Quick round up

On the 12th April Paul Tabor found a new hoverfly for the valley in Cheilosia caerulescens a species whose larva feed on imported House Leek, it's also new for Wales a really exceptional find. The valley has produced some exciting records since 2015 and a summary is below.

Before 2015 the list of hoverflies for Glamorgan was 196 out of the then 282 British species. Since we started recording hoverflies in 2015 we have added 10 new species for Glamorgan [VC41] and 5 new for Wales as listed below.

New for Glamorgan

Platycheirus aurolateralis, Eupeodes lapponicus, Melangyna arctica, Parasyrphus malinellus, Cheilosia caerulescens, Cheilosia carbonaria, Brachyopa pilosa, Eristalis similis, Psilota anthracina and Xylota tarda.

New for Wales

Platycheirus aurolateralis, Eupeodes lapponicus, Cheilosia caerulescens, Eristalis similis and Psilota anthracina. 

Our current list for the valley stands at 142 species, we are now well within range of that mythical 150 number. With coronavirus now looking close to peak, I will have to go out every fine day for some "exercise" to increase that number. May and June usually being the best months for new species.