NEWSLETTER 43 LEICESTERSHIRE September 2010 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY VC55 A chalcid wasp Harvestman gallops across Europe new to Leicestershire Dicranopalpus ramosus has been noticed by several On 20 Mar 2010, I noticed some tiny insects inside my members this August. The photo was taken by John study window. On looking closer, they had long Tinning at Queniborough; Ros Smith found this ovipositors and wing-venation that indicated Chalcid harvestman on the Shenton Estate and at Grace Dieu wasps. These are mostly parasitic on other insects and Wood; Steve Woodward recorded it at Ulverscroft NR. often emerge from galls. I rummaged through the It has a characteristic resting pose, with all eight legs various specimens in my study to find a gall from spread sideways. No other harvestman has such which they might have emerged, but without success. obviously forked pedipalps (bottom of photo) - at a glance this creature seems to have 12 legs! This The wasps are only 3 species, originally known from Morocco, has rapidly mm long with a 4 mm spread through NW Europe, reaching England ovipositor. They are (Bournemouth) in 1957 and Scotland in 2000. Jon mostly yellowish- Daws tells me that it has been in the county for some brown in colour, with years, but it does seem particularly conspicuous this dark brown at the back year. of the round head. The relatively large eyes are pink. The thorax and the hind femora are dark brown, as are the elbowed antennae. The forewings, each only 2.5 mm long, have only one prominent vein, along the leading Photo: Steve Woodward edge. Two thirds of the way along, the vein branches but soon terminates in a conspicuous dark stigma. Most of the wing is clothed in minute hairs. Of course, all this in only visible under the microscope! Identification of wild roses is not straightforward and it is often necessary to send away a specimen to a referee for verification. For this purpose I had collected a shoot of Sherard’s Downy Rose, Rosa sherardii, which was confirmed by the referee, Roger Maskew. It is a beautiful species whose portrait was Photo: John Tinning used as the frontispiece in the Flora of Leicestershire. The specimen, from Thringstone (SK43611744), had Ed. old hips attached and in them I noticed perfectly circular holes, 0.9 mm diameter. Were these hips the LES Newsletter 43 September 2010 source of the wasps? I dissected one to have a closer look. Sure enough, I found more female wasps struggling their way out of Affiliated to: Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust the hip. But there were no host insects or galls - the Chairman & wasps were emerging from LES Occasional Publications Editor: the actual seeds. Ray Morris 16 Hinckley Road, Dadlington By this time I had been in Leics. CV13 6HU Telephone: 01455 213569 touch with our local gall and Email: [email protected] hymenoptera specialist Maggie Frankum, who in Secretary: turn consulted the national Anona Finch expert Robin Williams. It Photo: Steve Woodward 14 Thorndale, Ibstock, Leics. LE67 6JT seems that whereas many Email: [email protected] Chalcids are parasitic, the genus Megastigmus includes some whose grubs feed on seeds, particularly in the Treasurer: plant families Pinaceae and Rosaceae. Robin checked Stuart Poole my specimen and confirmed that I had found 18 Croft Drive, Wigston, Megastigmus aculeatus Swederus, a first record for Leicester LE18 1HD Telephone: 0116 288 0236 Leicestershire. Previously found on various other Rosa Email: [email protected] species, this appears to be the first record from Rosa sherardii. Committee Members: Dave Budworth For a thorough and well-illustrated account of these 121 Wood Lane, Newhall, Swadlincote wasps with keys, see: Derbys. DE11 0LX Telephone: 01283 215188 Roques, A. & Skrzypcznska, M. (2003). Seed-infesting Email: [email protected] chalcids of the genus Megastigmus Dalman, 1820 Maggie & Roy Frankum (Hymenoptera: Torymidae) native and introduced to 3 Chapel Lane, Knighton, the West Palearctic region: taxonomy, host specificity Leicester LE2 3WF and distribution. Journal of Natural History 37, 2, Telephone: 0116 270 5833 Email: [email protected] 127-238. [available as a free download at Consultant Entomologist: www.nhm.ac.uk/resources/research- Derek Lott curation/projects/chalcidoids/pdf/RoquesSk2003.pdf] 5 Welland Road, Barrow upon Soar, Steve Woodward Leics. LE12 8NA Email: [email protected] Newsletter Editor: Silverfish and Firebrats Steve Woodward 19 Highfield Road, Groby The small order Thysanura, or Bristle- Leicester LE6 0GU tails, includes Silverfish Lepisma Telephone: 0116 287 1679 Email : [email protected] saccharina and Firebrats Thermobia domestica. These primitive, wingless insects were formerly common in The editor will be happy to receive articles, houses and bakeries, but they do not short notes and photos (in focus please!) about seem to appreciate our modern insects or other arthropods in Leicestershire centrally-heated buildings. How are and Rutland, also news of members’ activities they doing in Leicestershire? Helen further afield. Ikin would like to know. Please forward any records to her (contact Next Copy Deadline: 10 Jan 2011 details on page 8). 2 September 2010 LES Newsletter 43 Notable leafhopper instance, in 2001 there were no Bombus terrestris from Priory Water bumblebees of any caste seen after 1 November and normally, no queens were expected to emerge from This species of leafhopper (Cicadellidae) was found hibernation for around three months, that is to say the in pit-fall traps set for ground beetles at the edge of following March - although a Bombus terrestris queen one of the smaller finger lakes at Priory Water (Grid was seen on 5 February 2002, stirring from hibernation ref. SK 7118) in July 2010. The habitat was dominated on a warm sunny day. Again in 2003, Bombus by Common Reed, Phragmites australis, growing in terrestris queens emerged from hibernation in early damp ground that floods in the winter. Agallia March; and Gareth Burton (at the University of brachyptera is classed as Notable by Kirby (1992) – Leicester Attenborough Arboretum in Knighton) also meaning that it is uncommon and thought to occur in reported Bombus terrestris queens in March. The last less than one hundred 10 km squares of the National bumblebees of 2003 were seen in November. Grid in Britain. Records are mainly from the East In 2004, the first Bombus terrestris queens emerged Midlands, including a few from east Leicestershire, mid February at the arboretum and in my garden on and the north-east, up to Northumberland. The species 23 March. However at the end of the year, things is distinctively marked, approximately 3 mm long, started to change, because in the garden, the last with short forewings (brachypterous) covering only Bombus terrestris was a queen, seen collecting pollen the base of the abdomen. from Welsh poppies on 14 November - this was Although recorded from unusual since the queens would usually have gone into both dry and marshy habitats hibernation. At the arboretum, Gareth saw a Bombus in Britain and a saltmarsh in terrestris queen in flight on 23 December; and then Ireland, the species appears observed them foraging Lonicera x purpusei to have a preference for dry throughout January and February 2005. Here in the localities with open garden, the first Bombus terrestris queen was not seen vegetation, often on chalk until 20 March foraging Erica and Heleborus. The and limestone (Kirby 1992). last arboretum bumblebee sighting of 2005 was on 14 A. brachyptera is a ground- November; and in my garden, a Bombus terrestris living species that queen and a worker with pollen loads were again seen overwinters as an egg and foraging Welsh Poppy in mid November; and a can be found in the adult Bombus terrestris queen flew by on 21 December. stage between June and In 2006, Bombus terrestris queens were out searching Photo: Tony Cook September. It feeds on a the garden for nest sites in April, with last sightings in range of herbs including October; whereas in 2007, Bombus terrestris queens Trifolium repens and Achillea millefolium. were active in late January, February & March, with Reference the last sightings being in mid-September, again collecting pollen from Welsh Poppies. Again in 2008, Kirby P (1992) A review of scarce and threatened Bombus terrestris workers were seen in the garden in Hemiptera of Great Britain. UK Nature Conservation January and February, foraging recently bought No. 2. JNCC Peterborough. Mahonia “Winter Sun”, Mahonia “Charity” and Lonicera x purpusei; and in October, they were Tony Cook and Frank Clark collecting pollen from Mullein. A Bombus terrestris queen was seen on Christmas Day visiting Mahonia and foraging continued throughout January and Winter Active Bumblebees in VC55 February 2009. At the arboretum, Gareth reported Bombus terrestris flying about throughout November I first became aware of bumblebees and their activities 2008; and he reported winter-active bumblebees in my garden, when poor weather conditions in 1996 foraging Lonicera x purpusei and Stinking Hellebore delayed the start of the flight period of my study bees in January; and again near Hallam Crescent in Anthophora plumipes by three weeks until late March, Braunstone. In his Quorn garden, Peter Gamble also putting them into direct competition for foraging saw Bombus terrestris queens and workers with pollen choices with early bumblebees. From then on each loads, foraging Mahonia and Lonicera fragrantissima, year, I extended my daily garden observations to in November and December 2008. include bumblebees as well, until the autumn when all the newly mated queens would have hibernated and Changes in bumblebee behaviour were becoming more all other workers and drones had died off. For noticeable, especially foraging winter-flowering 3 LES Newsletter 43 September 2010 shrubs, and the bumblebees were foraging at quite low Observations from the Attenborough temperatures too - on 6 February 2009, with snow on Arboretum the ground after an overnight frost of -1°C, I saw a Bombus terrestris worker taking nectar from yellow Maggie Frankum receives a steady flow of specimens Mahonia flowers at 3°C.