Bird predation of bumblebees

Just added this image to the predation page. I found this lucorum queen way back in May. She was just lying on the pavement, her whole abdominal contents neatly removed. Since then I've seen a few more like this. It seems that some species of tits have learned to rub the sting off and dig out the contents. It must make fairly tasty eating if she has a full honeystomach.

2 spot ladybird

I've seen far more ladybirds in the past couple of weeks than I have the whole summer, and I think it was the same last summer. This one was on my tomato plants, but there are no aphids there yet, so I took her off, photographed her and put her on my peppers where there are plenty of aphids, worse luck.

We have a sponsor!

Flowers by post in Jersey have agreed to sponsor the bumblebee web site for a year, perhaps this will lead to a few more suitable sponsorships, as before the the only offers I had were from pest control companies. I could do with a new computer, and I'm trying to have the courage to break away from Microsoft and go for a Linux operating system. However my stepson swears by his Mac, so I am not sure.

Adult stonefly in the Nemouridae family

Added this image to the stonefly page. I was trying to show the "double ladder" down the wings. Not easy when it kept moving. But when it stopped to clean its antennae I managed this.

Bombus pratorum worker warming up

Added this image of a pratorum worker warming up on a bit of bare ground in my rockery. It was a cool day with cloud and some sunshine, but a cold wind from the north, so the south-facing dark ground was considerable warmer than the surroundings. Note how she has flattened her body to the soil.