NORWICH: April Earlham Cemetery visits

Early April 2023

I visited Earlham Cemetery twice in April, firstly for an event organised by the Friends of Earlham Cemetery to look at mosses, and secondly for a few hours on a sunny day looking for hoverflies. Most of the mosses were species that I had seen before, but a couple pointed out by East Norfolk bryophyte recorder Mary Ghullam that I hadn't seen were Hooded Bristle-moss (Orthotrichum cupulatum) and Streblotrichum convolutum (=Barbula convoluta).

On my second visit I failed to find any Criorhina species, but did find a few new bits and bobs. I typically don't pay much attention to bluebottle and greenbottle type flies because many need close examination for ID, but I had seen pictures of one called Eudasyphora cyanella that has a small area of white at the front of the thorax, and I amanged to find one of those. I also saw the tephritid fly Tephritis formosa, a leafhopper Acericerus heydenii, the bug Stygnocoris fuligineus and a caterpillar of the Tree Lichen Beauty moth.

NORWICH: Garden lockdown list - Day 19 (Ant Damsel Bug & a nice Tortrix)

DAY 19 - 8th APRIL

Another sunny day and a couple of common butterflies to add to the list, Orange-tip and Holly Blue, both seen and indentified having seen them fly past the window. Actually in the garden there was a nice unidentified fly and I took some pictures of the spiders in the garden (Pardosa sp), but in terms of things I could identify there was a nice adult Ant Damsel Bug, a tiny Garden Spider and a Heather Tortrix moth.

70. Orange-tip
71. Holly Blue
72. Ant Damsel Bug
73. Garden Spider
74. Heather Tortrix

NORWICH: The lockdown cometh - Day 1

Late March 2020

So as everyone will be aware, we are now in the unprecedented situation of being 'locked down', and with the exception of those fortunate enough to live in remote locations or on the edge of a nature reserve the focus of wildlife attention is likely to fall on our gardens. The Emerson family garden is a  smallish rectangle of space, with a lawn in the centre, a shed at the back and flower beds along three sides. It was fairly barren when we first moved in with the exception of three established conifer trees and a large Rose of Sharon bush. We have since planted it with various things, created a small pond and put up bird feeders.

Whilst we are in this situation I shall be recording and blogging about the wildlife that we see, partly as my own wildlife diary, but also to encourage others and perhaps help with the identification of thigs that you might be seeing. This will not have the depth that a 'proper' bioblitz would have , partly because my garden spells are likely to be accompanied by my young daughter, and partly because there are a range of things I will leave without identifying them to species as I won't be dissecting anything during this period. I also won't be blogging every day, because some days there just won't be anything interesting to blog about.

Boris Johnson declared the lockdown on the evening of Monday 23rd, but it was obviously coming so I began my listing on Sunday 22nd March, so that is my 'day 1'.

DAY 1 - 22nd MARCH

The first six species are ones that we see in the garden daily (the Lesser Black-backed Gulls flying over, the rest actually in the garden). Until quite recently Starlings were only occasional visitors, but having been given a mealworm feeder they now visit several times, in a group of up to 12, to empty the feeder. Maintaining it might end up being quite expensive, but they are nice to see!

1. Woodpigeon

2. Collared Dove

3. Blackbird

4. Blue Tit

5. Starling

6. Lesser Black-backed Gull

Goldfinch fly around our housing estate constantly, so are heard, and usually seen, anytime when I have spent more than about ten minutes in the garden. Chaffinches have frequented our garden a bit recently but can also usually be heard from the back garden.

7. Goldfinch

8. Chaffinch

Coal Tits are periodic visitors to our big conifer tree - fortunately this was one of the days when one turned up. House Sparrows are scarce actually in the garden (we have put up a terraced nest box for them but there has been no interest so far), but there is a small flock nearby and I heard them calling, enough to add them to the lockdown list.

9. Coal Tit

10. House Sparrow

We have lots of solitary bees flying around our Rose-of-Sharon and also on the Mahonia that grows against our outside wall. I suspected that they were Buffish Mining-bee (Andrena nigroaenea), and this ID was confirmed on the BWARS Facebook page.

11. Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea)

Whilst in the back garden I noticed a small fly twitching its wings in an unusual way. I suspected that this would be one of the Ulidiidae, picture winged flies, but couldn't find a match online. Posting it on Twitter I got some help from Ryan Mitchell, a Diptera enthusiast who works at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, who identified it as Geomyza tripunctata, a new species for me so a good start to the lockdown!

12. Geomyza tripunctata (an Opomyzid fly)

One other thing noted was a caterpillar spinning leaves together on the Rose-of-Sharon (Hypericum sp). I have seen similar things online identified as Lathronympha strigana larvae, but I don't know enough to be sure at the moment.

NORWICH: Plantation Gardens lichens & invertebrates

22nd February 2020

With an hour or so of free time in Norwich city centre I went for a walk down to the Plantation Gardens, a small and sheltered ornamental garden hidden away behind the Roman Catholic Cathedral.

There wasn't much about in the way of insect life, but I spent some time looking at the old walls, seeing a few lichens and springtails that I didn't recognise, plus an interesting fly that turned out to be Liancalus virens, a new species for me. Whilst looking in the flower beds I also noticed Bluebell Rust (Uromyces muscari) on some Bluebell leaves.

 Liancalus virens,

 Lepidocyrtus sp.

Bluebell Rust

NORWICH: Waterloo Park leaf mines and flies

11th November 2017

After a packed autumn this weekend was nominally a non-wildlife one, but on my way home from the city centre I decided to pop into Waterloo Park for a quick look round. It was too cold for many insects to be around the flowerbeds, but I headed to the end where there is a small arboretum-style area of trees. I picked out a couple of Hornbeams, and after a quick (unsuccessful) check for Hawfinches, I had a look at the leaves. I was instantly rewarded with three leaf mines; Nut-tree Pigmy (Stigmella microtheriella) which I have previously seen on Hazel, and two new ones, Hornbeam Midget (Phyllonorycter teneralla) and Dark Hornbeam Midget (Phyllonorycter esperella).

Further across I was checking a Silver Birch and was showered with Birch Catkin Bugs! There were a few flies on sunny tree trunks and leaves, including an orange Phaonia sp, something similar but skinnier and finally a Lance Fly sp (Lonchaidae). I should have probably come and checked out this area over the summer really.

WHITLINGHAM: May WeBS count and flies

14th May 2017

After Saturday's bird race a lay in was in order, but I knew that at some point I had to go to Whitlingham to get the May WeBS count done. In the end I headed down in the evening, which was well timed as despite the warm weather it was relatively quiet as I made my way around.

The Little Broad was quiet, but the Mute Swan pair had four young cygnets, my first of the year here. There were only three broods of Greylags visible on the Great Broad, including one fairly recently hatched one, but perhaps the others were out of sight on the island. I got my first view of the new Swift tower in the barn car park. It's unlikely that it will attract any Swifts in its first year, but please let me know if you see any using it.

Further along the broad I saw a large duck flying over, and a quick check revealed it was a Shelduck, my second record of this species here this year. There was little else of note as I made my way to look across to Thorpe with the exception of some Swifts flying high over the broad. Duck numbers had decreased sharply from my last count, a single Gadwall and two Tufted Duck were the only additions to the resident Mallard. Finishing my count from the conservation area I spotted a Green Sandpiper, which flew onto the edge of the main island.

As I was leaving I had a quick look at some sunny Horse Chestnut leaves. I have been keeping an eye out for Brachyopa hoverflies, which are unusual in that they look more like other fly families than typical hoverflies and are associated with sap runs in trees. I saw a fly that superficially had the right features, an orange abdomen and a grey thorax, but a closer look showed that it wasn't a Brachyopa. A second fly nearby looked distinctive, but I've not identified it yet either.

WHITLINGHAM: Swifts, House Martins & more

14th May 2016

Saturday was a cold, breezy day and birdsong was muted. The highlight of my Whitlingham visit was the waves of hirundines and Swifts sweeping low to the water, hurtling over the surface of the Great Broad. The Swifts were closer in to the shore, but interestingly there was a large number (probably around 120) House Martins further back. Several other Norfolk birders also noted seeing large numbers of House Martins at wetland sites today, so perhaps there has been a late arrival?

Two new species were seen, firsty Fever-fly (Dilophus febrilis), and secondly Changing Forget-me-not.