Wolves Wild

Thistle flower with a red spotted parasite fly (Eriothrix rufomaculata) disappearing over the opposite edge.

The adult fly is vegetarian. It’s the juvenile stage which parasites on some other insects.

Some of the flowers on a single ragwort plant. in these close views, the yellow of the petals dominates.

Gatekeeper butterfly on a bramble leaf in the midst of a big nettle patch, gnetly opening and closing its wings slightly.

This completes firm identifications for me in 2022 of all the locally common browns: speckled woods, meadow browns and ringlets all IDed some time back.

Finally got around to taking a few test shots using the “macro” function on my moby lens. Not yet time to retire my proer camera, but I suppose I shou8ld remember to use this alternative when there’s an interesting subject ant the actual camera’s at home.

(Eristalis pertinax), tapered drone flies, a large species of hoverfly, feeding on ragwort flowers.

Old man’s beard, sometimes also called traveller’s joy, flowers and flower buds. The resemblance to beards comes in winter, with the long silky hairs on the seeds.