Insects 2016

lots of great images -

Rudi, great fruit fly nice detail

James, love the bees, thay are great insects to photo just dont tell them they should have problems flying :)

Izzie, wow, now those are 'bugs' in the 'scare the kids' sense - love them.

at last - the first hoverfly in the garden, been a funny year so far for insects

Eristalis pertinax male on a plant pot warming up in the sun

http://i67.tinypic.com/2po71nq.jpg

Mark, very nice capture.
I was out a couple of days ago and the only activity was down to the Bumblebees, and the Eristalis p.

I did have little bit of luck though, finding a lone male Chironomus plumosus/(luridus) shivering in the wind. Oddly I saw a female a few weeks back more or less on the same spot, so I've posted the pair!

Not the best I've ever done, the wind was very blustery and despite the sun it was pretty cool, but it's good to see it all starting up again.

#1 Chironomus plumosus/(luridus) female
http://i63.tinypic.com/2yo1fls.jpg

#2 Chironomus plumosus/(luridus) female
http://i65.tinypic.com/2labzmd.jpg

#3 female 'head on'
http://i67.tinypic.com/bimo80.jpg

#4 Chironomus plumosus/(luridus) male
http://i63.tinypic.com/idgfpf.jpg

And my hoverflies.....

#5 Eristalis pertinax
http://i63.tinypic.com/4khgg9.jpg

#6 Eristalis pertinax
http://i68.tinypic.com/34qo4tz.jpg

#7 Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris ?)... always cheer me up!
http://i63.tinypic.com/ld6pk.jpg

#8 Aphid.. hanging out on my front door
http://i65.tinypic.com/259eotl.jpg

nice images James, got to love the antenna on the Chironomus plumosus/(luridus) male

Nice E pertinax especially #3, the hoverfly young will help with the aphids, thats why they are great to have in the garden :)

always good to see the bumbles, really says spring to me seeing them on the sallow

Very nice clear shots all o them! I particularly like #4 for its irridiscent colouring...and #2? -- I would have overexposed that one if mine. I am not good at that kind of shot. It is an excellent specimen.

Wandering around for two hrs and only saw 1 bumblebee and a male St Mark's fly. And the fly had to be on a dandelion flower... black on yellow!.... oh well nobody ever said it would be easy!

#1 St Mark's Fly (Bibio marci), male
http://i67.tinypic.com/2yxqlp0.jpg

#2 St Mark's Fly (Bibio marci), male
http://i68.tinypic.com/w0130n.jpg

Very nicely done James, not sure if thats early or what. have not seen any around here yet.

I'd guess its a bit early if you believe the folklore since St Mark's day is 25th April. Don't know what the weather is like down your way but its pretty raw here at the moment, with a wicked breeze. Apart from the hardy bumblebee everythings' gone for cover.

blustery and cold winds but sunny on occasions so shaded corners are interesting a few hovers and as you say hardy bumblebees - Bombus terrestris. There were a few around this bed, and quite a few honey bees as well. Not a brilliant photo but she was not hanging around between flowers

http://i64.tinypic.com/6h7whf.jpg

Good pictures all. Not much time for bughunting here:mad:
Had to shoot something. So tried a bluebottle fly on a window, from the underside.
I am wondering which is the most photogenic, Iff one can say a fly is photogenic :)

1. @f5,6 100mm lens + tubes
http://i65.tinypic.com/3asnm.jpg

2. @f11 100mm lens + tubes
http://i67.tinypic.com/33nz18p.jpg

A parasitic wasp (ICHNEUMONIDAE specie) It can detect the presence of larvae burrowing in trees and its tail contains a drill capable of penetrating thick bark so it can infest larvae with its eggs.
http://i68.tinypic.com/1e9qfb.jpg

A blue-banded bee
http://i68.tinypic.com/t69csl.jpg

Junonia Villida Calybe (I think)
http://i67.tinypic.com/2ebwc9t.jpg

And a dragon eating a moth it has just caught.
http://i66.tinypic.com/25gfm03.jpg

Dicky.

Dicky, the bee is superb! in-flight is the ultimate capture for me and soooo difficult to get.

Rudi, nicely done ;) and I do have to ask, did you turn it over? If so don't tell Izzie :)

Dicky...your statement made your flies say ":eek:" -- now doesn't this emoticon looks like the expression of your flies here??? :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rudi

Good pictures all. Not much time for bughunting here:mad:
Had to shoot something. So tried a bluebottle fly on a window, from the underside.
I am wondering which is the most photogenic, Iff one can say a fly is photogenic :)

1. @f5,6 100mm lens + tubes
http://i65.tinypic.com/3asnm.jpg

2. @f11 100mm lens + tubes
http://i67.tinypic.com/33nz18p.jpg

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by James G

Dicky, the bee is superb! in-flight is the ultimate capture for me and soooo difficult to get.

Rudi, nicely done ;) and I do have to ask, did you turn it over? If so don't tell Izzie :)

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Too late James! The upturned flies were the ones I saw first...very funny...I like the flying bee too. Maybe I can catch one when the hummers will be out. They will sure turn out in numbers in one of the feeders.

I like the shot of the parasitic wasp, Dicky -- very clear. And besides I am biased on orange colours (not the prison orange variety though...:() because they look good as a second colours in nature.

Carry on soldier. We are getting good ones here from you...and others too, I hope they participate in bug hunting...

a few more hoverflies from today in the garden - my favourite is not sharp enought and it departed before I had chance to get another go - shame as the colours are great.

1 Platycheirus albimanus
http://i65.tinypic.com/8zjr68.jpg

2 Melanostoma scalare
http://i67.tinypic.com/2nqw13n.jpg

3 Eristalis tenax
http://i67.tinypic.com/6dub9t.jpg

4 Eristalis pertinax
http://i67.tinypic.com/30u6dkh.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by James G

Rudi, nicely done ;) and I do have to ask, did you turn it over? If so don't tell Izzie :)

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Thanks James. Well....guess what...:D

Richard: very nice captures. I specialy like the bee in flight and the parasitic wasp. Haven't seen those exotics over here.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Marlunn

: my favourite is not sharp enought and it departed before I had chance to get another go - shame as the colours are great.

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sounds very familiar to me. Nevertheless good shots !! I need to start 'hovering' soon...:)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by James G

Dicky, the bee is superb! in-flight is the ultimate capture for me and soooo difficult to get.

Rudi, nicely done ;) and I do have to ask, did you turn it over? If so don't tell Izzie :)

---

I agree. I'm not sure the precise reason but the bee photo leapt out at me.

One question, folks -- are caterpillars and butterflies and cocoons considered "bugs" or "insects"? If so, I have 5 images I just edited yesterday of them and would like to include them here...if not, I'll post in a separate post.

Izzie, Butterflies are insects, and caterpillars, and cocoons are the earlier stages of it's life cycle.

Basically it is egg, caterpillar, cocoon, adult (which is the butterfly)... so post away.

I know the thread is titled Insects but it covers all sorts of critters other than insects specifically. I will almost certainly post spiders later, (not insects), and maybe Centipedes/Millipedes also not insects.

Ultimately its a 'creepy-crawley' thread ;)

Nice 2016 start by all. Will join in if our weather ever warms up.