Foreland Brick and Tile Works

Upon Malcolm's suggestion months ago (!) I was keen to visit this former works, once an important industry for making drainage tiles on the island in the nineteenth century. It was a short (and wet) walk, but we saw lots of insects, including this impressive male Common Hawker and a hoverfly I later identified as Sericomyia silentis. Alan Silverside has an excellent page on his website about this species, and I quote therefrom:


With a body length generally of about 16mm, Sericomyia silentis is one of our largest hoverflies (family Syrphidae).
Hoverflies are classic Batesian mimics – harmless but closely resembling bees or wasps (order Hymenoptera). S. silentis is a magnificent but rather fearsome-looking insect that could easily be taken to be a large social wasp (Vespa species). As shown below, it hovers, but it also has a rather 'busy' manner as it moves from flower to flower, again like a bee or wasp.
It is a species primarily of peatland areas and its distribution in Britain matches the distribution of its habitat, i.e. it is most common in the north and west and is much more local and scarce in central and south-east England.
The larva is of the "rat-tailed maggot" type, so called because it has a long, rear, tail-like, extendable breathing-tube, enabling it to live submerged in deoxygenated aquatic sediments. Larvae of S. silentis evidently occur in the rotting vegetation and semi-liquified peat of moorland ditches and flooded peat-cuttings; Verrall (1901) quotes correspondance recording the discovery of larvae that proved to be this species, found where vegetated peat turves had been thrown back into a pool in the cut area.

For his webpage, see http://bioref.lastdragon.org/Diptera/Sericomyia_silentis.html

Foreland Brick and Tile works remains

Sericomyia silentis

 

 

 

Male Common Hawker

Storakaig to An Cladach

In glorious weather Lorna and I walked from Storakaig to An Cladach bothy via Gleann Choireadail and back to Storakaig via Gleann Logain on Saturday. It was a fantastic walk with lots of wildlife, though few birds. Highlights of the day were the otter, adders and dragonflies. Here's our list:

BIRDS
Twite, Rock Pipit, Raven, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Gannet, Cormorant, Red-throated Diver, Linnet, Rock Dove, Stonechat

INSECTS AND SPIDERS
Small Copper, Meadow Brown, Dark Green Fritillary, Common Hawker, Black Darter, Golden-ringed Dragonfly, 4spot Orb Weaver Spider, Wolf Spider, Craneflies, Pond Skater, Whirlygig Beetle, Common Green Grasshopper, Harvestmen, Dor Beetle

REPTILES, AMPHIBIANS AND MAMMALS
Adder, Common Frog, , Common Lizard, Otter

FLORA
Skullcap, Devil's-bit Scabious, Cross-leaved Heath, Hawkbit, Bell Heather, Marsh Thistle, Heather, Marsh Lousewort, Long-leaved Sundew, Round-leaved Sundew, Butterwort, Spear Thistle, Creeping Thistle, Eyebright, Milkwort, Bracken, Heath-spotted Orchid, Tormentil, Rowan, Common Nettle, Bramble, Bilberry, Bog Myrtle, Cotton Grass, Juncus sp.

Four-spotted Orb Weaver Spider

Black Darter (male) - obelisk position - tail raised (to allow air to circulate better round the body and thus cool down on a hot day)

Common Hawker - male

Common Green Grasshopper

Furrow Spider -  larinioides cornutus

Golden-ringed Dragonfly ovipositing

The moorland pool where we saw all the dragonflies

Walk to McArthur's Head

Lorna, Jim McNulty and I  had a fantastic walk on Saturday to Proaig and then on to McArthur's Head. The weather was brilliant and we saw lots of wildlife (except, surprisingly, otter). We also saw many types of sea-faring vessels including a newly built naval destroyer, the 0945 ferry, the 1530 ferry and the 1800 ferry (which tells you how long our walk was!) As well as sea-faring vessels we saw plenty of air activity too with it being the Airport Show Day. Our attention was on natural history, however and on enjoying the scenery. This was one of the first walks I did when I came to Islay in 2004 and I said then it was my favourite walk so far; I still say it's hard to beat!
Becky

BIRDS:Wheatear, Stonechat, Willow Warbler, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Snipe, Blackbird, Wren, Guillemot, Razorbill, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Gannet, Shag, Rock Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Whitethroat, Hen Harrier, Grey Heron, Mute Swan, Mallard, Hooded Crow, Swallow, Curlew, Greylag Goose, Common Sandpiper, Rock Dove, Pied Wagtail, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Linnet, Twite, Lesser Redpoll, Reed Bunting

INSECTS: Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Small Copper (1), Common Blue (3 or 4), Large Red Damselfly, Common Hawker (1), Small Tortoiseshell, Fox Moth larva, Galeruca tanaceti

OTHER: Adder, Bluefire Jellyfish, Lion's Mane Jellyfish, Hermit Crabs, Fallow Deer, Common Seal

Fox Moth Caterpillar - 1st instar

Galeruca tanaceti - a type of leaf beetle

Common Hawker (f)

Bluefire Jellyfish or Cyanea lamarckii (we think)

Reed Bunting (f) at Proaig

Common-spotted Orchid

Stonechat (m)

Fallow Deer with Sgarbh Breac in background

The 'Finlaggan' goes past McArthur's Head lighthouse.

Aeshna juncea - - The Common Hawker by Kate Hannett

Stunning photograph of a Common Hawker by Kate.  Many thanks....

Photos from the Rochdale gang

Gold Swift

Frog Orchid at Killinallan

Thanks to Steve and Yvonne and co. for their records over the past couple of weeks and for these wonderful photos.
Becky

Female Common Hawker

Immature male Common Darter