I also found this sycamore moth caterpillar today. I lifted up a stone which tore its cocoon apart as it was glued to the underside. It's taken me a while to work out what it is as it should be covered in dense hair. I don't know if they shed the hairs to pupate or if this one is suffering premature baldness but I can't find any information online about it. I put it in a bug box with some bits of wood for cover while I orked out what it was and what to do with it and it's already started making a new cocoon so I guess I'm stuck with it for the winter now.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
The hoverfly Volucella inanis. At one time this species was restricted to the South of England, but since 1995 it has undergone a rapid expansion of its range. It only reached Merseyside a few years ago, and this is the first time I have seen it in my garden. The larvae feed on the larvae of social wasps and hornets. It is a large species, the second photo shows another hoverfly for comparison.
@Alan Clark2 in Liverpool I’ve spotted one of these yesterday in the garden and I was wondering what it was, so thank you for posting. It was gone by the time I went to get my phone. They are really big! What is the allium and is it usually flowering so late?
Here's another spot the moth for you. It's not actually much easier even when zoomed in. It's a bit of a tricky ID but I think this is the Knot Grass - Acronicta rumicis. It should have been called Not Bark.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
Maybe when Fire and me write our moth name book we can have a 'Where's Mothy' section in it as well. Speaking of; A new entry for the fun name list from last night's trap:
The tongue twisting 'Anomalous' - Stilbia anomala.
and perhaps a touch early the Autumnal Rustic - Eugnorisma glareosa
Four new species last night pushed me up to 140 species of moth in the garden so far and 430 confirmed species in my garden photography list.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
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