macro botanical

 

11-08-26 Far too long since I'd visited the Botanics. It was sunny enough to bring out a few insects but a little bit disappointing overall, with speckled woods being the only butterfly species out in numbers. I had gone mainly with the purpose of hunting hoverflies and interesting bugs, and taking close-ups of them with the macro lens. A good way to spend a few hours if the butterflies aren't out. Not that many insects in general but enough to generate 600+ images and videos.

The first thing I came across was a hairy shieldbug on a teasel, which I made a poor job of recording. Come on Buchanan pull those socks up! 

the best of a bad bunch!

On my way to the Herbaceous Border and Demonstration Garden I checked the buddleia at the cafe. There was a solitary admiral there but it didn't mind me getting quite close while it snorted lines of buddleia pollen. 

for once the sundial clock at the cafe was within 20minutes of correct:
real time was about 11minutes past 2

Campbell's magnolia flaunting obscenities

Elaine

Elaine caught me standing glaikit looking, near the same place she found me last time. I never see her coming because she surrounds herself with oldies on walking poles. When she said my full name I knew it was Elaine (although afterwards I wondered if I'd called her Christine and she had just politely ignored my mental incontinence,) and I said it must be Tuesday. On Tuesdays she takes her trekking pole group round the Botanics (and/or other local landmarks). 47 years ago we both turned up to Grays Art School in Aberdeen. Forty Seven years! Holy shit that is a long time ago. I had to do the numbers on my calculator twice because that seemed about twice as much as I expected. Can't be more than 2 dozen years surely? Every now and then you look back from a different angle and scare yourself. Fuck I must be really old? What did I do with all those years? Sand through fingers.

I must work up a joke about Elaine's pole dancing troop so I can engage more comprehensively the next Tuesday she catches me lurking by the pulmonaria looking for bees and hovers. Maybe I should just use that handy catchphrase See You Next Tuesday.

We walked and chatted for a bit and butterflies came up. Elaine said she'd seen a mottled brown one and I said that'll have been a speckled wood. As if to illustrate the point one landed on a passing tree. I took a quick photo, the only speckled I shot today.

pole dancers

We said goodbye and I returned to the rhododendron copse. I saw a robin out the corner of my eye and went over for a chat. He didn't fly off and so I rattled the seed bag and much to my surprise he flew over and took a sunflower seed from my hand. Next visit he sat for about 8 seconds on my hand. All the time I was trying to line up my macro lens and take shots of him sitting there. When he flew off I chimped the shots and each one was six inches to the right of my hand and the bird. Very disappointing. Hadn't I previously managed to shoot birds on my hand easily with the macro lens? On reflection I thought it must have been with the street lens which is 12~60 (vs macro 90mm) and easier to point at something close by and get it in the frame. With the macro lens a few degrees out and you'll only frame the background bushes. 

I tried to get Mr Bushy Eyebrows to return to my hand after I'd swapped to the street lens but he was now well fed and not really requiring any more. I put some food on the armrest of the bench and he eventually came over and took a few more seeds but you can see in the video he is only doing it to please me and not very hungry any more. At least I'll recognise those eyebrows next visit. I wonder if he is any relative of Squint Bill the robin with the crooked beak who also lives/lived in this area. (No sign either of the amazing great tit pair who handfed last Winter, although it is really the wrong time of year for anyone to be sitting on hands.)(Usually only happens when food is more scarce and needed in the cold depths of Winter.)

robin video

From there it was no distance to the Herbacious Border. There are a few plants in there that attract pollinators. Although the sun would appear intermittently it was not a great day for butterflies and interesting insects. At first all I could find were honey bees and bumble bees. Both very commonplace and a bit meh. I had been having an online chat with Mairi about bees and how I find the aesthetic of bumble bees leaves me cold and as a result I rarely bother them. Especially once the butterfly season is underway. I like hoverflies although their many near identical species confuses me and I leave obsidentify to pick up the slack, happy in my ignorance. 

It underlines that my primary concern is the aesthetics (which stems from my art background) and not necessarily the scientific or biological angle. I enjoy finding rare insects but I'd far rather photograph a beautiful common thing well (banded demoiselle for instance) than some extremely rare worm in a photo devoid of charm. The same ideals that drew me to notice butterflies in the first place - they are like miniature paintings.

honey bee - only photographed till something better came along
and because I'd said to Mairi I'd try to pay more attention to the bees

honey bee

Tachina fera/magnicornis

(hairy arsed fly)

Tachina fera/magnicornis
almost impossible to tell those 2 species apart apparently
without dissection

Eristalis pertinax

Eristalis pertinax - tapered drone fly

honey bee

Eristalis pertinax

Myathropa florea - batman hoverfly

Sarcophaga spec.

as above

Myathropa florea

honey bee - Apis mellifera

buff-tailed or white-tailed bumblebee

echinacea

I would not have spotted this frog were it not for a parent of some kids, who pointed it out, sat in the middle of a mini-pond in the demonstration garden. Hardly more than a basin sized water hole it had none-the-less attracted this handsome frog. I was very careful not to spook it - had to get quite close due to the macro lens.

they didn't used to have basin ponds here!

there were a couple and they seemed nicely bedded in

Sphecodes spec. - blood bee
they are kleptoparasitic on ground-nesting bees 

as above

California poppy

Eupeodes corollae - migrant aphideater
number 15 in the top 36 hovers!

non-butterfly pollinators
always ensure clicking on settings cog, it is set to 1080p (HD)

Syrphus ribesii - all the syrphus species are very hard to seperate
so no idea why obsidentify says ribesii here

While I was crounched on the ground (at times shamelessly lying horizontally on the grass beside the plants) this painted lady suddenly appeared right at my shoulder. It was either totally addicted to these yellow flowers or really wanted to be in this blog. Due to the lack of butterflies I immediately dropped the hovers and latched on to the butterfly for 10minutes of close up shots and video. It didn't mind me being right up in its face and sat very nicely looking right at me and then turning round like the best model. I was extremely grateful despite painted ladies being one of the more prevalent species this year.

waving hello!

Myathropa florea again

best butterfly pic of the day
the angle of the flower stems and reflected light on the butterfly 😍

admiral and painted lady video clips

as above, Myathropa florea

best hover today for letting the camera get in really close!
known commonly as Batman hoverfly because of the batman logo on thorax

Calendula officinalis - pot marigold

Japanese anemone

Tagetes patula - French marigold

phalacridae sp. - shining flower beetle

honey bee on echinacea

cornflower

Tachina fera/magnicornis

Myathropa florea - batman logo on thorax near head

waterlily on Reg Butler pond

Rowan berries - I'm still in denial
about Autumn being around the corner

A cheerful sight to see this clever mallard mum who had managed to raise 5 of her youngsters to virtually adult size. They were all diving for riverweed so they got a few seeds and peanuts as well. A happy scene to finish the day, on the way home past the WoL.

I didn't realise all the paths I took round the gardens 
until I saw this output from my gps watch

just under 6miles in just under 4hrs

very enjoyable