Insect Specimens in Display Cases
AUDIO RECORDING OF ALL TEXT
Just above each species below on this page is a time stamp for where to find it on the audio recording
CASE 1 AUDIO
CASE 2 AUDIO
CASE 3 AUDIO
CASE 4 AUDIO
CASE 5 AUDIO
A big thank you to Peter Chandler and Marc Taylor from the British Entomological Natural History Society for letting us borrow these insect specimens on display here. All of these insects are from the Society's collection held in The Pelham-Clinton Building, Dinton Pastures Country Park, in Reading, UK. The collection is open to members on open days and the public (by prior arrangement). There is lots more to see if you get the chance to visit, and membership is available through their website. The website is linked below:
https://www.benhs.org.uk/
Case number 5 was kindly given to us by the Natural History Museum. All specimens have been pinned from their collection in the Angela Marmont Center (AMC). A link to the website of the AMC is linked below:
https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/centre-for-uk-biodiversity.html
CASE 1
00:00
SOCIAL INSECTS AND WORKER POLICING: There is a practice in many social insects such as bees and wasps that live in nests with up to several hundred inhabitants called worker policing. It is a term that can be applied to moments when some workers (female insects who are not the queen) kill or attack other workers. This mostly happens in colonies (groups and families) where the queen is the only insect that should be laying eggs as it is her job, the other female insects are responsible for building the nest, foraging for food and feeding the young. The whole colony works well when all of the workers are brothers and sisters, they are all children of the queen and work to preserve the family and the nest. However, sometimes a worker insect will lay their own egg as they are still able to, and in response to this the queen will kill the egg that was laid and the worker insect will get attacked by other members of the family.
1:00
HONEY BEES AND AGEING WITH THEIR SOCIAL ROLES: Ageing as a natural process is normally associated with time, as we get older, our bodies and brain changes to show this. Honey bees have different responsibilities as they grow older. Younger honey bees will be responsible for feeding the young and building the hive. The oldest honey bees will be flying out and getting food from flowers. There should always be a balanced number of bees getting food and bees taking care of the nest. If there is an unbalanced amount of bees taking care of the nest some of the older bees will have to take this role instead. Studies have shown that when older bees start working in the responsibilities of a younger bee they become younger themselves according to their brains and how they behave, they also can live longer (It is thought they live longer also because flying is energy intensive and staying in the nest is less so). Scientists are now exploring what we can learn from this and thinking about if it is possible to prevent quick ageing by looking into how our brains change when we might experience activities or do tasks (such as learning an instrument or new language) that may be associated with someone of a younger age.
02:11
HORNET: This is the European Hornet which is the largest wasp species in the UK. They live in really large groups (colonies) and are therefore considered to be the best organised animal the planet, they are also considerably less aggressive than people may think. Hornets are able to sting but will only do so if their nest is attacked, it is very unlikely that they will come and sting you if you are nearby. Because of this harmful reputation that they are aggressive, European Hornets are now under threat and are declining as people are very commonly destroying their nests out of fear and protection. It is even considered by wasp specialists to be a lot less aggressive than the common wasp.
The Queen hornet will emerge from hibernation (sleep during winter) in spring and start building a nest from chewed up wood, after mating with other males the nest will have many queen hornets to lay eggs as well as females who do not give birth whose purpose is to take care of the nest, bring food back and protect from predators. The nest will often be in trees that are hollow or buildings with hollow areas. Hornets eat other smaller insects and also eat nectar and tree sap since they need foods that will give them a lot of energy. They are considered a great species to have around a farm or garden if there is a problem with other insects eating the plants and vegetables growing (pests) the hornets will eat these and leave your garden pest free. The European Hornet looks like a large wasp, it has a brown body with yellow stripes on the lower part of its body (abdomen).
https://sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/news/european-hornets
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/hornet
03:46
TREE WASP: The Tree Wasp is considered a common wasp throughout Britain, however is declining along with other social wasp species. It is very commonly seen in urban areas, as they can build nests in local trees, underground, or in buildings as the nests mostly need cover. The nests are small and made from paper (chewed up wood from the wasps). The Tree wasp is black with yellow stripes on the lower part of its body (abdomen).
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/tree-wasp
https://www.bwars.com/wasp/vespidae/vespinae/dolichovespula-sylvestris
04:14
MEDIAN WASP: The Median Wasp is the second largest wasp species in Britain, its nests hang on tree branches or from bushes. It was first recorded in Sussex in 1980, and came here from Europe. They have a very short life cycle, as the whole colony (group of wasps sharing the nest) only live up to 4 months. The queen starts gathering materials and building the nest for 30 days while she lays her eggs, once more adult wasps are born they help her to build the nest and forage for food. An interesting observation is that the female wasps will tap their legs or bodies on the nest when they have returned with food or while they are feeding the young, it is speculated that this is to tell the young through the tap that they will be eating. It has also been observed that when ants or spiders are seen crawling on the nest the wasps go and pick them up and drop them on the ground off the nest, it is still unknown why this happens as it is very unlikely the other insect will try and enter the nest. The Median wasp has a very long body which is black with yellow stripes going across.
https://www.bwars.com/content/beginners-bees-wasps-ants-dolichovespula-media
https://www.bwars.com/sites/www.bwars.com/files/info_sheets/Dolichovespula-media-info-sheet.pdf
05:20
RED WASP: The Red Wasps build their nests in hidden hollow spaces, this could be in abandoned mouse or rat nests undergrounds but more rarely have been found in bird boxes or hollow tree stumps. When a young worker wasp leaves the nest for the first time foraging it will take several trips at different distances in order to familiarise itself with the local landscape, when it leaves the nest it travels a distance and then turns to face the nest to orient where it is. Similar to other wasp species, the queen builds the ‘queen nest’ and then lays worker eggs which then start building the nest as well. The larger groups can have up to 300 workers in one nest. The Red wasp has a black body and yellow abdomen or yellow striped abdomen (bottom half of the body).
https://www.bwars.com/wasp/vespidae/vespinae/vespula-rufa
https://www.academia.edu/1463411/Archer_1997a_Taxonomy_distribution_and_nesting_biology_of_the_Euro-Asian_species_of_the_Vespula_rufa_group_Hymenoptera_Vespidae_
06:11
GERMAN WASP: Another name for the German Wasps that you might have heard of is yellow jacket. The nests of the German Wasp are usually very large and can have up to thousands of wasps living inside. The German Wasp has been considered a pest in some parts of the world like in New Zealand, they have appeared there and are not native to the country, they are eating many caterpillar, leaving less food for local birds to eat. These wasps have black bodies and yellow heads, they also have yellow legs as well as yellow stripes on the bottom half of their body.
https://candide.com/ZA/insects/4a33aa4448ace3bdde9d0a3b95010d49
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/german-wasp
06:45
COMMON WASP: The Common Wasp is a very well known wasp that we see all around the UK and London. You may spot them flying around your picnic outside, especially attracted to fruits and sugary foods. When the workers (female wasps who are not the queen) of the nest feel that there is an intruder, they pull their body forward and vibrate their wings on and off, this is a signal to other wasps that they might be under attack, it is also studied that wasps can identify a wasp from another nest entering their nest because the smell is different. This common wasp has a black body with yellow stripes, a yellow head and yellow legs.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/common-wasp
https://web.archive.org/web/20120803073040/http://www.doc.govt.nz/upload/documents/conservation/threats-and-impacts/animal-pests/fact-sheet175-vespula-wasp.pdf
07:22
HONEYBEE: This is the Western Honey Bee, it was the first ever insect that was domesticated (kept by humans). The honey bee has a big history of providing honey to communities across the world, where they would cut part of the hive off and eat the honey as a special treat. We now see especially in London that honeybees are being kept in boxes (human made hives) and taken care of, some people also remove the honey from the hive and eat it or sell it. Now, there are actually very few wild honey bee colonies (communities/ large families that live in the same nest) and most honeybees that we might see flying around live in a human controlled hive. It is assumed that the bees still live their life as normal in a human made hive, however since there is a big increase in honeybee hives being made, we see that there are more honey bee colonies living in one area than there would be naturally. This is a problem, as there is now more competition for food in the local areas, meaning that there is not enough food for the amount of bees in one area, and if there isn’t the colony will die and not be able to feed itself or its young. The only solution to this is to discourage people from making more honeybee hives, with the amount we have now we will still need to plant more wild flowers to provide for all of the local colonies.
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/other-garden-wildlife/insects-and-other-invertebrates/bees-wasps-ants/honey-bee/
https://www.britannica.com/animal/honeybee
https://friendsoftheearth.uk/nature/49-best-books-about-bees
08:44
WHITE-TAILED BUMBLE BEE: The White-Tailed Bumblebee builds its nests underground often in old holes made by mice and other rodents. This species can be found in many different habitats, mostly where there are plenty of flowers for food. The male white-tailed bumblebees leave a scent on objects near their nest, this scent tells other females that they are looking to mate. The male then flies along this path passing by the objects its scent is left on to see if he has gotten any interested female bees. The White Tailed bumble bee is a fluffy round black bee, it has a stripe of yellow in the middle of its body and has a white tail.
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/white-tailed-bumblebees/white-tailed-bumblebee/
https://www.nhsn.org.uk/identifying-white-tailed-bees/
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/white-tailed-bumble-bee
09:24
BUFF-TAILED BUMBLE BEE: The Buff-tailed Bumble Bee is one of the most widespread bumblebee species. They feed mostly on mahonia bushes and fly and feed even during winter months, British winter is not too cold for this species. This bumble bee is fluffy and black, it has two yellow stripes going across its body and a white tail.
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/white-tailed-bumblebees/buff-tailed-bumblebee/
https://www.insectweek.co.uk/discover-insects/bees-ants-wasps/buff-tailed-bumblebee
09:46
RED-TAILED BUMBLE BEE: The Red-tailed bumble bee is a very important bee species for pollination of flowers as they are a species that travel great distances to get food for their colony eating nectar and pollen. The red-tailed bumble bee as well as other bee species are known for regulating warm temperatures in their hives, they tense their muscles used for flying and this releases heat into their nest. This bee has a furry black body, the males have a yellow stripe going through the top of the body and they all have a red tail.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/red-tailed-bumblebee
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/red-tailed-bumblebees/red-tailed-bumblebee/
10:19
BILBERRY BUMBLE BEE: The Bilberry Bumblebee lives higher up, and can mostly be found living in places with high altitudes like on mountains. However they have found Bilberry bumble bees living by the seaside in Scotland. The name comes from the bee's favourite pollen source; the Bilberry plant, therefore the species needs to live near grassland and rich plant resources in order to sustain its colony. The Bilberry Bumble Bee species is declining because in many of the areas they are losing their food source because of land management, where flowers and plants are removed for agriculture (the practice of farming to grow crops and take care of animals on land). Because of Climate change there has also been changes in temperature in Spring, where it is warm in early Spring and then getting cold before Summer, this is confusing for the bees as they don’t leave their hive in the cold weather, so may starve if they have not stored enough food to last the whole colony. The Bilberry bumble bee has a black furry body, and a orange tail.
https://www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/88800/Bilberry-bumblebee-friends-of-the-earth-guide.pdf
https://www.shropshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/blog/debbie-viver/bilberry-bumblebee-blog
11:23
SHORT-HAIRED BUMBLE BEE: The Short-haired Bumble Bee was declared a rare species in 1988, as the last one was spotted in Dungeness. In 2000 it was declared extinct and has since been reintroduced from 2012-2016 in Dungeness along with a planted corridor of flowers for the newly introduced bee to flourish. It has a black furry body with a white tail and often a yellow stripe just below its head.
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/white-tailed-bumblebees/short-haired-bumblebee/
https://www.rspb.org.uk/our-work/conservation/projects/short-haired-bumblebee-reintroduction/
11:51
MOSS CARDER BEE: The Moss Carder Bee is a declining species in Britain, it nests just over the ground or underground and also finds food nearby its nest. Due to an increase in commercial farming in areas where the Moss Carder Bee lives, it no longer has flowers to feed its family. Native flowers need to be reintroduced into habitats in Britain in order for this bee species to establish itself once again. The Moss Carder bee has gingery fur on the top of its body, with striped fur on its abdomen (lower half of the body).
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/ginger-yellow-bumblebees/moss-carder-bee/
https://www.scotlink.org/species/moss-carder-bee/
12:24
RED SHANKED BUMBLE BEE: The Red Shanked Bumble Bee is a grassland bee which constructs its nest out of grass or moss and often builds a nest in an abandoned hole made by mice. It is considered a declining species because of an increase of land being used for agriculture. They feed on dead nettle, bramble, and red clover, therefore flourish in fields with wild flowers and naturally growing meadows without disturbance.
https://naturebftb.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/BftB-species-info-sheet-Bombus-page-1and2-edit-v5-JG.pdf
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/red-tailed-bumblebees/red-shanked-carder-bee/
12:52
CUCKOO BUMBLE BEE: The Cuckoo Bumble Bee is a parasitic bee (‘lives on other animals of a different type and feeds from them’). It does not have a queen and births both male and female eggs, the Cuckoo bumble bee comes out to hibernation (sleep during the cold winter months) and starts to feed herself on pollen in plants, she then finds a nest of another bee species and kills the queen of that nest, then she proceeds to lay her eggs in this nest, feeding her young with the food collected from the workers (women bee who are not the queen and are in charge of getting food and building the nest) of the other species.
https://www.bumblebee.org/cuckoo.htm
13:30
COMMON CARDER BEE: The Common Carder Bee is a fluffy brown and orange bee that can be found in meadows, gardens, woodlands and farmland. They like to build their nests in old bird nests or mice holes in the ground. The queen bee will lay eggs in the spring and summer while other bees are gathering food, then the males and queen die starting autumn while a new queen hibernates to continue building the nest next Spring.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/common-carder-bee
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/ginger-yellow-bumblebees/common-carder-bee/
13:56
EARLY BUMBLE BEE: The Early Bumble Bee is a popular and common species in the UK, it is a smaller species than many others and can live in many different habitats. It plays a big role in pollinating (taking pollen from one plant or part of a plant to another so that new plant seeds can be produced) raspberries and blackberries. Its name comes from the queen of this species emerging from hibernation (sleeping through the cold winter) early in Spring, and often earlier than other bumblebee species.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/early-bumblebee
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/red-tailed-bumblebees/early-bumblebee/
CASE 2
00:00
DIGGER WASPS: There are over 100 Digger Wasp species in Britain. The reason they are called digger wasps is because the female when laying eggs will dig into the ground and nest underground. “When preparing a nest a female will dig a burrow using spiny brushes on her legs. This burrow may be up to 30cm deep or more depending on the species. The tunnel usually branches at the end and each branch will have a separate egg laid in it.” The female digger wasp will catch and bring food (another insect) to the young in the burrow to eat, depending on the species of digger wasp the food will differ, some catching and killing beetles and other smaller insects. “The sting of a female Digger wasp is not used as a defensive mechanism and is used only to paralyse her prey when she is collecting food for her young.” The Digger wasps usually dig the nests in soils, and the female often checks the ground before creating the underground nest for her young. They have a black body with a very small waist and a sharp pointed tail sometimes with yellow stripes going through the tail.
https://www.buglife.org.uk/bugs/bug-directory/digger-wasps/
01:15
HEATH SAND WASP & RED-BANDED SAND WASP: Both the Heath Sand and Red-Banded Sand Wasp dig nests in the sand to keep their eggs and larvae (young). The female Sand Wasps cover their nests with rocks and small stones, and when they come to check on the larvae they can remember exactly where they created the nest in the ground. The Sand Wasps are common in Heathlands and sandy areas in Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex and Surrey, with some species in West Midlands and North Norfolk. The Sand Wasps have a long black body with yellow stripes on the tail, their waist is less visibly small than other wasp species.
https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0000875038
https://www.flickr.com/photos/63075200@N07/albums/72157657687755379/
01:56
MUD WASP: The Mud Wasp is a wasp species known for making nests in sands and heathlands, digging nests within the ground. The female wasp paralyses another insect (mostly caterpillars and other insect larvae) with her sting and puts it in the nest with her eggs, when the eggs hatch the young feed off of the insect while the male guards the nest. The young emerge from the nest in a full adult form. The Mud wasp usually has a black body and a very thin pinched waist, their tails can also be colours in an orange tint.
https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0000876591
https://www.bwars.com/wasp/sphecidae/sphecinae/podalonia-affinis
02:32
LARGE SALLOW MINING BEE: Large Sallow Mining Bees are often found in Woodlands and areas where there is a lot of willow, more specifically eating pollen from pussy willow. They are one of the first Bee species to appear in spring and can be spotted as early as March in some parts of South England. They nest in level soil in holes dug, and sometimes live in nests in sandy areas. The Large Sallow Mining Bee have black bodies with quite pointed tails, they have yellowish hair covering their body.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/63075200@N07/albums/72157640379236194/
https://irishnaturalist.com/bees/large-sallow-mining-bee-andrena-apicata/
03:07
CLARKES MINING BEE: The Clarkes Mining Bee can often be found in wet woodlands where it digs nests underground in soil on footpaths. In these nests the female bee will dig a few compartments each containing an egg and some pollen to feed from. The Clarkes Mining bee has a black hairy tail and a tuft of orange just below their head on their body.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/andrena-clarkella
https://www.nhsn.org.uk/species/clarkes-mining-bee/
03:30
TAWNY MINING BEE: The Tawny Mining Bee is a species that can be found across London, they nest in local parks, gardens and urban green spaces. They often nest on South facing embankments across Britain from between April and June. The Tawny Mining Bee has a black body that is covered fully in orange hairs.
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/tawnyminingbee/
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/tawny-mining-bee
03:53
CHOCOLATE MINING BEE: Often mistaken for a honeybee, the Chocolate Mining Bee builds large nests that have many chambers / compartments which are inhabited by other Chocolate Mining Bees. Although they are a solitary bee they also live and inhabit the same space, although they forage for themselves and their young and not for a colony (large group). They are about collecting pollen from April to May so are spring bees that can be spotted only for a short few months. The Chocolate Mining bee has a black body with a yellow fur lining around the top half of the body.
https://www.snhbs.scot/chocolate-mining-bee/
04:30
LONG HORNED BEE: The Long Horned Bee is another solitary bee species that can be found around London. They need wild flowering areas to feed and live in and are declining because of the lack of flower rich meadows and grassland provided in Urban areas. In order to reestablish this species it is important to let green space grow, and allow for natural sites to grow and live undisturbed, therefore mowing and maintenance should be restricted. The Long Horned bee has a small body covered in sparse light white and cream-colored hairs, the males have very long antennae.
https://cdn.buglife.org.uk/2019/08/Long-horned-bee_0.pdf
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/long-horned-bee/
05:09
LEAFCUTTER BEE: Leafcutter Bees are solitary bees where the female uses leaf parts to construct her nest. The female bee will find a hollow hole somewhere, this could be within a plant stem or in some bark or dry soil. The bee then cuts and collects pieces of leaf and carries them into the tunnel, the leaf is used to create a lining inside the tunnel where an egg is laid and nectar and pollen stored for the young to eat, the bee then puts a cover or a small leaf to close the nest. Next to this small leaf nest inside the tunnel the female bee will bring more leaf pieces and lay another egg, the process continues until around 20 leaf nests with an egg in each is prepared. The Leafcutter bee is an important species for our gardens and wildlife alongside all the other insects, you can spot it sometimes carrying small pieces of leaf (often from rose trees) in between their legs when they fly to build the nests. They have a black body with light hair on the sides and some sparse hair on the bottom half of their body.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/biodiversity/leaf-cutting-bees
06:15
SHARP-TAILED BEE: The Sharp-tailed Bee is a common British bee species that lives mostly in dunes and sandy areas by the coast. This bee species is a kleptoparasite; this means that they steal food from another animal. The pointed tail of this species is used to cut through nests already made for other bee larvae (young). The sharp tailed female bee after cutting open another bees nests will lay her egg inside this nest, her egg will hatch and the young will eat the food from the nest that was originally saved for the original larvae living inside. It is also documented that the sharp tailed bee young can kill the other larvae once hatched in its nest, therefore it can consume all of the food resources and grow to emerge as an adult. Sharp-tailed bees often break into leaf cutter bees nests and lay an egg inside there. The bottom half of their body is striped and the top half is black with some hair around the sides, they key physical feature is their pointed and sharp looking bottom.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/63075200@N07/sets/72157637780093705/
https://www.bwars.com/sites/www.bwars.com/files/diary_downloads/Coelioxys-guide_lowres.pdf
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/shiny-vented-sharp-tail-bee
https://www.bwars.com/index.php?q=bee/megachilidae/coelioxys-inermis
CASE 3
00:00
WHITE BUTTERFLY PARASITE COCOONS: The White Butterfly Parasite is a small wasp that sticks its eggs onto white butterfly caterpillars, the wasp larvae then eat the caterpillar as food when they grow. These are the cocoons created by the wasp out of these emerging adult wasps.
https://biocontrol.entomology.cornell.edu/parasitoids/cotesia.php
00:21
GERMAN WASP QUEEN NEST: The Queen Nest is the first bit of the nest that a queen builds when she comes out of hibernation (sleep during winter months). She started building this nest out of chewed up wood and starts to lay her eggs inside, once the eggs hatch and other wasps help her build it is no longer the queen nest but now a general nest that will house her whole family.
00:43
BEES SOAKED IN WATER: These are a line of bees that have been soaked in water in order to test their resilience to this water treatment.
00:50
SABRE WASP: The Sabre Wasp is a parasite wasp that lays its eggs near another insect larva or near a caterpillar when its egg hatches and the Sabre wasp larvae eats the other insects young. This wasp has an amazing sense of smell and can smell the victim from afar, it pierces a hole into the nest and lays its egg inside as well as stings the larvae inside so it is paralysed. People have speculated how Sabre wasp can pierce through materials such as wood, and it was found out that the tail used to pierce has zinc in it, making it extremely strong and heavy in comparison to the rest of the wasp body. They can be found around the UK mostly in forests and woodlands.
https://www.buglife.org.uk/bugs/bug-directory/the-sabre-wasp/
01:36
VELVET ANT: The Velvet Ant is a species of wasp, its name comes from the female wasp that looks like a large ant as it has no wings. The velvet ant can come in many different bright colours, this is common in many insects, the bright colours warn a predator that the insect may be poisonous, therefore brighter insects are less likely to be attacked, although they may not all be poisonous. The velvet ant is however not a species you would like to hold, their sting is extremely painful, and has been known to be extremely dangerous for other animals.
02:09
SAWFLY: The Sawfly has its name come from the sharp tail that females use to cut plants in order to lay their eggs inside. They do not sting however their sharp tail may look like a stinger, this works in their advantage as animals who would eat them avoid doing so. They are considered a pest (an insect or animal that destroys crops or plants) because they lay their eggs inside plants and when the eggs hatch the young eat the plant as food slowly killing it.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/insects/sawfly-insect-control.htm
http://www.wildlifeinsight.com/sawfly-caterpillars-or-larvae/
02:39
STAG BEETLE: This is the Stag Beetle, it is the largest beetle found in England, and can be seen often in the South of England. They can be spotted in many different places but enjoy mostly woodlands with a lot of oak trees. The Stag Beetle larvae live up to six years eating rotten wood and growing, it then pupates and emerges as an adult beetle in springtime, in August the adult beetle dies.
03:04
BEETLES AND DEAD WOOD: A lot of dead wood that we have in London, or trees in parks that have died can become great homes for insects. Beetles are really important for the decomposition of wood so that it will eventually become part of the soil and therefore food for plants and root systems. Some beetles such as wood boring beetles will lay their eggs inside dead wood, the larvae (young) when born will eat their way out of the wood. These beetles can be a problem for furniture, however are a super important part of our environment. If you have dead wood or logs you can also pile them up with some dead leaves to make an insect hotel, a great home for many different types of bugs.
CASE 4
00:00
ANT LIONS: Ant Lions are a winged species that are part of the insect order Neuroptera. The larvae of the Ant Lion is very well known for its hunting; it lives in the sand and creates a pit where it is nesting, when food walks by (they eat mostly ants which is suggested in the name) the larvae throws sand at the food until it gets confused and falls into the pit, once fallen the larvae catches its prey and brings it into its nest to eat. They live most of their lives as larvae and only live as an adult for 20-25 days where they do not eat during this time. After they hatch from the egg, the larvae lives for around 3 weeks and grows to a large size, then out of sand and other natural materials like silk from their bottom the larvae spins a round cocoon, it grows inside the cocoon and emerges after a week as an adult.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/antlion
https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston/beneficials/beneficial-32_ant_lion.htm
00:59
SCORPION FLY: The Scorpion Fly is an insect that lives in woodlands and gardens, they particularly like living in stinging nettles. The tail on the scorpion fly looks similar to a stinger, however in males particularly the tail is a swollen part of the abdomen (the belly) used for mating and is a reproductive organ. Mating with the female Scorpion fly is dangerous for the male as the females are often bigger and more powerful, the male has to bring the female a gift of food, the bigger the food the more likely she will accept him. Scorpion Flies have beaks where their mouth is to feed on other smaller insects, they are known to often steal the food caught in spider webs. The females lay eggs into the soil, then they are born as larvae, they then build a cocoon to live in and emerge as an adult scorpion fly.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/other-insects/scorpion-fly
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/scorpion-fly
01:55
DOCK BUG: You may find the Dock Bug in South England, they like to live in damp environments and can be found in woodlands and fields. Also known as stink bugs, these insects can produce a smell that is unpleasant to predators and can protect them from getting eaten. They eat plants and fruits, and can be found in the late summer on berries and dock plants. The Dock bug is from the order of Hemiptera and is born as a nymph (smaller version of the adult) then grows into the adult after five instars (instars are periods where the insect sheds its skin and becomes larger and more grown).
https://www.britishbugs.org.uk/heteroptera/Coreidae/coreus_marginatus.html
http://www.wildlifeinsight.com/6349/squashbug-coreus-marginatus-or-dock-bug/
02:33
RED-BACKED BUG: The Red-Backed Bug is a very interesting insect and is part of the order of Hemiptera. When they are larvae just right after they have hatched from their egg they look very similar to the ant, some researchers have observed a connection between the young Red-Backed Bug and ants but are unsure of this reason, this could be that they live in ants nests for protection. Some other Hemiptera species release fluids that are very high in sugar and a good food resource for ants, it can be speculated that ants protect the bug in return of food.
http://www.habitas.org.uk/priority/species.asp?item=9920
03:10
BLACK & RED SQUASH: The black and red squash bugs are a very beautiful species to see in the garden, you can identify them from their red with black spot wings. They live in dry environments and eat plants, when under threat these insects release a smell that people think smells of cinnamon.
https://candide.com/ZA/insects/ad534e3f-3385-475b-89f7-7e99c44377b3
03:28
GREEN SHIELD BUG: The Green Shield bug commonly found in Farms and Gardens as it eats plants used to be found only in the South of England. Adult shield bugs hibernate in grasses and in piles of leaves, their eggs are laid on the underside of many different types of plant leaves. The species is now spreading North and can be seen across the country. The common green shieldbug is small, bright green with tiny black dots and dark wings.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bugs/common-green-shieldbug
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/other-garden-wildlife/insects-and-other-invertebrates/beetles-and-bugs/green-shield-bug/
03:55
RED-LEGGED SHIELD BUG: The Red-Legged Shield Bug can be found mostly in woodlands and orchards. The species can be found spread across Britain, but is mostly found in Leicestershire and Rutland from July to November. It has a black flat body with a yellow spot in the middle of it
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/red-legged-shieldbug
04:14
HAWTHORN SHIELD BUG: The Hawthorn Shield Bug is known as a common woodland shield bug species. As a larvae it eats Hawthorn berries and as an adult eats the berry and plant, they also eat Rowan and Whitebeam. They are also attracted to lights therefore may get caught in Moth traps. They are a light green insect with a flat body and two brown lines crossing down to the tail of the body.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/hawthorn-shieldbug
https://www.britishbugs.org.uk/heteroptera/Acanthosomatidae/a_haemorrhoidale.html
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bugs/hawthorn-shieldbug
04:39
BRONZE SHIELD BUG: The Bronze Shield Bug can be found mostly in Woodlands, feeding off of Coniferous trees (‘trees producing cones, and having leaves that do not fall off in the winter: An informal mix of trees and shrub’) and broadleaf. It feeds on tree sap when young and grows into an adult where it feeds on other insects.
“A study on bronze shield bugs discovered that males vibrate to create pulses of low-frequency sound, which is believed to be a call to attract nearby females. After the signal was given, the female approached the male and began to feel him with her antennae.”
The Bronze shield bug is a flat bodied bug that is a bronze/ dark greenish brown colour.
https://www.wildlifewatch.org.uk/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bugs/bronze-shieldbug
05:21
HORNET HOVERFLY: The Hornet Hoverfly is a species of fly that looks very similar to a hornet. These flies have developed this in order to trick predators (such as birds) to think they are not food as birds will not eat a hornet because of its sting. This Hoverfly first came to Britain in the 1940s and at that time was considered a rare species. The Larvae (young) of the Hornet Hoverfly live with social wasps in their nests, it eats all of the litter and debris produced by the wasps so that the wasps maintain a cleaner nest, in return by living in the nest the wasps protect it from predators. The Hornet Hoverfly has a yellow and black striped body with a bright yellow face and dark burgundy eyes.
https://www.buglife.org.uk/bugs/bug-directory/hornet-hoverfly/
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/flies/hornet-mimic-hoverfly
06:08
YELLOW-BANDED HOVERFLY: The Yellow-Banded Hoverfly is a common fly species that looks similar to a wasp to avoid getting eaten by predators, it has a rounded, black body with a pattern of yellow spots and bands. The adults of this species feed on the nectar from flowers, however the young (larvae) are predators and eat aphids (another insect species).
https://maltawildplants.com/!faunafungi/maltawildlife.php?species=Eupeodes%20corollae
https://www.landscapebritain.co.uk/wildlife/common-banded-hoverfly/
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/flies/common-banded-hoverfly
06:31
PELLUCID FLY: The Pellucid Fly is one of the largest British Fly species.” It is about 15–16 mm in length with a broad body. It is mainly black, but the front part of its abdomen has a broad, yellow band, giving it the appearance of a bee or wasp.” These flies look very similar to wasps, this is because this helps them avoid getting eaten by birds who do not eat wasps because of their sting. The female adult Pellucid Fly lays her eggs in a normal wasps nest which the wasps seem not to mind as the young of the flies eats the dead wasps in the nest. The main difference between this fly and the wasp is that the wasp has four wings and the fly two. This fly eats nectar and pollen and is found in woodlands and gardens with a preference for bramble.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/pellucid-fly
https://uk.inaturalist.org/taxa/52480-Volucella-pellucens
07:22
THISTLE GALL FLY: The Thistle Gall Fly is very common in Leicestershire and Rutland, but can be found also in the South of Britain. The name is from the eggs that are laid by the adult fly on a Creeping Thistle, and when hatched they burrow into the plant and create a swelling to grow into. The Thistle gall fly has a black body with a pale head; their wings are white with a black-W on them.
https://www.gedlingconservationtrust.org/species/diptera/thistle-gall-fly/
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/thistle-gall-fly
07:50
KNAPWEED GALL FLY: The Knapweed Gall Fly are a species that live in the flower head of the Black Knapweed Plant. It has a black body with white wings, the wings have three faint black stripes.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1493.pdf
08:03
LARGE BULB FLY: The Large Bulb Fly is a fly species who has evolved to look like a bumble bee. These flies are often seen around dandelions or bluebells and feed on pollen and nectar. This fly is covered in ginger hairs, with a black band around the middle of its body, and a creamy tail.
https://www.wildlifewatch.org.uk/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/flies/narcissus-bulb-fly?gclid=CjwKCAiAzKqdBhAnEiwAePEjknUCBt4hg59X9cfaLB7hN82r0xWZ1eUWNG5_s3Rvl4RMieZCTG6-KxoCqTAQAvD_BwE
08:23
ROT HOLE DRONE FLY: The Rot Hole Drone Fly is a species of fly that looks particularly similar to a honey bee. Although they look like bees they are not able to sting and are harmless to humans. They can often be found on sycamore trees. This fly has the top half of its body covered in ginger hairs, with a black bottom half and tail.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/63075200@N07/albums/72157629241275534/
08:45
COMMON DRONE FLY: Feeding off nectar these flies are one of the many that also look very similar to honeybees to avoid being eaten by predators. The Common Drone Flies larvae (young) live in muddy water and polluted waters, they eat organic materials and waste therefore are great decomposers (an organism (living thing) that breaks down dead organic materials, this broken down material often becomes soil and dirt). The Common Drone Fly has a dark-brown body, orange patches on the sides of its body which are also covered in ginger hairs.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/common-drone-fly
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/flies/drone-fly
09:23
TAPERED DRONE FLY: The Tapered Drone Fly is often found eating nectar and pollen in woodlands and hedgerows. The Tapered Drone Fly looks very similar to the Common Drone Fly, it has a dark brown / black body, with oranges going down the sides of its body.
https://hoverflylagoons.co.uk/tapered-drone-fly-eristalis-pertinax/
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/tapered-drone-fly
CASE 5
00:00
GREEN BUSH CRICKET: The Green Bush Cricket is a popular cricket found in Britain, it rubs its wings together to create a very loud noise to attract female crickets. This makes a quite high pitched sound, and often because the cricket is light green and lives in grassy areas and meadows it camouflages itself well, therefore can be spotted through its singing more frequently than itself. They mostly inhabit South England and there are many in the South of Wales, they are drawn to areas with dry soil as it is the best place for the female crickets to lay her eggs. The Green Bush Cricket is a large bright green cricket.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/grasshoppers-and-crickets/great-green-bush-cricket
00:38
DARK BUSH CRICKET: A very common cricket, the Dark Bush Cricket can be spotted from May to November. They spend a lot of time in groups on bramble bushes in the summer months singing a very distinct and familiar song. The males are known to be quite aggressive however females are not and prefer to lay their eggs not in the ground but in holes and space between bark or dead wood. They are quite small and have very brown bodies.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/grasshoppers-and-crickets/dark-bush-cricket
01:04
MOLE CRICKET: This is the mole cricket, a popular insect in the UK, its mole-like hands for digging burrows are what gives it the name. After being declared an endangered species in the UK in 1987, the mole cricket can still be spotted in damp meadows and sands mostly in South England.
Keeping Crickets as pets or in households started in China from before the 12th century. The insects were transported in small wooden cages and were sometimes kept in one when brought into the house, they were otherwise kept in ceramic or vegetables such as gourds (a gourd can be pumpkin, squash melon etc). The shape of the cricket house would strengthen the sound of its song, making it resonate within the household. Some gardeners would also grow and harvest vegetables when they were in their best shape for housing the cricket.
01:56
PRIVET HAWK MOTH: This is the caterpillar of the Privet Hawk Moth above its cocoon, it is the largest UK native Hawk Moth with a wingspan of 9-12 cm. The caterpillar of this moth species feeds on different plants such as lilac, holly and honeysuckle, the caterpillar then spins its cocoon shells and emerges as a fully winged moth adult. These moths can be found in many different habitats but mostly around soil that is chalky, which means they are mostly present in the South of England, or in the Midlands. The Moth lives as a caterpillar from July to September, it then pupates in its cocoon underground over the winter time and emerges as an adult for around a month from June. This caterpillar is bright green and it has white and pink stripes going alongside its body.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/moths/privet-hawk-moth
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/privet-hawk-moth
02:27
EYED HAWK MOTH: This is the Eyed Hawk Moth caterpillar and its cocoon. Similarly to other Hawk moths this caterpillar lives from June to September feeding on nearby plants such as sallows and apples. They then spin themselves into a cocoon near their food plant, and emerge in May as an adult Moth, they only live as an adult for around two months. The Eyed Hawk Moth caterpillar is a quite large and bright green, however when it has been preserved it often loses its bright colours.
https://easymap.nbnatlas.org/EasyMap?tvk=NBNSYS0000006068&w=400&b0fill=39B0D5
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/eyed-hawk-moth
03:17
ELEPHANT HAWK MOTH: The Elephant Hawk Moth is a non-poisonous moth species that can be found around Britain. Their green and pink bodies and wings make them a spectacular moth. This is the Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillar and its cocoon, and gets its name from the caterpillar looking like an elephant trunk.The caterpillar lives until fully grown over Spring and Summer and lives over winter in a cocoon underneath a plant or underneath fallen leaves. It then comes out of the cocoon as an adult and flies and feeds from May to August. They have amazing night vision and are often feeding at night times, they are however attracted to lights and can be found flying around or sitting on trees at dusk. The caterpillar of the Elephant Hawk Moth is brown that turns into a cream colour towards its head, on the head they have two black spots that are meant to look like eyes but are not.
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2018/07/elephant-hawk-moths/
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/elephant-hawk-moth
04:10
SPURGE HAWK MOTH: The Spurge Hawk Moth migrated (moved from one region or habitat to another) from Southern Europe to the South of England. They are not very often spotted however have been recorded. This caterpillar in the wild is extremely bright, it is yellow and orange and wears a black coat, it also has cream and white spots.
https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/hyles-euphorbiae/
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/spurge-hawk-moth
04:35
PUSS MOTH: The name Puss Moth comes from the adult moth's soft fur that covers its body. This is the Puss Moth caterpillar fully grown next to a lesser grown puss moth caterpillar. The caterpillar’s live from July to September and grow significantly throughout this time. They then spin a cocoon from chewed wood and pupate over the winter moths on tree trunks or upright structure, they then emerge as an adult with wings in May and live until July. The caterpillar of this Moth when threatened can spray from two tails formic acid (an acid also present in ants) onto their predators, although they only use this when attacked. The Puss moth caterpillar is usually bright green with a dark brown back, it is very recognisable with a bright pink ring around its face and two black tails.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/moths/puss-moth
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/puss-moth
05:25
SALLOW KITTEN: The Sallow Kitten Moth is a beautiful white and grey fur moth. This is two different sizes of the caterpillar, the larger one being when the moth caterpillar has grown larger and is nearer to pupation (going into its cocoon to become an adult with wings). In the South of England the moth goes through two generations, one flying from May to June and another series of adults emerging from cocoons in august. In the North of England this moth only has one generation and flies as an adult only from June to July. The Sallow Kitten caterpillar is smaller than others, it is bright green with a strip of dark brown/purple on its back and has a distinct raised head.
https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/furcula-furcula/
https://britishlepidoptera.weebly.com/005-furcula-furcula-sallow-kitten.html
06:09
DECEMBER MOTH: The December Moth can be found in woodlands and shrubs around the UK. The caterpillar as shown on display with its cocoons feeds on leaves of oak trees, birches, and elms. The caterpillar then pupates (going into its cocoon to become an adult with wings) under bark throughout the summer and emerge to fly as adult moths from October to December. The December moth caterpillars are grey with a slight orange colouring, they have a lot of bristles / hairs covering their body.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/december-moth
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/december-moth
06:39
GRASS EGGAR: The Grass Eggar Moth caterpillar is often seen with many bright yellow and black bristles. The caterpillar eats creeping willow and bramble as well as other plants, however when they become adults they do not eat anymore and only live a very short time living most of their lives as caterpillars. You can find this species mostly in coastal areas in Britain or near sand dunes.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/grass-eggar/pale-grass-eggar
https://ukmoths.org.uk/species/lasiocampa-trifolii/
07:03
PALE EGGAR: The Pale Eggar Moth caterpillar is usually black and yellow and becomes orange and grey with bristles when maturing. The bristles are believed to give someone a rash if they rub skin against the caterpillar, this is their defence against predators such as birds. You may see these moths mostly in woodlands and near heathland.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/pale-eggar
https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/trichiura-crataegi/
07:22
DRINKER MOTH: The Drinker Moth caterpillars grow from August to June, unlike many other species they live as a caterpillar throughout winter however during the coldest months usually find places to shelter where they hibernate (sleep during cold weather), in Spring they start to cocoon and become an adult from July to August. You will most likely find these species in grasslands munching on different types of grass. The Drinker moth caterpillar is coloured with dark colours like brown and black in a strip on the top of the body and the colour changes going down the body to yellows and oranges, the whole body is covered in hairs / bristles.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/drinker
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/moths/drinker
08:01
LAPPET MOTH: The Lappet Moth is an amazingly camouflaged moth that lives in woodlands in the South of England and South of Wales. It looks exactly like a leaf therefore can hide from predators and avoid being eaten. The caterpillar grows very large and secures its cocoon to a stick or branch for safety and emerges as an adult in June and lives over summer. It is recorded that this species is declining but reasons are unsure. The caterpillar is brown and grey with small hairs / bristles, it blends into its environment really well.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/lappet
http://www.wildlifeinsight.com/30518/the-lappet-moth-gastropacha-quercifolia/