Thorne; End November update

A few mosses, fungi and lichen plus a moth and some oak galls takes the species list at Thorne to 1032 as shown below

Group	Thorne	Group	Thorne
Slime moulds	1	Hemiptera	39
Lichens	30	Coleoptera	37
Fungi	95	Diptera	54
Bryophytes	38	Hymenoptera	44
Plants	310	Butterflies	21
Molluscs	12	Moths	218
Annelids	5	Insects RSO	6
Arachnids	18	Fish	1
Myriapods	0	Amphibia	3
Crustacea	10	Reptiles	0
Springtails	2	Birds	64
Odonata	9	Mammals	8
Orthoptera	7	Total	1032

The photo this time is Feathered Thorn taken last week at Thorne

Thorne mid November update

Finally over 1000 and now on 1016 species for the year at Thorne as detailed below

Group	Thorne	Group	Thorne
Slime moulds	1	Hemiptera	39
Lichens	27	Coleoptera	37
Fungi	92	Diptera	54
Bryophytes	32	Hymenoptera	42
Plants	310	Butterflies	21
Molluscs	12	Moths	217
Annelids	5	Insects RSO	6
Arachnids	18	Fish	1
Myriapods	0	Amphibia	3
Crustacea	10	Reptiles	0
Springtails	2	Birds	63
Odonata	9	Mammals	8
Orthoptera	7	Total	1016

Photo this time is of the amazingly patterned Merveille du Jour moth taken at Thorne a couple of weeks back.

Thorne end of October update

Couldn't quite make it to 1000 by the end of October and finished on 997 species as detailed below.

Group	Thorne	Group	Thorne
Slime moulds	1	Hemiptera	38
Lichens	22	Coleoptera	37
Fungi	91	Diptera	54
Bryophytes	29	Hymenoptera	42
Plants	310	Butterflies	21
Molluscs	12	Moths	210
Annelids	3	Insects RSO	6
Arachnids	18	Fish	1
Myriapods	0	Amphibia	3
Crustacea	10	Reptiles	0
Springtails	2	Birds	63
Odonata	9	Mammals	8
Orthoptera	7	Total	997

Photo wise still getting many new fungi for the site including the strangely named Plums and Custard
shown below

Cullaloe LNR, Fife - early "Best of 2019"

With the year running down and time spent on the reserve dwindling in favour of other pursuits I was meditating on what this year's highlights have been. There have been at least two species new to Scotland, some very scarce species in Scotland and numerous welcome new-for-county records. There is, I realise, a preponderance of flies in this list, but what can you do? Flies and fungi are my strongest suits. I swear I do try to see other things!

End of October total: 1140

NEW FOR SCOTLAND
Asaphomyces tubanticus - a laboulbeniomycete fungus (24/01/2019)
This was found on the elytrae of a Catops beetle and was fortunately ID-able with some reading. Just been featured in British Wildlife, though I haven't yet seen it.

Hydrotaea floccosa - a muscid fly (26/05/2019)
Hydrotaea is a cool genus with all kinds of weird and wonderful modifications to the legs. This makes them both interesting (yes, it does) and easy to identify. Only days before I found 2nd-for-Scotland Hydrotaea meteorica on the 20th.

NEW FOR COUNTY
Melangyna quadrimaculata - a hover fly (26/03/2019)
Long awaited first-for-county this Salix lover finally fell at the end of March.

Protophormia terraenovae - a blow fly (11/04/2019)
One of some nice finds at a roadkill badger corpse. Shame about the badger but nice of it to "take one for the team"

Cheilosia nebulosa - a hoverfly (27/04/2019)
Not something I was really expecting but a welcome addition to the county fauna. I've just noticed on NBN that there aren't other Scottish records for this. At this point I have no idea whether that's legit or not! I feel like it isn't, but it's a good record nonetheless

Lauxania cylindricornis - a lauxaniid fly (05/05/2019)
Tim had this before. When I looked it up I was jealous. Seen a few since though.

Hydrotaea meteorica - a muscid fly (20/05/2019)

Rhogogaster punctulata - a sawfly (22/05/2019)
I wanted to look at more sawflies this year. That was with mixed success but this was a nice one for sure

Brachicoma devia - a flesh fly (15/07/2019)

Zabrachia tenella - Pine Black (29/09/2019)
This pine specialist has only been seen in Scotland three times (highlands) - 1906, 1907 and 1938. It's listed as endangered and range is noted as limited to SE England. I guess this changes things a bit. (edit: subsequent conversations revealed two other dipterists in Scotland who have seen this, but recording is sadly, let's say, "patchy" among many experienced dipterists)

Triplax aenea - a beetle (15/10/2019)
A second record for Scotland. Examining the standing trunk of a horse chestnut that had been culled recently after a chunk of it fell off there were plenty of these under the bark. Initially mis-ID'd as Tetratoma fungorum I twigged as soon as I got them under the microscope.

JUST HAPPY TO SEE
Boettgerilla pallens - Worm Slug (03/03/2019)

Common, I'm told, but I'd wanted to see this for ages and I hadn't.

Thorne mid October update

First week back at work after a holiday is never much fun but thankfully I had The Challenge to take my mind off things. And added quite a few species so Thorne is now on 958 as shown in the table below

Group	Thorne	Group	Thorne
Slime moulds	1	Hemiptera	38
Lichens	22	Coleoptera	37
Fungi	66	Diptera	54
Bryophytes	26	Hymenoptera	42
Plants	310	Butterflies	21
Molluscs	12	Moths	202
Annelids	3	Insects RSO	6
Arachnids	17	Fish	1
Myriapods	0	Amphibia	3
Crustacea	10	Reptiles	0
Springtails	2	Birds	61
Odonata	9	Mammals	8
Orthoptera	7	Total	958

The wet weather seems to have resulted in the best fungi season for several years and the photo this time is of a Pink Waxcap taken at Thorne last week.

Thorne; Brief update

Nothing added at Bridport since my last update but at Thorne, with a handful of fungi and moths added, the score creeps on to 938.

The main reason for this update is to say that I am away tomorrow for a 2 week birding trip to Foula. So my next planned update will not be until mid-October.
Ah yes a photo, I think one of a Fly Agaric (taken earlier this week at Thorne) is appropriate.

Cullaloe LNR - Fungus Fantasia

So in a busy weekend I managed to sneak out to the woods for an hour and a half - and what an hour and a half! 9 new fungus species for the reserve and 5 of them lifers for me.

First up, before the woods, was this pathside Volvopluteus gloiocephalus

Then into the woods the Oak Milkcap, sometimes called the Oakbug Milkcap, which is an oak mycorrhyzal species which smells of bugs. Its milk is white, only mildly turning yellow-ish on tissue.

There were Amethyst Deceivers

... and plain old Deceivers

There was Hydnum repandum

And Sulphur Knight, Tricholoma sulphureum, in amongst the roadside debris and litter (leaf litter and actual litter).

There was also the rather splendid Thelephora anthocephala

This already recorded Cortinarius bolaris (Dappled Webcap) was very pretty

There were the usual suspects of 1000 Russula nobilis (Beech Sickener) and Lactarius Blennius and Tricholoma sciodes (Beech Knight) and all in all it was a magnificent sight.

On Sunday I managed a lifer spider (Centromerita bicolor) from a grass pile and the little yellow springtail Dicyrtomina minuta 

All in all a productive weekend, with the reserve additions for this year now over 400, and the fungus list over 300

Latest additions to yearlist:

1098			R		diptera	Calliphora subalpina	Wood Bluebottle
1099			R		lep-moth	Epiblema costipunctata	A micro moth
1100			R	M	Fungus	Volvopluteus gloiocephalus	Stubble Rosegill
1101			R	M	Fungus	Hydnum repandum	Wood Hedgehog
1102			R	M	Fungus	Thelephora anthocephala
1103			R		Fungus	Tricholoma suplhureum	Sulphur Knight
1104			R		Fungus	Lactarius quietus	Oak Milkcap
1105			R		Fungus	Amanita submembranacea
1106			R	M	Fungus	Cortinarius torvus
1107			R	M	Fungus	Cortinarius elatior
1108			R		Fungus	Laccaria lacccata	The Decevier
1109					Fungus	Amanita rubescens
1110					Fungus	Cortinarius hinnuleus	Earth Webcap
1111					Fungus	Lactarius blennius	Beech Milkcap
1112					Fungus	Laccaria amethystina	Amethyst Deceiver
1113					Fungus	Russula atropurpurea
1114			R	M	spider	Centromerita bicolor	A linyphiid spider
1115			R		collembola	Dicyrtomina minuta	A springtail