Hoverfly sightings w/c 22nd Sept 2025

When spotting hoverflies out in the field I try to find that hoverfly hot spot, this might be a glade, a woodland edge or just a flower bed. At this time of year finding that hotspot becomes a little more challenging as most of the flowers are past their best. But there is one plant that comes into its own at this time of year and that is the flowering of Ivy Hedera helix. I let it grow in my garden in the hope that come autumn it might become a hoverfly hotspot.

Hopefully I have grown a good crop and over the coming weeks it will provide me many hours of hoverfly watching just outside my backdoor.

Date 27^th Sept: Trying not to get Stung:

Time of recording 1-2pm, much colder today. Cloudy.

I do wonder whether the same hoverflies and other notables come back to the same bush day after day – what do we think?

Hoverflies logged:

Greater Hornet Plumehorn (Volucella zonaria) 1♀, Common Banded (Syrphus ribesii) 3♀, Tapered (Eristalis pertinax) 1♂, Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax) 1♂+1♀, Grey Spotted (Platycheirus albimanus) 1♂+1♀, no Marmalade (Episyrphus balteatus) or Batman (Myathropa florea)

Star Species of the week:  Greater Hornet (Volucella zonaria)

Other notable species:

2 Red admiral Vanessa atlanta, 10 Common wasp Vespula vulgaris, 4 Blowfly Calliphora sp, 2 Queen Buff-tailed bee Bombus terrestris, 1 Honeybee Apis mellifera, 1 Greenbottle Lucillia sericata, 4 7-spotted ladybird Coccinlla 7-punctata and 1 Garden spider Araneus diadematus who had set up a web overnight.

The Ivy bush as certainly delivered on species this week and to get a Greater Hornet hoverfly at the end of it was just the cherry.

Moth tapping:

I put a heath moth trap out Friday night only caught two specimens Large Yellow Underwing (Noctura pronuba), and Light Brown Apple (Epiphyas postvittana).

BNA bat evening:

Saturday night went batting with Kev and Rachel and other members of the local British Naturalist Association (B.N.A) at Hoyle Mill country park.

Bats seen and detected with Magenta Bat4 and recorded with Echo Meter Touch 2 for ios:  Common Pipistrelle Pipistrelus pipistrelllus, Soprano Pipistrelle Pipistrellus pygmaeus, Noctule Nyctalus noctule, Leisler’s Nyctalus leisleri, Daubentions Myotis daubentonii, Brown Long-eared Plecotus auritus.

Kev used his thermal camera, and we possibly caught a Fox Vulpes vulpes rootling around on the far bank, but we definitely did catch a fast-moving Hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus to end the evening.

Thanks to Kev and Rachel for a wonderful event.

Date 25^th September: The Ivy bush was a humming

Time of recording 12-4pm, Temp approx. 17 degrees, Sunny.

Hoverflies logged:

Please note these numbers are only approximations of the maximum I saw at any one given time.

Common Banded (Syrphus ribesii) 5♀+2♂, Tapered (Eristalis pertinax) 2♀+♂, Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax) 2♂+2♀, Batman (Myathropa florea) 1♀, Grey Spotted (Platycheirus albimanus) ♂, no Marmalade (Episyrphus balteatus).

Other notable species:

2 Red admiral Vanessa atlanta, 15 Common wasp Vespula vulgaris, 10 Blowfly Calliphora sp, 1 Queen Buff-tailed bee Bombus terrestris, 2 Honeybee Apis mellifera, these were around most if not all the afternoon but the 2 Greenbottle Lucillia sericata only arrived nearer to 4pm.

23rd September: What might the Ivy bush deliver?

Time of recording 2-3pm: Temp approx.14 degrees. Sunny but clouding over later

Hoverflies logged:

Please note these numbers are only approximations as each insect rarely stayed on a single pompom flower head for more than a few seconds.

Common Banded (Syrphus ribesii) 7♀+2♂, Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax) 4♂+3♀, Eupeodes sp, Batman (Myathropa florea) 1♀, Tapered (Eristalis pertinax) 1♀+♂, Grey Spotted (Platycheirus albimanus) 1♂, Marmalade (Episyrphus balteatus) 1♂.

Other notable species:

Skein of Pink-footed Geese Anser brachyrhybchus, Red Admiral Vanessa atlanta, Common wasp Vespula vulgaris almost outnumbering the hoverflies. Blowfly Calliphora sp.

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