Lychnis coronaria, Rose campion, first of this year's blooms. This plant is favoured by Wool Carder bees in my garden - she gathers wool from the stems to make nest for her young.

Syrphus sp. hoverfly larva amongst Aphis sambuci colony on Elder today in Kildavin, Carlow.

Slow compost from a pile under the shade of mature trees (whitethorn, holly and goats willow). An area where we dump our lawn clippings, meadow strip hay and meadow thatch. Pile started in 2022, and only brown material is from leaf fall that formed natural layers in the pile. Glorious stuff.

From my lunchtime walk in Dublin Docklands yesterday - really pleased to see Meredon equestris / Narcissus Bulb hoverfly and a Megachile Bee. Plus, Aceria cephalonea gall mites on Sycamore, a Froghopper and Oedemera lurida/virescens beetle. #urbannature

Without fertiliser & weedkiller, & frequent mowing, exquisite is possible. This bee orchid is one of more than a dozen presently dotting my parents’ front lawn, steadily increasing from one plant that appeared 17 years ago. The only population in the postcode.

‘…over 66,000 badgers have been destroyed since 2014…’ Badgers are a protected species. They take the brunt of a broken, cruel, dishonest, corrupt food production system. @npwsireland.bsky.social are not fit for purpose. #badgers #nature www.thejournal.ie/badger-culli...

Despite the drought conditions of the past few weeks, my #nomowmay garden is lush & full of native wildflowers. Common spotted orchids just starting to flower.

Figwort Weevil #WeevilWednesday

Recorded another 253 Irish Marsh Orchids Dactylorhiza kerryensis var. Occidentalis yesterday in Belmullet Town in a small meadow strip at the entrance to Achadh estate. Credit to @wildtee.bsky.social for this count Seány boy was absolutely zonked from the Sun and heat.

Western Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza Kerryensis in #Galway for #WildflowerHour @wildflowerhour.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Meet one of the largest and most powerful owls on Earth — with eyes that pierce straight into your soul! - Eurasian Eagle-Owl. Photo📸 zahnete

Did u know? One of THE best pollinator-friendly plants(UK, based) you can have in your garden is Viper's-Bugloss. These nondescript leaf rosettes will turn into magnificent tall blue flower spires & they'll be humming with insects. Buy your own from @rosybeeplants.bsky.social 🌱🌿🇬🇧🌱🪲🌍🐝

It's #nomowmay folks. Look at what can happen when you leave that mower in the shed.

A secret species rich natural #pond hidden and protected by the forest now. I spent much of my youth fishing here. Strictly known as a transitional mire it's home to the rare Soft hornwort & Bogbean just to name a few. #rewilding #nature #biodiversity #Ireland

Recorded 433 Dactylorhiza kerryensis ssp occidentalis in Belmullet Town's reduced mowing areas between Friday and this afternoon. There are still a few sites to visit. The Tidy Towns group there has done stellar work in pushing for reduced mowing in the town over the last decade.

As the sun sets on Saturday, I've made the microWild education center ready for tomorrow's Irish Beetles workshop with Louise Garcia. I'm excited for this...

Happy to report that I've since made good use of the fine weekend weather we've been having to fit in some gallivanting to the Burren, Sopwell Woods and Scohaboy Bog in Tipperary, and Abbeyleix Bog in lovely Laois today. The flask and sandwiches come on tour every weekend! 🌞🚶‍♀️ 🦋 🐝 🌸

Afra’s bee table will be out again tomorrow from 11-1 🐝 Pop along and get some bee-friendly plants for your garden 🪴

Easy to miss the Spindle which is in flower now in the tangle of a May #hedgerow down the #forest road. #nature #rewilding #ireland

Meadow thistle is worthy of a pot on front door step or in flower border. Stunning #cirsiumdissectum

A few common #wildflowers from the wet #meadow today for #wildflowerhour See alt tags for descriptions #nature #Ireland #rewilding

Did my first ever bumblebee transect yesterday in my area. 2km walk. 80% of the bees recorded were common carders but seen five white tail queens and two garden bumblebee queens. #bumblebeemonitoring #Irishbumblebees @microwild.bsky.social my lucky Bombus hortorum merch still going strong ;)

Did u know? Bee boxes aren't just for bees. My gorgeous solitary Potter Wasps also make their little mud sealed nests in them & fill them with larvae as a living larder for their growing babies.The adults are veggie & are fabulous garden pollinators - lk at how delicate & beautiful they are 🌿🌱🪲🇬🇧🌱🌍

The long flowering meadow strip coming into its forth summer. The grass has really taken a beating from the annual cut, detaching, buttercup removal, and yellow rattle. Pics: Knapweed, yellow rattle seedlings, and spotted orchid.

Short flowering meadow got its first cut and lift of the six week rotation today. Red clover and common birds' foot trefoil plugs doing well from spring planting.

Silene dioica, Red Campion, invert associates Flowering Mar–November, in deciduous woods, margins & clearings, hedgerow, verge & ditch. Thrives in fertile, calcareous soils; & able to hold its own in ‘fat’ grass. It relies on insect pollination, & is used as larval host by 48 sp. of inverts. 🌱

Cavity nesting solitary bee and wasp next box #beehotel. The tubes are native Phragmites australis, 150mm long, 3mm to 8mm internal cavity diameters, closed on one end by a node. Placed at a height of 1.2m. Drilled split birch logs with 6mm and 8mm/100mm cavities.

Well, now, what do we have here? My first male Osmia bicornis (Red Mason Bee) hatched today from my garden bee hotel. He's currently busy frantically patrolling the whole garden, searching for females yet to hatch. Keep your eye out for these, now, and record them at biodiversityireland.ie

Possibly an Andrena scotica female in my friends garden? Doesn't appear to have the orange hairs of Andrena nigroaenea on the hind legs/pollen brush? Video not ideal for ID @ianbeavis.bsky.social @obeckett98.bsky.social @jimthebib.bsky.social

Before and after... Came up to Offaly for the long weekend and despite the weather I had a great weekend of plant recording in the local wood, two bogs and along the Grand Canal. And I heard my first Cuckoo of the year.

Always good to see a Stoat, especially when it bounces quickly in and out of view, as this one I encountered at Minsmere today! (21st April 2025) @rspbengland.bsky.social

My #Robin friend Little Mate caught a wasp-mimic hoverfly (Syrphus sp.) and gave it to his mate today. He saw through its mimicry, clever bird. In #Bath #Somerset #UK. #Bird #Birds #Birdwatching #Birding #UKBirding #Ornithology #Nature #Wildlife #UKWildlife

Coralroot, Cardamine bulbifera, at Box Hill. We managed to combine this visit with a trip to Denbies Wine Estate, for tea and cake and the purchase of some wine, which was nice. #WildflowerHour

Wild Mignonette, Reseda lutea, beside the England Coast Path in between Brighton and Rottingdean. #WildflowerHour

A few #tinyplant sightings around the vineyard today - none more than a few mm across! Field madder; changing forget-me-not; spotted medick and wall speedwell #wildflowerhour

Lots of lovely robust Wild Clary, Salvia verbenaca, growing alongside the England Coastal Path at Roedean. 💜

Female Andrena flavipes (Yellow-legged Mining Bee) visiting Alexanders on St Mary's, Scilly

Greater Herb Robert (Geranium yeoi) naturalised on roadside, St Mary's, Scilly

Some lovely ideas for spending time with the kids outside this bank holiday weekend 🐝 🐜 🐛

Alexanders, an important resource for early spring pollinators, lining track at Rocky Hill, St Mary's, Scilly

Neantóg checking iris corncrake cover plot, needs to be a bit higher for corncrake!

North meadow nettle bed ready for corncrake. Corncrake may be present, but with lashing rain, they will not call.

Loads of marram grass planted this morning to fill up the bare patches! Thanks to everyone who showed up to lend a hand 😄

A few more pics from our marram planting session today 🌱

Phyllotreta tetrastigma (Comolli) Widespread but local in England and Wales, found in various, usually wet habitats. Uses Water-cresses, Rorippa spp., Water cresses, Cardamine spp., Bitter-cresses. Adults are leaf feeders; larvae are leaf miners. 📷 Wim Rubers at waarneming. nl CC BY 3.0

Ceutorhynchus hirtulus Germar. A gall-former on Cruciferae, forming small stem galls at the base of stem, on hosts that incl. Arabidopsis thaliana; Arabis collina, Capsella bursa-pastoris; Cardamine amara, and C. pratensis. 📷 J. Coelho, CC BY 2.0

Eurydema dominulus (Scopoli) Scarlet Shieldbug, lives in various biotopes in meadows and mountains. Larval hosts include several Cruciferae, inc. C. pratensis, and lesser Swine cress, where they occur in meadows, woodland rides and clearings. Scarce and declining 📷 Holger Krisp, CC BY 4.0

Anthocharis cardamines, Orange-tip, a pairing of host plant & butterfly with the classic Linnean specific epithet that cites the host plant, as he did so often. On the wing now. 📷 Aiwok, CC BY-SA 3.0

Galeruca tanaceti (L.) Found in many types of grassland, host plants include Cardamine pratensis L., Centaurea nigra, Cerastium & Veronica spp., Succisa & Achillea. Adults feed on leaves, eggs are laid on host stems or on grasses, larvae are foliage feeders. 📷 Gail Hampshire, CC BY 2.0