Ballachurry Reserve, 6th September 2018.

a bright and breezy day at the Reserve

I arrived at Ballachurry on Thursday afternoon armed with secateurs in order to cut down the Cushag ( that's Ragwort to those readers who aren't local) which is now over and starting to seed. I also noticed a few thistles had crept into the grassy area which we are trying to keep dock and thistle free near the Noticeboard . These pulled out quite easily and 15 minutes later I was ready to start my recording visit. Unfortunately in that 15 minutes it had clouded over and started to rain! I sought refuge back in my car and listened to Classic FM for 15 minutes while the shower went through, leaving  blue sky once more. Here is what I then recorded during the next couple of bright but breezy hours:

Birds:

SC209694 Ringtail Hen Harrier flying low over reserve.
SC209694   Chiffchaff  (checking it's a CC and not a Willow Warbler)
SC208695 Blackbird heard but not seen
SC208694 Robin heard but not seen
SC209694  Wren heard but not seen
SC209694 ( from hide) female Mallard

Butterflies & Moths:

SC209692 ( thicket adjoining reserve ) Speckled Wood
SC209695  ( near Private entrance) Speckled Wood
SC209694 ( near Ginnie's bench) unidentified micromoth
SC210694 Painted Lady
SC209694  6 x Speckled Wood along Gorse boundary ( mostly on Brambles)
SC209695 Silver Y moth
SC208695  7 x Speckled Wood
SC208694 Speckled Wood
SC209694 Small Tortoiseshell
SC209694 ( path junction) Speckled Wood
SC208694 2 x Common Blue

Other:

SC209694 Gorse Shieldbug
SC209694 Ichneumen Wasp ?
SC209694 mating Hoverflies
SC209694 unidentified snail
SC209694 Common Wasp
SC209695 30+ Water Crickets in stream
SC209695 2 x Gorse Shieldbugs
SC209695 Common Earwigs on Sycamore + tiny snail
SC208695 7-spot Ladybird
SC208695 various flies, gnat? aphid?  Crane fly on Rowan berries
SC209694 female Damselfly ( checking I.D.)
SC208695 various Hoverflies round old Beehive loop
SC208695 Noon Fly
SC208695 egg or gall on underside of Oak leaf
SC208694 Shieldbug nymph on Sneezewort
SC208695 Shieldbug nymph on Rowan berries

Chiffchaff

Chiffchaff

female Mallard

aphid?

Crane Fly

Gnat?

Hawthorn Shieldbug nymph

general view of stream

water crickets in stream

there were many flies round the old beehive loop
maybe muscids and calypterates

Noon Fly

Common Blue roosting on Knapweed seedhead

Common Blue on Great Birdsfoot Trefoil

Blackberries attracting flies....
(Lucilla species)

....and Speckled Wood Butterflies

all along the Gorse Boundary
( or should that be the bramble boundary?)

They seemed to be everywhere

yet another

this was a tiny snail on the back of a sycamore leaf

and a bigger one along the gorse boundary

unidentified micromoth

7-spot ladybird

unidentified female damselfly

common earwigs were congregating on  Sycamore leaf

two more

not sure quite what this is!
on underside of oak leaf

 Common Green Shieldbug nymph

Gorse Shieldbug

Hoverfly 01 -male Syphus species

Hoverfly 02 - male Eristalis tenax

Hoverfly 03 - male Syphus species

Hoverfly 04 - a male Syrphus species

Hoverfly 05 - a female Syrphus ribesii

Hoverfly 06 - male Syrphus species

Hoverfly 07 - male Eupeodes species

mating Hoverflies -Helophilus pendulus
"the footballer" 

female Eristalis tenax

Probably an Ichneumen wasp but different colouration
from last week's species. SC209694

Altogether a very interesting & enjoyable afternoon!

With thanks to Steve Crellin, the Island's dipterist, for identifications.