30 Days Wild 2021 – Day Eleven.

Day 11: Continuing a theme from the past two years, Close Up, where I throw a spotlight on a given species and delve a little deeper. These Close up days will be on Fridays for 2021!

Today’s Close Up will be all about the only true flying mammal: the bat – focusing on the common pipistrelle. Ever since I spotted a bat swoop in circles around my urban yarden last year, I have wanted to learn more about the species I think it was. Though I haven’t a bat detector I have plumped for the most common bat species in the UK – the common pipistrelle. 

The UK has 18 bat species. The common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) is a formidable predator eating up to 3,000 insects a night, despite being the smallest species of bat in the UK. The common pipistrelle weighs around a pound coin and is small enough to fit into a match box! Being small has it’s advantages as pipistrelles feed in a wide range of habitats. They are active between April and October and come out of their crevices, tree holes or bat boxes 20 minutes after sunset. Being nocturnal they rely on echolocation to find their prey. These frequencies, being higher than the human range can be picked up with devices such as bat detectors. Pipistrelles can be heard on frequencies ranging from 45 to 70kHz. 

pipistrelle-bat from the RSPB

The breeding season is between July and September thereafter females form maternity colonies and give birth to one live young in June/July. The pup only stays with its mother for a month before they are able to fly and after six weeks they become fully fledged. 

From November onwards pipistrelles go into hibernation or torpor. They achieve this by lowering their body temperature which reduces their metabolic rate, surviving on stored body fat. It’s only when the outside temperature increases that they awake to forage on newly emerged insects. 

The only zoonotic disease that some UK bats carry is rabies which is why if you find a sick bat, do not touch and contact the National Bat Helpline on 0345 1300 228. 

In conclusion, bats are wonderful pest controllers. Some need our help as population numbers have dwindled due to changes in agricultural practices and the loss of habitat.  You can help by planting flowers that will attract insects and putting up a bat box, they are relatively inexpensive and The Wildlife Trusts have a fact sheet on how to build you own, here. 

Have you seen bats where you live? Have any roosting in your home?

Thanks for reading, and stay wild!

Christine xx

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Further reading:

The Wildlife Trusts

RSPB

The Woodland Trust

Bat Conservation 

30 Days Wild 2021 – Day Four.

Day 4: Continuing a theme from the past two years, Close Up, where I throw a spotlight on a given species and delve a little deeper. These Close up days will be on Fridays for 2021!

Today’s Close Up will be all about one of my favourite insects: hoverflies!

Hoverflies or Syrphidae are known as true flies in the order of Diptera (having only one pair of wings). There are around 280 hoverfly species in the UK, which are active between the months of March to November. They are an excellent example of mimics (Batesian). The adults mimic the yellow and black stripes of bees and wasps (but are harmless), while their larvae mimic slugs, therefore looking undesirable food for a predator.

Hover fly, or drone

Hoverfly life cycle

Hover Fly on Coriander Flowers

Hoverfly

The life cycle of a hoverfly is that of a fly: adult, egg, larvae and pupa. While some adults feed on dead insects, the majority feed on nectar and pollen. Hoverflies are an underrated champion of pollination. Recent studies have shown that hoverflies pollinate flowers, trees and grasses. Whereas hoverfly larvae are helpful in the garden by eating unwanted aphids and other pests, while some larvae feed on fungi and parasitise bumblebee nests. For the conclusion of this post I shall focus on the larvae that are aquatic.

rat tailed maggot microsopy.uk.org

Buzz Club have an initiative to create Hoverfly Lagoons. These lagoons are to aid hoverflies with aquatic larvae to find appropriate breeding environments. Some larvae of hoverfly species prefer to eat the detritus of decaying matter, hence the creation of stagnant pools. Unfortunately named rat-tailed maggots, these larvae of the Myathropa and Helophilus and the drone fly (Eristalis) have tail like snorkels  which help them breathe, while they enjoy the aquatic environment and eat rotten plant matter. Ellen Rothery and Dave Goulson have created some great hoverflies lagoons. Here’s more information on creating a hoverfly lagoon for yourself.

hoverfly lagoon

hoverfly lagoon

hoverfly lagoon

For this years 30 Days Wild, I have tried to recreate a hoverfly lagoon myself. In the past our small pond has been a welcome habitat for hoverfly larvae but I wanted to try my hand at creating a hoverfly lagoon from scratch. I used an old ceramic container, some grass cuttings, (I got from the local park), twigs (for the adults to land on), a handful of leaf litter and some water. I’ll survey near the end of 30 Days Wild and let you know if I get any success in finding any hoverfly larvae!

Have you created a hoverfly lagoon?

Thanks for reading, and stay wild!

Christine xx

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Further Reading:

RSPB

BNA

Microscopy UK

Wildlife Gardening Forum

Pollinator Project 

Buzz Club  

Nature Spot 

Bumblebee.org

EcoRecord

30 Days Wild 2018 – Day Four.

Day 4: Mondays in June will become Close Up Mondays. Where I pick an insect, mammal, bird or amphibian and get up close and intimate.

Today’s Close Up is with the cellar spider, (pholcidae), most commonly (or incorrectly named) daddy long legs. I found this little guy while vaccuming the dinning room. He was proudly sitting on a web in a dark corner of the room.

Cellar spiders are part of a sub family of arachnids called Araneomorphae which mean they have fangs that cross in a pinching mechanism! There are around 1,500 different species in this family and are found all over the world except Antarctica.

They are fragile looking arachnids, with a small body of 2-10mm in length, with legs 50mm long. TarantulaDan‘s video informs that they predate on other spiders webs, even killing the original inhabitant by vibrating and mimicking trapped prey! Who would have guessed that such a delicate looking spider could be a web stealer! Therefore their diet consists of mainly other spiders and their offspring.

They are harmless to humans.

Needless to say the spider in question was captured in a glass and released into the yarden.

What are your thoughts on spiders such as the cellar spider?

Thanks for reading, and stay wild!

Christine x