Entries from February 1, 2014 - February 28, 2014

Friday
Feb282014

Tephritid Fly

From a year and a half ago: a female Urophora cardui (Diptera: Tephritidae) on a nettle (Urtica dioica), not its normal host plant.

Photos taken in the field below Chazey Wood, near Caversham, UK, on 2012-06-19.

Thursday
Feb272014

Yellow Jelly Fungus

Tremella mesenterica growing on a branch from a broad-leaf tree.

I took the following specimen home with me:

And it yielded the following spores (magnification x600, field width 86um):

The large ellipsoidal spores are about 13.5 x 9um which agrees well with the range 10.0–16.0 x 6.0–9.5um given for Tremella mesenterica here.  The numerous small spores may be contamination from the green lichen that covered most of the branch.

First photo and specimen taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2014-02-15.

Wednesday
Feb262014

Muscid Fly

From a few years ago: what I think is a female Helina depuncta (Diptera: Muscidae).

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2010-11-06.

Tuesday
Feb252014

Fungus

Cramp balls fungus, Daldinia concentrica, growing on the end of a decaying beech log (Fagus sp).

Photo taken in the Wilderness, Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2014-02-15.

Monday
Feb242014

Snowdrop

A snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis.  No snow so far this winter though.

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2014-02-22.