits left, right and centre. Mike has been gathering them up and piling them atop a dead stump in the back corner of the garden, and that pile has been attracting all sorts of insects. The other day, those insects included a rather battered Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria), a species that is most common in woodland, but also occasionally found along hedgerows and in gardens. It's common and widespread across much of Britain, though missing from northern England and southern Scotland. Although it declined precipitously at the end of the 19th-century, it has recovered and recolonised much of its former range. Elsewhere, it's found across northern and central Europe and northern Africa, east as far as Russia and central Asia. Its colouration is perfect for its preferred habitat — dappled sunlight in shady forest understorey. Adult Speckled Woods spend most of their lives sipping honeydew from aphids high in the treetops. They're rarely seen at flowers (or rotting fruits), except early and late in the year, when aphids are less common. Speckled Wood caterpillars feed on a variety of grasses, many of which grow in our pocket meadow, so maybe we're hosting youngsters even though we haven't knowingly seen any.

Bishop

Bishop's Mitre (Aelia acuminata)

Ever since I first saw it illustrated in a field guide, I've always wanted to see the shield bug known as the Bishop's Mitre (Aelia acuminata). It's just such a crazy name! This is a distinctive bug; with its striped back and pointy nose, the adult can't easily be confused with anything else. As its camouflage suggests, it's a grass specialist, found in dry meadows and cereal fields; our pocket meadow apparently fits the bill. Like many shield bugs, it's a herbivore, sucking juices from a variety of grasses. In large numbers, it can cause significant damage in agricultural fields. Common and widespread across southern England and Wales, it's found as far north as Yorkshire. Elsewhere, it's regular across Europe and North Africa, and through much of northern Asia. Adults are present year-round, but are most easily seen from May to September. They mate in spring and early summer. Females lay their eggs in the grass, and larvae feed on ripening grass seed heads for the summer. New adults appear by late summer, and these overwinter in thickets or leaf litter, emerging to mate the following spring. 

Emerald

Female Western Willow Spreadwing (Chalcolestes viridis)

We haven't seen much in the way of dragonflies and damselflies on the property to date — only a double handful of species, and many of those seen only in flight, rocketing past over the flower beds. But occasionally, we find a new species, and sometimes we even find one hanging out in the garden. Such was the case with this female Western Willow Spreadwing (Chalcolestes viridis), also widely known as Willow Emerald Damselfly, which I found resting on one of our shrubs recently. The source of its common name is clear in the photo above; this damselfly regularly sits with its wings outspread rather folded neatly together over its back, like most damselflies do. This was a rare species in the UK until quite recently. It was first recorded on the islands back in the late 1970s, and is thought to have first bred here in 2009. Numbers have increased fairly dramatically since then, and these delicate insects are now reasonably common across the south-east of England. The large pale spots (known as pterostigmas) on its wings and the metallic green sheen of its body help to identify this species. The individual pictured above is a female; she lacks the claspers (used in mating) that a male would have at the tip of his abdomen. They're particularly fond of habitats with standing water, though they're also known to wander far from water. Females lay their eggs in thin twigs overhanging standing or slow-moving water sources, and adults often rest in trees and bushes, like the female I found here. With any luck, we'll get some breeding in the garden once we install our pond.