The Garden Through A Lens
As a child, the summer seemed to extend forever. Those trouble-free days which are lost in time as we progress into adulthood. However, with the recent calm weather, I have managed to find space in an otherwise busy schedule to enjoy a bit of fresh air in the garden. Perched with my camera, watching the life around me, I thought I’d write another ‘did you know’ type post about some of the smaller visitors.
First up, the hoverfly. Our maple tree seems to attract these stripy visitors. They flit methodically from leaf to leaf, occasionally pausing to land. Did you know that you can sex a hoverfly by their eyes? The eyes of a female are spaced apart as in the image to the left below. Those of a male are close together, as in the right-hand picture below. There is a trio of single cell eyes, the ocelli, above the larger compound eyes, which is visible in both photographs.
Female hoverfly 
Male hoverfly
Then, a larger visitor, which at first sight I took for a hornet. It is, in fact, a hornet mimic hoverfly. This is the largest hoverfly species in the UK. The larvae live inside wasps’ nests, cleaning the debris and rubbish. The wasps leave the larvae alone in return for these cleaning services (an example of a symbiotic relationship – see also the ants, below). In the 1940s, the hornet mimic hoverfly was a rare sight, but it has become quite common in Southern England. Over time, it is moving north, and has been spotted as far up as Cheshire.
Next, a shield bug, also exploring the maple tree. This is a common green shield bug. It’s almost adult, but not quite. From the pictures, I’d say it’s in the fifth instar, so only has one more moult before it reaches full adulthood, at which point its wing membranes will be visible. The final (adult) stage is known as the imago, or imaginal stage. In spite of appearances, the shield bug is not part of the beetle family. They are from the Hemiptera, or true bugs, group. All members of this family have sucking mouthparts, as opposed to beetles, whose mouthparts are designed for biting or chewing.
The shield bug is followed by a zebra spider, part of the jumping spider family. There are 37 different types of jumping spider in the UK. Worldwide, they are the biggest spider family, having over 5000 species. Jumping spiders hunt by stalking their prey, then pouncing. They don’t have specially adapted legs to enable them to jump. Instead, they adjust the flow of blood in their bodies, to push more blood to their back legs in order to propel them towards their prey.
A harlequin ladybird is next up, watching me watching it. This is one of the most invasive species in the world, taking only 10 years to spread throughout the United Kingdom. The harlequin was introduced from Asia first to North America, and then to mainland Europe, to try to control aphid numbers. It was never planned to be brought to the UK, so its arrival is most likely to have been through imports, or possibly by being blown across the channel. This ladybird is a voracious eater, and poses a serious threat to our native ladybirds, as it devours food more quickly than indigenous ladybirds. Harlequins come in many different colours, and spot patterns. They are generally bigger than native species, and have a large white triangle in the centre of their head.
Finally, black ants. Another find on the maple tree, these insects were harvesting sugary honeydew from aphids. Ants and aphids have a symbiotic relationship, in that there is mutual benefit to both parties. Ants harvest honeydew, which is a waste product produced by the aphids as they feed. In return, the ants look after the aphids, protecting them from predators and parasites. The honeydew is such a draw to the ants, that they will sometimes ‘milk’ the aphids, stroking them with their feet to stimulate production of the secretion. Black ants neither bite, nor squirt formic acid.
Each ant colony has one queen, and a few thousand female worker ants. Only the queen can lay eggs, which are cared for by the worker ants. Winged male ants hatch from unfertilised eggs, while females hatch from the fertilised eggs. Most females are worker ants, but some of the females are larger than the others and have wings. It is these who will go on to mate with the males and become future queens of their own colonies. Sometime during the warmer seasons (usually July or August), the flying ants take to the sky for their nuptial flight. Females who mate successfully, remove their wings and begin the process towards trying to found their own colony. Ants have always fascinated me, and they continue to be a source of great interest for entomologists. There is still much to learn about these incredible insects.
There are many sources of information about the guests which visit our gardens. I recommend in particular the Wildlife Trusts websites, the Royal Entomological Society site, and the Natural History Museum (who offer a nature identification service).
This was so interesting to read Em thankyou for that. I was telling Mikey about the I-spy books we used to have as children. I didn’t know they were still published until I googled. He has chosen I-spy Nature so we are awaiting delivery. He is going to take his binoculars and magnifying glass with him so hopefully he will be telling you what we find.
Thank you for reading; I’m so pleased you enjoyed it. Good luck nature hunting, and I look forward to hearing about it!