What is Patton's Tiger?

I have been immersed in natural history since I was 18 and started work at the (then) Wildfowl Trust at Arundel. I met, worked and lived with some brilliant naturalists and a lifetime's obsession was born.
Birding was followed by mothing and the height of 'achievement' was obtained when a moth was given the above vernacular name in recognition of the fact that I trapped the first British record.

Wednesday 22 August 2012

At last!

After hearing about the trap-loads of Cydia amplana arriving on the coast, and then further inland, I reckoned that I deserved one too. And I got one!

The night before I had the local, and rather attractive, Mocha.

And then, the following day this Hornet Robberfly Asilus crabroniformis was netted on Iping Common.


Bioblitzing

I hadn't done it before. I was a Bioblitz virgin. It was only when I found out that my old friend and Pan-species Listing rival Tony Davis was going to be ringing birds at the Bioblitz at Queen Elizabeth Country Park near Petersfield, that I decided to go along for the day. Just caught the end of the ringing (don't do mornings!) but got to see this fine Bullfinch in the hand of Dan Hoare.

We helped with the identification of the contents of the moth trap and then went for a walk over some splendid chalk downland. On a rather windy day, few species were hanging around to be photographed, but this Small Skipper was very obliging.


A nice selection of hoverflies was seen and I got a new micro-moth. The highlight, for me, was finally catching up with a moth which had eluded me - the Chalk Carpet.

There was plenty of Clustered Bellflower.

And we saw lots of these flies with black and yellow bodies and black wings.


An Eclectic Mix..........

Catching up after a blogging hiatus. Here is a selection of various goodies!

Driving along a local rural road, a flattened carcass attracted my attention. Sure enough, the small deer proved to be a Muntjac. They are not uncommon in this area. Oddly though, the antlers had been sawn off.
Flat Muntjac

An evening walk was interrupted by a rustling in the undergrowth! A quick delve produced a newly-emerged Sawyer Beetle - Britain's largest longhorn beetle.
Prionus coriarius - Sawyer Beetle

Strolling along the canal at Loxwood, I finally caught up with a fly which had eluded me. The male Tachinid fly Phasia hemiptera. The shape and colouration of the wings is just amazing! I searched some of the Figwort plants and soon found the Figwort Weevil.
Phasia hemiptera









I don't BELIEVE it!!!!

I've not posted anything since July!
Let's take a trip back in time and look at some nice moths from the garden trap.......
Black Arches

Rosy Footman


Buff Arches