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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

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  1. harry eales

    Bee Id

    Not a good photographic angle, but I believe it to be a male Bombus Lucorum. Harry
  2. harry eales

    Northumberland insect & arrachnid ID

    Iazza, If I could offer you some advice, Don't try and identify every insect you find there are over 25,000 insects on the British List. You'll never get to be familiar with them all. Pick a few small groups and concentrate on them. Groups like the Beetles are so large that many Coleopterists...
  3. harry eales

    Lacewing UK

    Its Chrysopa carnea, a very common species that hibernates as an adult during the winter. The yellow stripe from head to tail gives away its ID. No other green lacewing has this stripe. Harry
  4. harry eales

    Absolem, my Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillar!

    I would recommend against removal of the leaves which are bound together with silk threads. These can be important when the moth is emerging from the pupal case in that the threads can grip the pupal case whilst the moth is pulling itself free, that's what naturally happens in nature. Good luck...
  5. harry eales

    How to attract Hawk moths into your garden?

    British resident Hawk Moths can be found from May until August then it is the migrant Hawks that appear. In the 50+ years I have been trapping I have had a very small number of Death's Heads, several Convolvulus Hawks and friends living on the coast (a migration route) have had Silver Striped...
  6. harry eales

    What container for DIY Robinson trap?

    Sean, Tuf Tubs only come in black which is handy. If you think you have storage problems in your shed, feel sorry for me, I have to lift the roof to drop something in. Open the door and you get trapped by the stuff falling out. lol. Harry
  7. harry eales

    What container for DIY Robinson trap?

    You can buy 'TUF Tubs' used by the building trade to remove rubble and other unwanted items from the site. They are obtainable from Cromwell Tools a countrywide tool supplier. I buy the largest they sell for approx. £10.00. They have a website that will tell you your nearest outlet. Just Google...
  8. harry eales

    Carder Bee

    I agree with Aeshna 5. Harry
  9. harry eales

    Mini invasion at moth light

    Hello Andy, Definitely a Coleopteran but I can't help you as to species, it's not my field of interest. As for a sudden appearance at your light trap, this can happen with any species of moth, and all the other insects that are attracted to light. Harry
  10. harry eales

    Large Heath

    Hello Marcus, Usually the last week in June is the beginning of the Large Heath 'Season' but with the very late spring and cool summer I doubt if there will me many out before the second week in July. It's been a terrible year for Lepidoptera so far and I can't see it improving. Large Heath do...
  11. harry eales

    Shieldbugs.

    Hello, Your Shieldbug is P. rufipes, or The Forest Shieldbug which is by no means confined to forests, it's virtually everywhere. The red legs and the 'Joan Collins Dynasty style shoulder pads' give it away. Harry
  12. harry eales

    Shieldbugs.

    Hello Paul, Winter will give you time to get some collecting equipment together so you'll be fully prepared for next season. Winter will also give you time to read all the copies of Het News. Over the years I have published articles ranging from the serious scientific papers to the odd humorous...
  13. harry eales

    Shieldbugs.

    Hello Paul, It may be too late for the Juniper Shieldbug but don't let that put you off. With it being an early year and (for once) a reasonably hot summer many species are in hibernation already. My discovery of this species in Northumberland and Durham didn't occur until 2000, the Lake...
  14. harry eales

    Shieldbugs.

    Hello Paul, The Parent bug was out in my area on the Northumberland/Durham boundary in February this year on Hazel catkins. By May the young were to be found in their family groups so it's not surprising they hibernate early. Other species tend to come out with the appearance of leaves on trees...
  15. harry eales

    Shieldbugs.

    Hello Gillean, It could possibly be that they have already entered hibernation. We had an early Spring and an early Summer and now an early Autumn. I have had Small Tortoiseshell butterflies hibernating in my house since mid July and that is a month earlier than they usually come in. There...
  16. harry eales

    Elephant Hawk larva.

    Andy, I have only ever used Rosebay Willowherb myself but I see no reason the the smaller species of Willowherb wouldn't suffice. The larvae will also eat the leaves of Fuchsia. Harry
  17. harry eales

    Elephant Hawk larva.

    Koya, The yellowish fluid is almost certainly one of two things. 1. It is the larvae evacuating it's gut before pupating, it has to dispose of the remaining food leftovers in it's body and the fluids that help process the food. 2. The larvae has a bacteria infection called 'Wilt Disease' where...
  18. harry eales

    Elephant Hawk larva.

    Hello Phil, Yes this evening will do just as soon as you get home. I suppose any dry leaves will do but it would pay to microwave them just to kill off any nasties that may be present on them. Then when cool put them with the larvae in a pile a few leaves thick. The larvae will find them and...
  19. harry eales

    Elephant Hawk larva.

    Hello Phil, I was wondering why this old thread had been resurrected. I do hope your first attempt to rear an Elephant Hawk moth will be successful, but even if it fails, please do try again. I've been breeding butterflies and moths for nearly sixty years now and the thrill of doing so has never...
  20. harry eales

    Demoiselle ovipositing on nettles?

    I believe what you saw was the Demoiselle cleaning itself, Most insects, Flies, Bees, Wasps etc. The problem with the long tail of the Demoiselle is that little other than wings can reach that far. The coarse hairs on a nettle stem should do quite nicely in removing anything that the insect has...
  21. harry eales

    Aberrant Hawk moth....?

    It could be a colour variant of the Convolvulus Hawkmoth. It's too late in the year for Eyed Hawk unless there was a partial emergence of next years insects due to an unusually warm Autumn. A photograph would have been very helpful. Harry
  22. harry eales

    Bumblebee common names

    There have been over the past century, several attempts to give Bumble Bees common English names, none of them very successful. In my opinion they are nearly all cumbersome and difficult to remember, I prefer their Generic and Specific names, they're easier to learn and don't change as often. Harry
  23. harry eales

    Bumblebee listing

    Phill, You'll find the commonest six or seven species fairly easily, but others can be much more difficult to find and will require some intensive work on your part. You can also add the Cuckoo Bumblebees until recently called the Genus Psithyrus but the now placed in the Genus Bombus, to your...
  24. harry eales

    Caterpillar, Berks

    It's one of the 'Geometres' but they are many and larval colour variations within a species are often numerous. If you still have it breed it out to the adult form. Harry
  25. harry eales

    Another 'GREEN' Bird Killer.

    I found this on a US Website having no connection with Birdwatching. The paper it was taken from was not named. February 14, 2014 Another Green Bird-Killer Peter Wilson The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, the world's largest "tower-based" solar plant, is scheduled to open this week...
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