Fernworthy Forest
Butterfly alley, along the top edge of the forest to the right of the Teignhead Farm track, was heaving with butterflies this morning. The weird and slightly alarming architecture underneath the red admiral and painted lady heads are labial palps (if you were wondering).
A moment of excitement when I saw what I thought was a fire bug “Historically very rare and known only from a single Devon population, this common European bug is on the northernmost edge of its range in Britain and is the sole member of its family to occur here. A very distinctive species which should be unmistakable; be sure to rule out Corizus hyoscyami which is superficially similar.”.
Sadly it was Corizus hyoscyami, the cinnamon bug “a very handsome species which should be unmistakable”.
Dragonflies (keeled skimmers, golden ringed), damselflies (common blue, large red), butterflies (comma, painted lady, red admiral, large skipper, common blue, meadow brown, large white, silver-washed fritillary, small tortoiseshell), flies (tapered drone fly, banded thintail and, perhaps my favourite, the yellow-faced giant tachinid fly), a cinnamon bug and a mating/eating/both (?) labyrinth spider. And associated flowers marsh thistle, cats ear, knapweed.
