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I've seen only two damselflies this year (both of which zipped off at 100mph before I even got near them), until yesterday when I visited the RSPB reserve in Lochwinnoch, where there were many. However, the ones yesterday were also speedy damselflies, and I didn't get close to many. This poor one was flying around, but it seemed to have a problem with its abdomen (it was bent at a funny angle), which is probably why I managed to get a couple of photos---I didn't bother it for long though, as I was sure it would rather have flown off, but maybe wasn't feeling great.
First sighting of one of these gorgeous little wasps this year. They are normally very hyperactive and difficult to capture but this one did allow me to hold the cornflower bud it was sitting on for a shot.
Then instead of disappearing off, it decided to investigate my finger nail
Rhyssa persuasoria (meaning persuasive burglar) is one of the largest ichneumon wasps in Europe. The length of adults varies from about 10–20 millimetres (0.39–0.79 in) in males up to 20–40 millimetres (0.79–1.6 in) in the females, plus about 20–40 millimetres (0.79–1.6 in) of the ovipositor. They have a thin black body, several whitish spots on the head, thorax, and abdomen and reddish legs. The antennae are long and thin. The long stinger on the abdomen of the females is just an egg laying instrument (ovipositor), therefore these wasps are harmless to humans.
They can mainly be encountered from July through August, especially in paths and clearings of coniferous forests.
Female of this parasitic species drills deep into wood by its hair thin ovipositor (terebra) and lays its eggs on larvae living in timber, which become a food supply and an incubator for the progeny, until it is fully grown. Larvae overwinter in the wood, pupating the next spring and emerging from the wood as adults.
Main hosts of Rhyssa persuasoria are the larvae of Horntail or Wood Wasps (Urocerus gigas, Siricidae species, a type of xylophagous sawfly), as well as larvae of Longhorn Beetle (Spondylis buprestoides, Monochamus sutor) and Great Capricorn Beetle (Cerambyx cerdo).
(Inadvertedly posted publicly earlier while id-ing this species.)
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Een zeer grote sluipwesp met een legboor die langer is dan het lichaam. Lichaam zwart met gele tekening op de kop, borststuk en achterlijf. Poten grotendeels rood.
Niet zeldzaam in naaldbossen.
De sluipwesp zoekt naar de in hout levende larven van naaldhoutwespen. Om de gastheren aan te prikken moet ze diep met de legboor in het hout doordringen. Bij deze soort blijft de tweeledige legboorschede aan het eindpunt contact houden met de legboor en wordt in een krul naar boven geschoven naarmate de legboor dieper in het hout verzinkt.
Lucilia caesar is a member of the fly family Calliphoridae commonly known as blow flies. L. caesar is commonly referred to as the common greenbottle. The adult flies typically feed on pollen and nectar of flowers. The larvae feed mainly on carrion.
Orthetrum is a genus of dragonflies in the Libellulidae family. It is a very large genus, with more than 80 species, spread across the Old World.Libellula is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known large dragonflies, often seen flying over freshwater ponds in summer. Many have showy wing patterns
The dragonfly is a flying insect that can hover in mid-air. It eats other insects, catching them while it is flying. There are many different species of dragonflies, and most of them are found near water. The earliest dragonflies appeared over 300 million years ago.
Like all insects, the dragonfly has a three-part body: a head, a thorax, and a long, thin, segmented abdomen. The dragonfly has 2 large compound eyes that take up most of the head. On the short thorax there are three pairs of jointed legs and two pairs of long, delicate, membranous wings. The dragonfly breathes through spiracles (tiny holes in the abdomen).
Life cycle: A dragonfly undergoes incomplete metamorphosis. The larva hatches from an egg which is laid in water, in plants near water, or even underwater. As this aquatic (living in the water) larva (called a nymph) grows, it molts (loses its old skin) many times.
Gli Orthetrum sono una varietà di libellule (Nella foto un maschio). Le libellule sono un genere di insetti appartenente all'ordine degli Odonati. Il nome Libellula deriva dal latino "libra", ovvero bilancia, così detta perché nel volo tiene le ali orizzontali.Hanno un capo molto voluminoso, gli occhi composti e antenne relativamente brevi; le due paia di ali, quasi uguali, sono allungate e membranose, talvolta vivacemente colorate, e consentono un volo rapido e sicuro. L'addome è relativamente lungo e sottile, composto da undici segmenti. Le zampe sono inserite anteriormente sul corpo e vengono usate raramente per camminare. Hanno un apparato boccale masticatore molto caratteristico: il labbro inferiore termina con delle piccole pinze con cui la libellula afferra la preda. Si nutrono di insetti che afferrano e divorano in volo; hanno quindi un volo silenzioso oltre che veloce, che fa di loro terribili predatori sia in aria che in acqua.La riproduzione delle libellule avviene in ambiente acquatico. Esse sono ovipare e dopo avere deposto le uova dalla forma allungata le lasciano semplicemente cadere nell'acqua oppure le fissano ai fusti di piante acquatiche. Come tutti gli odonati, le libellule vanno incontro a metamorfosi incompleta. In tutte le specie, dalle uova escono le neanidi che maturano nell'acqua, nutrendosi di diverse forme di vita acquatica; quelle di alcune delle specie più grosse possono addirittura attaccare piccoli pesci. Le neanidi delle libellule hanno una mandibola speciale, estensibile e chiamata "maschera", con la quale colpiscono la preda. La lunghezza del periodo ninfale varia, a seconda della specie, da uno a tre o più anni, durante i quali l'animale va incontro alla muta almeno dieci volte. Quando le ninfe sono completamente mature lasciano l'ambiente acquatico e vanno incontro a metamorfosi, trasformandosi nella forma adulta.