Almost as jazzy as Nemophora (check out those eyes!) was this Chrysops caecutiens horsefly, but my admiration for it was tempered rather by it biting me twice through my t-shirt shortly after I took this photo!

Nemophora fasciella back in the garden today, a truly lovely little moth which feeds on Black Horehound. Nationally scarce in the UK, but fairly regular in my corner of Bedfordshire.

Another highlight from Knocking Hoe, the beautiful Calocoris roseomaculatus, a chalk downland specialist which is a scarce species in Bedfordshire

Had a lovely day out at Knocking Hoe NNR on Saturday, lots of Common Restharrow in the grass which was absolutely covered in the plant bug Macrotylus paykulli. A new species for me, but fairly common in the UK where Common Restharrow occurs.

Closterotomus fulvomaculatus going for more of a geography teacher in a tweed suit kind of a vibe

Grypocoris stysi casually reminding everyone that bugs are the very best insects

🌸 Phil Smith's May Wildlife Notes are now available on our website 🐝 Head over and have a read to find out more! merseysidebiobank.org.uk/blog/2026/06...

A rather dopey Anthophora furcata (Fork-tailed Flower Bee) sitting on Nepeta in the cool blustery conditions this morning. Seems to have broken one of his antennae at some point.

Delighted to be paid a visit by the beautiful longhorn moth Nemophora fasciella in my garden this lunch time, up there with Britain's most beautiful insects. #TeamMoth

Just realised that I've recently surpassed 10,000 images on my flickr site, almost all of various forms of wildlife. Image 10,000 was probably one of my very rare forays into bird photography, with this cooperative Tree Sparrow at RSPB Bempton Cliffs last week. flic.kr/p/2sg69HW.

Pleasantly surprised to see a Norfolk Hawker whizzing around in my local wood in Bedfordshire yesterday. As the name suggests this was historically a scarce species found mainly in Norfolk, but which has recently spread dramatically across England.

Bit warm out there today. This Ant Beetle, Thanasimus formicarius, was enjoying the heat, scampering around merrily on a tree trunk. Not entirely sure why it's called an Ant Beetle...

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...

Funky fuzzy little looper caterpillar knocked off (and then put back on) oak yesterday in Bedfordshire yesterday. Anyone got any idea what it'll grow up to be? @vc30moths.bsky.social

Fans of spindly, hard to identify, bugs rejoice, for the Dicyphus species are now included in the Heteroptera of Bedfordshire slides www.flickr.com/photos/runne...

Breezy weather today brought two of the May bugs to look for down from an Oak tree and into the shrubbery below. Rhabdomiris striatellus and Dryophilocoris flavoquadrimaculatus, both rather handsome beasts.

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...

How is one supposed to get on with work when a funky wasp is sitting on the office window? Possibly a male Echthrus reluctator.

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...

I do enjoy a delightfully mad caterpillar. This is a Lilac Beauty that I found on the lilac in my garden today

Rainy today, so here's another good find from yesterday, a male Nomada lathburiana peering around a grass stem. Like all of the c.30 UK species, this is a cleptoparasite of other bees nests, in this case the Ashy Mining Bee, Andrena cineraria.

Delighted to find this beautiful Blue Shieldbug, Zicrona caerulea, in my local wood today, having only ever seen one once before, although they are a reasonably common species.

A highlight of my recent trip to Scotland was a tour of the collection centre for National Museums Scotland in Edinburgh. Very much worth doing if you ever get the chance www.nms.ac.uk/events/colle...

Also from Loch Leven, a female Early Nomad Bee, Nomada leucophthalma, on her unceasing hunt for mining bee nests to lay her eggs in. Point and shoot photography can be surprisingly effective in getting a good enough look at these to identify them.

Back from a few lovely days in southern Scotland, and then a few not so lovely days with some sort of nasty lurgy, but feeling well enough now to post these delightful Red-breasted Carrion Beetles from RSPB Loch Leven (in possibly the worst conditions for photography imaginable)

Almost didn't realise it was #WorldRobberflyDay, but luckily @ashwhiffin.bsky.social reminded me. Here's one of Britain's coolest insects to celebrate, the magnificent Laphria flava

Strong competition for bug of the day today. First swish of the sweep net of the year through some Garlic Mustard turned up a tiny black weevil which I think is Ceutorhynchus alliariae, a new species for me, and my 3,250th species in the UK.

Perhaps the very finest of British bees is the Orange-tailed Mining Bee, Andrena haemorrhoa, which combines an elegant fox-red thorax trimmed with white with a shining orange-tipped thorax. I was lucky enough to find a calm individual at RSPB The Lodge yesterday who posed for some photos.

A delightful little micro moth in the trap this morning, which I think is Pammene argyrana. The caterpillars develop inside galls on oaks!

Next week I'm giving a talk with the #WildlifeGarden Project, on how you can add more habitat complexity to your garden, to encourage and support all sorts of invertebrates! I'll also get cross about Terrible Bee Hotels. Booking link here: learn.wildlifegardenproject.com/talks/microh...

One of the best things about natural history is the potential for unexpected encounters at any time, in even the most familiar places. Today I bumped into my 2nd ever Scarab Shieldbug at a spot where I've spent dozens if not hundreds of hours happily looking for insects.

If you go down to the woods today, you might just come across these bristly little flies called Tachina lurida. These ones were in Chicksands Wood in Bedfordshire earlier. #Tachinidae #Diptera

The latest recording scheme newsletter (no. 12) was sent out to members of @dipteristsforum.bsky.social recently, and is also available from the recording scheme web page dipterists.org.uk/soldierflies... - includes exciting news of a possible new Villa bee-fly species in the UK 🤩 1/2 ...

Waiting for lunch

A small hoverfly with a mouthful of a name in the gardens at The Lodge RSPB today. This is a female Melangyna lasiophthalma, an early spring species that I don't often come across.

3 weeks to go until the slightly terrifying prospect of taking on Brighton Marathon with #TeamPSPA after over a month not running due to tendonitis. Managed 17km pain free yesterday, so on the right track. Any and all donations extremely welcome! www.justgiving.com/page/william...

Exceedingly exciting

Reacquainting myself with spring hoverflies in the gardens at RSPB The Lodge today. These are a female Parasyrphus punctulatus and a male Syrphus torvus. Other yellow stripy hoverflies are available

Found a handsome prince

A new bird atlas for Britain and Ireland has been announced by five conservation organisations:

It's happening!!! #LongSnozzedFloofWatch

Dark-edged or Dotted? 🐝 Is it Bombylius major or Bombylius discolor? Learn how to tell them apart by wing patterns, habitat & behaviour 🌍 🧪 Join our #entoLEARN webinar on 25 Mar 2026: 🔗 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1976745510... @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @tonymadgwick.bsky.social

A rare spring sighting of a stationary male Brimstone. Lots more skittering around the woods today.

First Long-snozzed Floof of the year! (should I start a petition to make this the official common name?)

First shieldbug of the year! It's not a green shieldbug but it is a Green Shieldbug!

First Norellia spinipes of the year on the garden daffs today. Funky little dung-flies that munch leafs instead of dung (well the larvae do anyway). Probably on some daffodils near you, and much more widespread in Bedfordshire than this map suggests. No photo today, so here's one from a while ago.

iRecord is really important as a repository for UK wildlife/nature records, including casual records, surveys and trapping, and non-native species. This is well worth doing 👇

Fun times on a Friday night playing with interactive maps... umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/bedfo...

Sesiidae, the "Clearwing Moth" family, might be one of my favorite lep families I've only seen 5 species so far, but they've all been BEAUTIFUL👏 1 Euryphrissa sp, Colombia 2 Synanthedon scitula, Oklahoma 3 Synanthedon chrysidipennis, Montana 4 Vitacea scepsiformis, Oklahoma

Classic February entomologising of shaking ivy and seeing what falls out. Answer, lots of very small springtails which can be photographed to various degrees of blurriness. Entomobrya intermedia, Entomobrya albicincta and Dicyrtoma fusca - probably all in a hedge near you...