Late October 2022
We spent a lovely family day at Holkham during the half term holiday, exploring the Holkham experience (a museum/explanation of how the land is managed), Holkham Hall and the walled garden. I found some psyllids, Cacopsylla pyricola, on Pears in the walled garden. A Raven flew over whilst we had coffee, and we ended the visit listening to a Fallow Deer bellowing at the herd, which had come close to the car park.
Late October 2022
I took an autumn wander around Buxton Heath looking for fungi, before stopping off briefly at Broadland Country Park on the way back.
Smoky Bracket
Mid-October 2022
On the way home one evening I cut through a small wood and had a look for insects on an Elm leaf. I spotted several young aphids, but nearby was an alate (winged adult). I was able to identify it as Japanese Elm Aphid (Tinocallis takachihoensis), a new species for me. My pictures aren't very good but you can find out more about it on the Influential Points website here: https://influentialpoints.com/Gallery/Tinocallis_takachihoensis_Japanese_elm_aphid.htm
.JPG)
Mid-October 2022
A few interesting fungi around the city during October. At Earlham Cemetery I went and had a look at Hygrophoropsis rufa, which had been identified by Ian Senior. I've seen 'False Chanterelles' (Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca) in the same area in the past, so it seems likely that I'd probably seen H. rufa in the past but not realised it. There was a similar scenario at Sycamore Crescent Wood, where a large woody bracket fungus must have been present near the bridge to Sweetbriar Marshes for many years, but it was only identified this year when Jeremy Bartlett realised that it was Pereniporia fraxinea.
Two species found on my way into work were also new ones. I had seen pictures online of a rather nondescript white fungus called Mealy Domecap (Tricholomella constricta) found by Jeremy Bartlett growing along the edge of a street in the Golden Triangle. Apparently it favours areas 'enriched' by animal urine. As there are plenty of dog walkers nearby I checked a few grassy communal areas near our house and found it within a few minutes! On another morning it was raining so I was looking down, trying to avoid getting soaked, when I noticed several boletes growing on a verge under a Lime tree (Tilia sp). Taking one back and taking a section I realised that it was Boletus (=Xerocomellus) bubalinus, a species new to Norfolk where the cap turns pink with a blue line along the pore layer when cut. This was the first Norfolk record.
Finally I was told about some Aromatic Pinkgills (Entoloma pleopodium) growing in Earlham Cemetery. They had been cut down as part of the mowing regime almost as soon as they had been found, but fortunately Vanna noticed a few fresh ones a week later, so I went back and managed to see them.
9th October 2022
The October WeBS count was probably most notable for all the birds that weren't present, as there was no sign of wintering birds at all. I did manage to read eight Mute Swan rings but that was about it.
A loop back through the wooded edge of Whitlingham Lane at least turned up some nice fungi. Coprinellus xanthothrix was a new one for me, whilst nice but regular finds included Raspberry Slime Mould (Tubifera arachnoidea), Yellow Shield and Veiled Oyster.
Early October 2022
More interesting things seen on my daily commute, including two new aphids, Aphis oenotherae on Evening Primrose and Aphis solanella on Black Nightshade. At Sainsburys on Queens Road there were several moths around one of the security lights, unfortunately nothing new but Large Ranunculus is always nice to see. Walking down towards Lakenham Way I found a Nigma walckenaeri spider hiding under a silk tent. There were also some interesting plants at Wensum Park on a dried-out bit of what is usually a flooded inlet, notably Marsh Yellow-cress, Bullwort and Cockspur Grass.
Late September 2022
In July I had found Royal Midget (Phyllonorycter pastorella) leaf mines in the Norwich area for the first time. This species was only found in the UK for the first time in 2014, and in Norfolk in 2018. The mines that I found were typical, in being long with a single crease on long-leaved Salix sp. During September I started seeing similar mines in other places around Norwich, notably Whitlingham and Wensum Park. I wasn't completely convinced though, as these mines were a fairly normal Phyllonorycter size rather than the 'typical' extra long ones. I decided to collect an occupied mine from Wensum Park, and a few weeks later an adult emerged. It was indeed Phyllonorycter pastorella, a nice little moth with bushy hairs on the front of the head.
Late September 2022
With fewer invertebrates being seen on my walks to and from work I decided to focus on powdery mildews, making an effort to check the mildews on different plants. Not all could be confirmed, but a selection included Arthrocladii mougeotii on Duke of Argyll's Teaplant, Erysiphe arcuata on Hornbeam, Erysiphe convolvuli on Bindweed, Golovinomyces chichoracearum on Prickly Lettuce, Neoerysiphe galeopsidis on Bear's Breeches and Podosphaera plantaginis on Ribwort Plantain.
Late September 2022
Earlier in the year I had seen Large Walnut Aphids, Panaphis juglandis, on the upperside of some Walnut leaves. There is however a second species, Small Walnut Aphid (Chromaphis juglandicola), which I hadn't found, until now. It really was tiny, so I might well have just overlooked them in the past. There was a bonus on the same tree, with my first alate (winged adult) Panaphis juglandis.
Late September 2022
In 2021 a new moth was found in Norfolk, the Fig-leaf Skeletonizer, Choreutis nemorana. Since then I had been checking Fig trees around Norwich on the off chance that it would spread from the initial sightings on the east coast, but I hadn't had any luck. In mid-September Vanna Bartlett found some larvae on Fig in the cathedral grounds, so a few days later I went to check the biggest Fig tree I knew of in the city centre, and hurrah, I managed to find quite a few feeding signs on leaves and a larva building a silk cocoon. There are now a few more dots on the map, which you can see here: https://norfolkmoths.co.uk/micros.php?bf=3891&show=com
