Introduction and Review of 2016

Female Ivy Bee (Colletes Hederae)

This is in part a review but also the best way to introduce my new blog. Professionally I am a cameraman and photographer and my interest in bees began while filming an interview with Brigit Strawbridge in 2013. A move to Falmouth and seeing my first Ivy Bee (Colletes hederae) in the autumn of 2014 has seen me interest grow over the past two years. So let us begin the review and see some of my encounters.

As I explained in my previous post we have winter active buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) so the year began with observing them. I saw my first queen bumblebee that had woken from her hibernation towards the end of February, fittingly she was an Early bumblebee, Bombus pratorum.

First Queen of the year, an Early Bumblebee

February also saw a nice discovery, a Pine Ladybird (Exochomus quadripustulatus) feeding on an Alexander flower. This species possibly arrived in Falmouth as eggs on pine seedlings that were planted in Falmouth in the 19^th Century.

Pine Ladybird (Exochomus quadripustulatus)

The first solitary bee appeared on the 7^th March, an Andrena nigroaenea. This was shortly followed by three other early species, Andrena bicolour, flavipes and thoracica. I have a favourite patch of Greater Mexican Stonecrop whose yellow flowers are a magnet for bees. I also spotted a queen common wasp (Vespula vulgaris) on its flowers on the 11th March.

Andrena nigroaenea

I saw the first Cuckoo bee species, a Nomada marshamella in mid-April. I find these bees fascinating, like their namesake they lay their eggs in the nests of other bees and let their host do all the pollen collecting. This year I also recorded my first Nomada flava, so far I have discovered ten species of cuckoo bees in Falmouth cemetery.

Cuckoo Bee Nomada flava

One of my favourite solitary bees is Andrena labiata, it is quite a scarce bee, and apart from Falmouth it has only been recorded at one other location in Cornwall this century. I had seen them on flowers last year but this spring I located their nesting site. One option for a male solitary bee looking for a mate is to patrol a nesting area. The photo shows a male grasping a female who did not seem keen on the idea and eventually escaped his clutches.

Male and female Andrena labiata

As well as recording bee species I also keep an eye out for hoverflies. Generally they are easier to identify than bees and often a set of photos from various angles will lead to identification. Some species have evolved to mimic wasps and bumblebees as protection against predators.

The hoverfly Merodon equestris mimics a bumblebee

A new record this year was the hoverfly Didea fasciata, its larvae feed on pine aphids. I suspect like the Pine Ladybird it was introduced to Falmouth on Pine tree seedlings carrying its eggs. It is interesting to see how introduced species can bring with them associated communities.

Female Didea fasciata hoverfly

Looking like a small bumblebee, the hairy-footed flower bee (Anthophora plumipes) is a solitary bee and not a social bee like all bumblebees. They zip about and are rarely still for more than a few seconds. They are one of the hardest species of bee to photograph.

Female Hairy-footed flower bee (Anthophora plumipes)

An advantage of making regular visits to a site is that over time you will probably notice changes. Although I had spotted the Ashy Mining Bee (Andrena cineraria) elsewhere in Falmouth, this year was the first time I have seen it nesting in the cemetery. Recent records suggest it is increasing in numbers nationally. It is a very distinctive looking bee and one of the easiest of our solitary bees to identify. They also tend to dig their nesting burrows close to each other and can form large aggregates. 

Ashy Mining Bee (Andrena cineraria) at nesting site

The Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) is the butterfly most commonly seen in Falmouth, even during the winter on a sunny day it will often come out of hibernation.

Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) on Ivy flowers

The highlight of the year has to be my discovery of Small Garden Bee (Bombus hortorum) workers on Mahonia flowers in December. Buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) are known to establish winter active colonies in many urban locations as far north as Hull. This appears to be the first recording of a hortorum colony being active in December in this country. See my previous post for more on the lifecycle of bumblebees and examples of species that can produce two generations in a year.

Small Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum) worker probably
the first record of this species having a winter active colony
in the UK. 

Trying to condense twelve months into a short review is an impossible task. Hopefully it has been a useful introduction to the blog and some of the fascinating creatures I have encountered. See you in the New Year.