Search - Sitewide

like a bees , it is not as "furry" as a bee plus not as stripy I would maybe put the photo on the Ispot website , i did that for a moth i found in my greenhouse and got a possitive ID in about 5 mins ! http://www.ispot.org.uk/ Hoverfly, no question

and brown males. And one of the large spotted Melecta species was resting, just out of clear sight, at the very top of the hedge. They seem to favour the higher leaves, leaving the lower ones for hoverflies and blow-flies. I’m wondering if there is a

. It's always fascinating to see what they can find and so rewarding to be able to tell them how many legs a woodlouse has (14) or how a hoverfly larva skewers an aphid then sucks out its guts. The more gruesome, the better.Unfortunately this year

bees, bluebottles and hoverflies, but the overwhelming majority of visitors are wasps. Both of the common species are here, Vespula vulgaris and V. germanica and most of them are males. It takes me a couple of minutes to work this out; it’s something

. It is the voracious appetite of the large larva that has given the harlequin ladybird, Harmonia axyridis, its bad reputation. Not only does it eat aphids, it also eats other insects, including other ladybird larvae and also lacewing and hoverfly larvae feeding

. On Sunday, our ivy was abuzz with bees, wasps, hoverflies and other insects, but when this fast-food source is gone, they will still need the most basic of their primary needs - shelter. Animals coming to 'visit' flowers, or bird tables, or fat balls, is all

, lacewings and hoverflies shelter next winter.Even if I had a brown bin to put my tree in I wouldn't use it now. I try to deal with all my biodegradable rubbish at home and I've never thrown anything out that won't break down eventually. My garden is 4m

- all of which are rich in nectar, and are particularly attractive to hoverflies and lacewings whose larvae, in turn, eat aphids.Stinging nettles are essential food for the caterpillars of butterflies such as red admirals, tortoiseshells and peacocks

in the garden, providing food and shelter for huge numbers of invertebrates including wood-boring beetles, solitary bees and woodlice. It can come in many forms: a tree stump left to rot into itself can provide a rot hole for the larvae of Eristalis hoverflies

attract hoverflies and bees. How about a little bed for annuals which the children can sow? Nasturtiums are a great suggestion. Many others like Nigella and Larkspur are good for insects and grow easily as well.  Great suggestions, shall search