The meadow in the wildlife garden is growing fast, speckled with buttercups and with the wide geranium and cranesbills carpeting it. Today it was warmer than previous days, with sunny spells. In the morning, I checked for insects and spiders. Female wolf spiders, at least two species, basked with their egg sacs. I also spot several nursery web spiders, I try to get close without spooking them, slowly crouching down to their eye level. When they bask, they often cross their front legs in front of them (above), but if they sense danger, they spread them out or just dash down into the grass. I see several males, each of them with a distinctive colour pattern.
Rhopalus subrufus
The large narcissus fly, Merodon equestris, many around, my first of the year.
A Scatophaga sp. fly
A Lucilia sp. greenbottle
Mating 14 spot ladybirds.
An unfortunate 7-spot ladybird fell prey of the teasel.
Wolf spider with egg sac.
Amber snail, many on the rotting vegetation around the ponds edge.
Cheilosia sp. a hoverfly on a buttercup.
Mating Corizus hyoscyami
A very pale grey male.
The same male than the top shot.
No butterflies, today, just a few Mint moths, Pyrausta aurata, in the marjoram.
