Dungeness is a superb location for seeking out invertebrates, be they common-place or specialists. For a 'jack of all trades' like myself - and certainly no expert - such immersion into the world of insects can be daunting, but ultimately highly rewarding. Identification down to species level will not be possible for many of the individuals that you might come across, but sometimes just being able to identify the creature before you to a specific family is reward enough. And, at times, you just need to admit defeat when you realise that the bee you are watching might just be a hoverfly, or even a wasp - it is OK to hold your hands up and surrender! You are also opening yourself up to life on a steep learning curve when looking at tiny insects with the aid of a magnifying glass or a loop, only to realise that there are even smaller insects alongside them. Are these even smaller beasts a different species or nymphs of the larger ones with them? Questions, questions... A few of my invertebrate highlights from the past week on the Dungeness shingle follow.
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I decided to place a tray under a patch of Stinging Nettle and gently tap the plants to see what would drop into it - the answer was hundreds of tiny insects of which a small section are shown above. I'm sure that an expert could look at this image and reel off a list of species names, but I'm totally lost! Are they mostly Common Nettle Aphids? Do they come in several colour forms? Are the smaller individuals nymphs of the larger ones? Whatever they are, they look cool.
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| Hister quadrimaculatus. A very rare beetle with few UK records being sparingly reported from Dungeness in recent years. Only five people have this on their pan-species list which goes some way to illustrate its status. To say I found this individual would not be quite true as in reality it found me, walking across the grassy sward and up to my foot. I recognised it immediately as it had recently appeared on the DBO blog. |
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Andrena vaga. This mining-bee was known in England from just three specimens before it was discovered at Dungeness in 2008 (although not identified until 2014) and is now found in several places in Hampshire and Kent with a single site in Essex. The main Dungeness colony is on the RSPB reserve in a sandbank close to the visitor centre, but has since spread to the point. I found c20 on disturbed ground outside of the bird observatory and several by the old lighthouse, all showing a liking for visiting the flowers of tamarisk.
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| Firebug. A recent colonist of SE England possibly with the aid of accidental introductions. The insects at Dungeness are easy to find as all you need do is look under the DBO common room window where, if the weather is fine, 'tens' will be on show in the vegetation. |
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Mottled Shieldbug. Another recent colonist which was first found in the London area in 2010 and has since spread into Kent. The best place to find it at Dungeness is on the vegetation and wooden fencing that surrounds the old lighthouse, but if you do search here please respect the residents and do not look into the private garden.
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