Top Five Insects I’ve Seen – #1 – The Ruby-tailed wasp (Chrysis sp. or family Chrysididae)

As if you didn’t know it’d be a wasp! But look at it. It’s the wasp I show people to use as a crowbar to talk about wasp diversity. The first thing people who don’t know wasps say when you show them this little beauty, or any of their family, the chrysididae, is “Is that

Top 5 Insects I’ve Seen – #3 – The Cinnabar Moth (Tyria jacobaeae)

I hadn’t actually seen one of these until only a couple of months ago. Not their adult, flying form anyway. But when you see this beautiful vamp spread its wings it truly is something to behold. Seeing it Unfold its seemingly blood-stained black cape to reveal a bold red lining beneath. This moth is fashion

My Top 5 Favourite UK Insects I’ve Seen: Introduction

Happy Insect Week! If you’ve been following for a while you’ll know my history with insects, but if not here’s the story. I was, at one point, before an autistic burnout turned my dreams to ashes, an aspiring biologist. It is safe to say that biology, ecology and wildlife were my first true academic love.

Dungeness – Weird and Wonderful

A look at Dungeness Nature Reserve, an amazing area of unparalleled biodiversity in the UK, full of moths, butterflies, bees, wasps, flies and beetles, a unique habitat and ecosystem that begs to be walked around and explored.

#WaspFlower – Walk 1 – A Gallery

The photographic results of my first major walk attempting to find wasps on flowers for the Big Wasp Survey. I found more than just wasps and so we have beautiful galleries of wasps, beetles, bees, flies, flowers and others!

#WaspFlower – Join the Photo Challenge FOR SCIENCE!

A short article for The Big Wasp Survey 2021 where they are looking for photographs of wasps on flowers – hashtag them on instagram or twitter with #WaspFlower (and #WaspLove, of course) to join in this wonderful citizen science project.

The Wasp Tragedy: How Can We Help?

A short article about the value of wasps, how you can discourage their supposed ‘nuisance’ behaviours and how you can help encourage them, other invertebrates and pollinators, and the species that interact with them, in your daily life.