Invertebrate Notes August 2023

A selection of notable records reported to Tanyptera. Includes older, but newly recognised regional vice county records (dates blue). ‘The region’ = VC58, 58, 60 + Cheshire, Lancs, Merseyside, Greater Manchester.

Acari (Mites)

Araneae (Spiders)

Chilopoda (Centipedes)

Coleoptera (Beetles)

Platyrhinus resinosus (Curculionidae), Thorn Wood, Weaverham, VC58, 2/8, C. Washington

• Second record for VC58 and Cheshire after being found on the Wirral in 2019. Widely distributed in Southern England and expanding northwards.
• The larvae develop inside the fruiting bodies of the King Alfred’s Cakes (Daldinia concentrica) fungus.
• Adults are almost unmistakable and the peak time for adult records is June and July.

Musk Beetle Aromia moschata (Cerambycidae)

Hightown Dunes, VC59, 16/8, P. Kinsella

Blundellsands, VC59, 24/8, P. Kinsella

• 3rd and 4th modern records for the Sefton Coast following a record of an adult at Freshfield Dune Heath in July. See July Notes

Collembola (Springtails)

Diplopoda (Millipedes)

Diptera (Flies)

Pipiza austriaca (Syrphidae), Hightown Dunes, VC59, 16/8, P. Kinsella.

• A widespread hoverfly nationally, with several records in the NW, however this is the first record for the Sefton Coast and Merseyside since the early-1960’s.
• Associated with meadows and woodland margins. Adults often found on umbellifers and buttercups.

Hemiptera (True Bugs)

Hymenoptera (Bees, Wasps & Ants)

Bees

Wasps

Tiphia femorata (Tiphiidae), Crosby Marine Park, 20/8, VC59, P. Kinsella.

• First record for VC59 and Lancashire. There are a few previous records for VC58.
• Adults visits a range of umbellifers and the larvae are parasitoids of scarabaeid beetle larvae
• Usually associated with sandy habitats.
• The above record appears to represent the most northerly known location on the west coast.

Brachymeria tibialis (Chalcididae), Hightown Dunes (16/8) & Ainsdale NNR (17/8), VC59, P. Kinsella.

• 2nd & 3rd Sefton Coast records having been recorded on 4th July at Ravenmoels (P. Kinsella)
• First recorded in the NW in 2021 having been added to the British list in 2008. See August 2021 Notes
• Parasitic on the Burnet moth family and some other moths.

Listrodromus nycthemerus (Ichneumonidae), Ravenmoels LNR, Formby (7/8) & Ainsdale NNR (17/8), VC59, P. Kinsella.

• 4th & 5th Sefton Coast and VC59 records since the first in 2022. Also recorded new to Greater Manchester at Saddleworth by Ken Gartside in 2018.
• A parasitoid of the Holly Blue butterfly.
• Just 7 records on NBN Atlas but now 35 records on iRecord.

Proterops nigripennis (Braconidae), Ainsdale NNR, 17/8, VC59, P. Kinsella.

• Just 3 UK records on iRecord including the above and 2 on NBN Atlas. However, no national recording scheme exists for this group. The above record is likely to be the second for VC59 having been previously recorded at Astley Moss (museum specimen) but the overall picture is quite uncertain in terms of actual status and data that is currently unavailable.
• Parasitises some sawflies and known to nectar on umbellifers.

Pseudomalus violaceus (Chrysididae), Greenfield, Saddleworth, VC63, 19/8, K. Gartside. Conf. Ben Hargreaves and Adam Roberts.

• Landed on recorders leg in his garden. Appears to a first record for Greater Manchester. Known from the Sefton Coast and a BWARS distribution map shows a record in the Warrington area.
• Scarce in the UK and at the limit of its known north western range here. Most records are from South and South East England.
• A cleptoparasite of wasps in the genus Pemphredon (Crabronidae).

Sawflies

Poplar Sawfly Cladius grandis (Tenthredinidae), Fishwick LNR, VC60, 30/7, T. Blackburn. Det. A. Musgrove.

• One other VC60 record on iRecord / NBN Atlas. Elsewhere in the region, 3 records online for VC59, all from the past 3 years. Widespread but local in the UK.
• All published records are of the larvae, which gregariously feed on the underside of poplar leaves
• The current record is of a larva found on the ground beneath poplar trees.

Odonata (Dragonflies and Damselflies)

Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Toadflax Brocade Calophasia lunula (Noctuidae), Woolton, VC59, 10/8, S.J. McWilliam.

• A single adult caught in a garden MV light trap. Possibly only the 3rd Lancashire record having been recording for the first time in 2018. This follows increasing records in Cheshire.
• This moth appears to be expanding it’s range across the country having previously been restricted to the south and east coasts having first colonised in the 1950s.

Orthoptera (Grasshoppers and Crickets)

Lesser Marsh Grasshopper Chorthippus albomarginatus (Acrididae), Larkholme Grasslands, Fleetwood, VC60, 8/8, A. Beech, Det. P. Winter.

• 3 adults recorded
• Appears to be a first VC60 record and possibly the second for the region been recorded in Ormskirk via iNaturalist the day before (unconfirmed?).
• This grasshopper has hugely expanded it’s range in recent years, spreading from southern and south-eastern strongholds.
• Mainly feeds on grasses and occurs in a variety of habitats, including damp grassland. Possibly overlooked in the region as it’s similar to Meadow Grasshopper.

Roesel’s Bush-cricket Roeseliana roeselii (Tettigoniidae)

Crosby Marine Park, VC59, 13/8, P. Kinsella. – adult female

Cabin Hill, VC59, 12/8, S. Norman. – 2-5 adults

World Museum meadow, Liverpool, VC59, 2/8, L. Gwynne. Det. P. Witter. – adult female

• 1st records for Liverpool city centre and the Sefton Coast record for this fast expanding cricket, having been recorded in Garston, South Liverpool in June.
• In North Lancs, still only known from Fleetwood where it has been present for at least a decade.
• Will probably become increasingly common in the NW region, likely due to our warming climate.

iRecord top 10 species

References