Sunny and warm.
Two metallic flies.
Two tricky hoverflies. Cheilosia variabilis (left, male) and Xylota jakutorum (right, female), both new to the site. Xylota jakutorum is described as 'widely scattered but infrequent' in Ireland.
The Birch leaves are only just fully open, but already quite a few Birch miners have been and gone, or nearly so.
The first two shots are of Incurvaria pectinea - a micromoth. The larvae can be seen clearly in each of the mines (right).
The miner (left) makes a blotch mine at the edge of the leaf, whereas the other (right) makes a mine between two veins.
The rolled Beech leaf looked promising and revealed Beech Woolly Aphids when opened.
An interesting little albino fly.
Flowers are emerging faster than I can catalogue them. Common Catsear (left) and Bramble (right).
Hogweed is on the brink of flowering. That will bring out the hoverflies. Honeysuckle is on the right.
The micromoth Celypha lacunana on the left and Cantharis pellucida - a Soldier Beetle - on the right.
Red Clover is now fully open and Sanicle (right) has appeared.
A nymph (early stage) of the Forest Shield Bug - Pentatoma rufipes.
A rather strange little fly with a very short abdomen and white wings.
Tenthredo sp. Sawfly.
This is the first Treecreeper I have seen in a very long time.