This is a belated review of a few things I saw last month. The weather wasn't very summery with plenty of rain and strong winds. The Met Office records show fairly average temperatures and rainfall overall with not much sunshine but they don't publish similar data for wind speed, perhaps because it is difficult to summarise.
In between Storm Ellen and Storm Francis I did get out to walk around the usual places a few times. All the wildlife has to make the most of it, whatever the weather but this type of summer weather isn't good for insects. My impression is that there are fewer dragonflies and damselflies around than usual but, if that is so, it may relate to weather in previous years rather than this one.
I saw a few more four-spotted chasers early in the month but their season is now over.
Not many hawkers but there was an ovipositing southern hawker.
This photo is poor but it is proof of a male common hawker at Gosforth Nature Reserve, the first record for several years at least.
Common darters are abundant this year.
Ruddy darters may be fewer.
And I do think there are fewer damselflies. The only ones still around were common blue
and emerald.
I photographed only a few butterflies which included small copper,
common blue,
speckled wood,
and wall, a slightly tatty female and a smarter male.
I saw plenty of bees but photographed only two. A tree bumblebee on knapweed,
And a female leaf-cutter bee, probably Megachile willughbiella, on bird's foot trefoil. The scopa, or pollen brush, under her abdomen is full of pollen.
The cygnets at Banks' Pond are now down to two but the single mother now seems to be spending more time with them. Let's hope all three survive.
I saw and heard plenty of juvenile willow warblers, soon to be off on migration to Southern Africa.
And a white pigeon on the roof.
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