Odonata First's Etc.....Friday 20th June 2014.

A good forecast today saw me heading out locally to that gem of a reserve at Messingham and hoping to see a few things of note.Bird wise today the highlights were few and far between,but 2 female type Crossbill in the plantation and a second calendar year Hobby hunting dragons over the main lake were nice to see.But today it was insects that made up the bulk of sightings,as is expected at this time of year.A few 'First' records for the year regarding Odonata came in the form of a single male Southern Hawker near the small pond in the plantation,6 Brown Hawker dotted about the reserve and a single female Emerald Damselfly in the second meadow.Other notable Odes consisted of 10 Black-tailed Skimmer,a couple of Quads and still 2 Hairy's on the wing also.The world of Syrphidae provided me with two 'new' species in the form of a single Tropida scita and 3 Chrysotoxum festivum.Several other nice species were recorded including Dasysyrphus tricinctus,Cheilosia illustrata,Anasymia contracta and two Volucella species,Pellucens and Bombylans.Other Diptera included several Chloromyia formosa and the strange looking Conopid Sicus ferrugineus which was also seen around the small pond in the plantation.The vast families of Hymenoptera seen around the reserve and most unidentifiable to an inexperienced observer like myself included a few i managed to ID today,the Rose Sawfly and Tenthredo livida,both pretty distinct thankfully.Lepidoptera were also encountered today and included Large Skipper,Speckled Wood,Green-veined White,Large White,3 Red Admiral and several Brimstone larva from the world of butterflies and a couple of nice moths included Marbled-white Spot,Clouded Border and Brown-china Mark.Adding colour to the pathways around the reserve were several nice flowers and the most abundant were the Southern-marsh Orchids,which are starting to go over already and a few examples of the less than impressive Common Twayblade.Tormentil and Silverweed brightened the Heathy area along with the lovely Fox and Cubs.So another great visit was enjoyed today and it is always nice to come away with a few 'New' species.

Hoverfly sp. Tropida scita.

Hoverfly sp. Anasymia contracta.

Hoverfly sp. Chrysotoxum festivum.

Macro Moth sp. Marbled-white Spot.

Micro Moth sp. Brown-china Mark.

Brimstone Butterfly larva.

Black-tailed Skimmers.

Female Blue-tailed Damselfly of the form 'Infuscens'.

Female Emerald Damselfly.

Female Brown Hawker.

Female Brown Hawker.