Post your insects

[Geoff F]

That site is fairly good, Rudi, but it is specific to one English county and although they try to cover a fairly wide range of subjects, including descriptions, they are obviously limited for available space.

I use Wild About Britain. There are a few other more specific sites but you usually can't ask questions or get specific advice; like on WAB.

For Belgium there is a Commanster site which is quite good, but once again just looking at images. I will see if I can find the link.

Incidentally, I found one of those craneflies today.



I'm thinking about Ptychopterid contaminata but not really sure. It is a male but I can't fully understand the genitalia from that angle.

It was in deep shadow so I had to 'flash out' some detail. Just two shots then it was gone.

[Geoff F]

Here is the Commanster site

http://www.commanster.eu/commanster.html

Wild About Britain

http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/

You can go to the Forums section to ask questions.

And with regard to literature, there are many books with varying amount of specific information. For general use, I have Collins Complete Guide to British Insects. And Insects of Britain and Western Europe. Both by Michael Chinery.

But I also have a load of more specific literature.

[rudi]

Thanks a lot Geoff for the info/links.....It provides me with a truckload off information.

Incidentally, ......

When looking more closely, more carefully one can find 'Incidentally' more interesting things (bugs etc.).Speaking for myself in particular.

Good 'catch' on your cranefly.

[Geoff F]

Not sure of the reason but there were around 20 Cicadella viridis on just one old hogweed stem. None on any nearby plants.

[marlunn]

wow got to love those guys, great photo, awesome colours

[marlunn]

Had a day out at the weekend to visit a site in south Wales - Kenfig, for Autumn Ladies Tresses (very small autumn orchid - Spiranthes spiralis), got a few 'specimen' shots of them so happy but then found a pond with these guys flitting around in tandem - they were not willing to come close and the 150 macro is not really the right lens to get them in flight but not too bad - more practice required Iso 1000, F5.6 at 1/4000 sec

[Geoff F]

I've recently tried some of those Common Darters when egg laying in pairs like that. But little success even when using high speed flash.

Your effort is certainly better than what I managed.

[Geoff F]

One of those occasions when I tried to give flowers and an insect equal billing.



Bombus pascuorum with Water Mint and Fleabane flowers. The original shot showed all of the right side flower but I thought that had too much out of focus area at the bottom so I cropped closer.

And a caterpillar which I think is a Dot Moth.



Couldn't quite get a perfect angle, although I was mostly shooting for identification.

[rudi]

One of those occasions when I tried to give flowers and an insect equal billing.

And you have done very well

[rudi]

The same skittish Melanstoma sp as 'Another little hover' on the white flower. Probably not good enough for Id purposes...

[Sky]

I love macro and taking photos of the little creatures. This Grasshopper was taking some time to stop and smell the flowers....

[Slipper]

Thats got some lovely colours.

[Geoff F]

That second Melanstoma photo is interesting, Rudi.

The abdomen is rather short so I would say it is M. mellinum. The yellow spot on tergite 2 looks a bit strange but I think there is a bit of reflection there which is making the black area at the front of that tergite appear rather 'brassy'.

Some of the Platycheirus species are rather similar but males have an expanded front tarsus and your photo looks normal; as in Melanstoma.

[jdathebowler]

Geoff F this is a Melanostoma scalare taken with a 20mm extension tube fitted to my 18-55mm lens.
John
Melanostoma scalare by jdathebowler, on Flickr

[Geoff F]

Yes, that is Melanstoma scalare female, John. Note the rather broad grey 'dusting' across the frons. It is very narrow, or almost absent in M. mellinum. The abdomen shape is another clue. Female scalare have the abdomen gradually widening towards the tip where it is then rounded. M. mellinum have the maximum width around half way down the abdomen.

Males, with eyes together, are more tricky but abdomen length is a clue. Male scalare has a narrower and longer abdomen.

In theory, male scalare have tergites 2 & 3 longer than wide but they are square with mellinum. But in reality, particularly when viewed from the side, this can be difficult to see with any clarity.

[jdathebowler]

I don't know if it is the done thing to take a photo of a dead insect But I found this one on my wheelie bin.
John

[Geoff F]

Looks like a Common Wasp, John, going by the 'anchor mark' on its face.

Nothing wrong with photographing dead insects. Sometimes that is the only way of achieving a positive identification.

Some entomologists kill everything that they catch in order to get identification. They will tell you that is the only way for a full identification and anything less than a total confirmed identification is a waste of time.

But a lot of wildlife photographers like the challenge of photographing a live subject in natural surroundings; and are happy with a partial identification just to overall family level.

[jdathebowler]

Thanks for that information Geoff.I did manage to photograph a live one(Photo)also this black fly.I thought that it might be a Tachinid.
John

[Geoff F]

Well just going by the thoracic markings, John, I would say that looks like a Common Wasp. There are 9 species which are regularly found in the UK.

Not sure about that fly though. These are tricky so I tend to stay clear of them.

However, it doesn't really look spiky enough, particularly the rear end, for a Tachinidae species. So I wonder about one of the Bluebottle group (Calliphoridae) or just possibly Sarcophagidae?

The ID keys, just to family level, tend to rely heavily on wing details.

[Geoff F]

Here is a dead fly which I photographed recently and attempted to identify.



After a couple of goes with the keys I'm now thinking about Muscidae family; but I will have to ask for another opinion from someone who is cleverer than me with regard to this grouping.