Lletty Brongu Woods

24c is about the limit for hoverflies, so went down the woods along the river in the shade and recorded 24 species with the highlights being Dasysyrphus pinastri [1st of year], Platycheirus ambiguus and Xylota sylvarum. Otherwise Stictoleptura maculata longhorn beetle was new for the year and Gwynne's-mining Bee was plentiful. The first unwelcome Notch-horned Cleg's were in full blood sucking mode and Speckled Wood and Large White were the only butterflies. New blooms included Stinking Tutsan, Water Figwort and Lesser Stitchwort.

 Gwynne's-mining Bee

 Eristalis tenax - watched this fly walk from the stones into the river about 10" dip its abdomen in the water for 5 seconds, then make its way back to land and onto the stones. I can only think that it was laying eggs knowing that the water would drop and the larva would live in the mud. There is no reference to this behaviour in any literature I could find. Or it could be just having a dip 😓.

 Dasysyrphus pinastri - very similar to "venustus" but in pinastri the yellow hooked spots on the abdomen do not reach the side margin of the tergites/abdomen.

 Chrysogaster solstitialis

Rutpela maculata