Coleophora siccifoliella (Keeled case-bearer), netted in flight beside a hedgerow in mid Norfolk early one morning recently. If I’ve done my maths right this is the 55th species of Coleophora I’ve recorded as adult. #NorfolkMoths

Doing a bird survey in farmland in the middle of Norfolk this morning the last thing I expected to see (especially in mid June) was a Diver sp. flying south at 5am. Probably Red-throated but I didn’t see it quite well enough to be 100% sure. #NorfolkBirds

This Willughby’s Leafcutter Bee (Megachile willughbiella) was on the side of my shed at dawn this morning. I’ve not attempted to key many leafcutters before so although this is a common species, it was the first time I’ve identified one. I should do more #bees…

This bug was in my garden moth trap on Sat night and I think it's Brachyarthrum limitatum. AI suggested Orthonotus rufifrons but seems to have been trained on a couple of photos purporting to be rufifrons which I believe are actually misidentified limitatum. #Hemiptera @arcanelove.bsky.social

An amazing find in Perthshire- an adult Robin repeatedly feeding a recently-fledged Dipper! Interspecific feeding is recorded from time-to-time, but it's rare and a phenomenal thing to witness first-hand. Huge thanks to James Clements for reporting it. #BirdingScotland

I found these two #sawflies at Bintree Wood in May and have now identified them as Aneugmenus fuerstenbergensis (both males) which is apparently new for Norfolk. Thanks to @andymus.bsky.social for confirming.

How is a man meant to work with all this activity going on just outside his window. First Spotted Flycatcher and now this handsome Swallow having a sing-song (and 3 Oystercatchers noisily chasing each other over the houses as I type this). #NorfolkBirding 🪶 youtu.be/RMbooI1qZdo?...

This hand-held video won’t win any cinematography awards but was just taken using only my phone while I’m sitting at my desk in my study: an unexpected garden tick in the form of a very vocal Spotted Flycatcher right outside my window. Nice start to the day. youtube.com/shorts/De2ah... #NorfolkBirds

Waiting for a train yesterday evening, sitting on the Canalside Green Steps at London's Coal Drop Yard, my wife noticed moths flitting around the ivy at the edge of the steps. I went over and found several pairs of the recent colonist Clepsis dumicolana (Banded Ivy Tortrix). #LondonMoths #TeamMoth

Last night I think the White Ermines may have been suffering from an inferiority complex. Here is one dwarfed by a Puss Moth and one being quite literally trampled on by a Poplar Hawk-moth. Or may be the hawk-moth was just trying to give it a cuddle? #TeamMoth #NorfolkMoths

They aren’t #BirdHybrids but they’re trying…

#BirdHybrid Brown Booby x Masked Booby!

Highlights from the #TeamMoth trap so far this week: Lime Hawk-moth, only my third here in 11 years, and last night an unexpected addition to the garden list, perhaps carried here from the Brecks on the SW breeze: Thisanotia chrysonuchella (Powdered Grass-moth). #NorfolkMoths

If you are interested in learning to identify the UKs ground beetles there are free guides to download on my website johnwalters.co.uk/publications...

The first cockroach I've found in the UK but I don't suppose I'm allowed to tick it... I think it is, or was, Panchlora nivea - Green Banana Cockroach or Cuban Cockroach. It was kindly delivered by Sainsbury's last week but I only noticed it when I went to eat the banana today.

I noticed the wind had picked up this afternoon and it looked like I might have a bit of time before the rain arrived, so I went out looking for snakeflies. The other three species continue to elude me but I found my fourth Xanthostigma xanthostigma (and my first male). #Snakefly #UKInverts

After months of work my Norfolk Pseudoscorpion guide for @norfolknats.bsky.social is now on the website free to see/download. Covers 20 species recorded in Norfolk so hopefully useful for other areas of UK. norfolknaturalists.org.uk/wp/wp-conten...

Chinese Water Deer (Hydropotes inermis) are on the increase round here but it's not every day that one lets me get as good a look at it as this one did on Friday. #UKMammals

Decided to try and write something about what bugs to look for through the year - Bedfordshire-centric, but probably fairly applicable across most of central to southern England. Feedback welcome! #Heteroptera sites.google.com/view/bedsbug...

Releasing a random charismatic species into an area is not rewilding, despite the rhetoric from some Rewilding is about restoring natural processes

Is there ever a case for introducing/reintroducing a species without the intention of establishing a breeding population in the region of the introduction? If not, surely the context of “ordinarily resident” and “regular visitor” dictates that they refer to resident or migratory *breeding* species?

I guess not every guest would have been so pleased to find a large woodlouse in the shower, but for me it was one of the highlights of the weekend. Southern Pill Woodlouse (Armadillidium depressum) is my first #woodlouse that isn't one of the "famous five" common species. #Isopod

I spent the weekend in Kent visiting in-laws, mostly involving sorting out junk and trips to the tip, but also taking in some moth trapping at the place we were staying near Ash. Highlights were this Cryptic Fern and a (wet) Pinion-spotted Pug, both new for me. #TeamMoth #KentMoths

Pretty sure I overlooked the stunning Yellow x Blue-headed Wagtail #BirdHybrid as a funny Blue-headed Wagtail in my formative years of birding. I’d love the opportunity to see and photograph another one as well as this.

Very useful identification feature for Subilla confinis is coarse sculpturing on head. In contrast, Xanthostigma xanthostigma has much smoother head.

Sweeping birch under oak this morning provided two new insects: the Nationally Scarce Pammene splendidulana (Shining Oak Tortrix) & the commoner Anaspis fasciata. Later 4 Wood Sandpipers with the local Crane #NorfolkBirding. Green Hairstreak & Pammene rhediella (Fruitlet Mining Tortrix) there too.

I think my personal highlight from today's @norfolknats.bsky.social walk at Wendling Beck was finding this Green-socks Peacock (Elaphrus riparius). It was my first peacock beetle and I found it in exactly the spot (the muddy edge of a pond) that I've looked for them previously but without success.

Lots of alderflies on the wing at the moment. Most will be Sialis lutaria but there are two other species, at least one of which is in Norfolk (fuliginosa: so far only recorded at Wendling Beck). They require a close look at the tip of the abdomen to identify to species.

Looking forward to showing people round part of the Wendling Beck Project tomorrow. Lots on the wing there today and the forecast looks just as good for tomorrow.

The atypical song of the Westleton Iberian Chiffchaff can be seen in sonograms of the bird compared to more typical sonograms. This is the Westleton bird. Note the descending quality across the first two phrases. The structure of the “wheep” notes is atypical too. 1/2 #ukbirding

Some snaps from the the local area over the last few days: Marsh Tit still common round here, a Crane that's been here since February, Green Hairstreak at a new site for the species yesterday and Light Orange Underwing at it's only known current Norfolk site. #NorfolkBirds #NorfolkMoths

Our new Atlas of UK spider, harvestmen and pseudoscorpion records is now online at britishspiders.org.uk/atlas. It gives access to 1.6 million records and is constantly updated with data submitted and verified via irecord.org.uk/enter-srs-records.

A new set of some 600 grasshopper recordings from southern Europe, shared by Julien Barataud. Below an example Eugryllodes escalerae, xeno-canto.org/1095289

Interesting thread about a strong contender for the surprisingly scarce Herring Gull x Great Black-backed Gull #BirdHybrid…

I’ve just watched 'My Garden of a Thousand Bees' filmed in Bristol by Martin Dohrn and available on BBC iPlayer. Absolutely mind-blowing and quite possibly the best wildlife documentary I’ve ever watched.

I built a thing for me and thought it might be useful for others. It's a set of guides, 20 at the moment, to help with my rubbish memory when doing ids in the field. Everything is cached on your device so works in low signal areas. naturesfieldbook.com

I have updated the @norfolknats.bsky.social species guide to Norfolk Psyllids, which is available to download from the NNNS website here: norfolknaturalists.org.uk/wp/wp-conten... It now covers 60 species (about 3/5 of the British list) so is hopefully of use even for those outside of Norfolk.

A subtle intersex Teal from Draper hide at Rye Meads the last few days. Female type bill, mixed head pattern, male breast and coarse variegated barred flanks, yellow undertail without black surround.

A relatively quiet morning at Waxham, with the exception of a side-by-side view of the Glaucous and Iceland Gulls off Waxham Sands Campsite. A single White Wagtail was also of note on the campsite turf.

Apolygus - simplified Apolygus is a tricky genus, but the impact of a new paper (if widely accepted) simplifies things. As a confirmed taxonomic lumper, I approve! - ajcarthropoda.blogspot.com/2026/03/apol... #Bugs #Hemiptera #VC55 #Miridae

The last group of beetles, finishing my 2+ year-long project of working through my outstanding specimens and reviewing my old records, is the bark beetles, Scolytinae. Often difficult to ID but if I haven’t made any mistakes then some relatively unusual ones among them. IDs in ALT text. #UKBeetles

Here are some more weevils: from subfamily Hyperinae, Brachypera zoilus and what seems to be Hypera venusta, and from subfamilies Lixinae and Mesoptiliinae, the lovely Rhinocyllus conicus and Magdalis carbonaria. #UKBeetles

A reminder that this event is next week, Tuesday 24th March 2026. It would be great to see many of you there!

Oak-galls in Britain by Robin Williams Available at: www.nhm.ac.uk/resources/re... #wasps #Hymenoptera #plantgalls

The weevil subfamily Entiminae has taken me a while to go through. Some of them are delightful chunky dumplings of beetles, like these: Barynotus moerens, Attactagenus plumbeus, Otiorhynchus rugosostriatus and Graptus triguttatus.

Loving the article on #BirdHybrid Great Spotted x Syrian Woodpecker. Illustration of a hybrid by @artkokay.bsky.social is a great choice for the cover. A candidate for vagrancy to the UK too (more likely than pure Syrian) with apparent hybrids recorded in Netherlands & Germany: I didn’t know that! 🪶

Of all the possible consequences of the Iran War, this one does not rate very high up on my list of concerns. Frankly, if I was one of the returning expats facing unexpected tax bills, I hope it still wouldn't be. www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...

More weevils… here are some of the highlights from the Curculioninae subfamily: Furcipus rectirostris, Cionus longicollis (pair), Acalyptus carpini and Dorytomus tortrix. The Cionus genus is adorable!