Three views in panorama, how the garden looks at the beginning of May 2026
The month started dry and breezy, with occasional sun but a good deal of cloud, sometimes overcast On day 2, it started bright and then rain fell for a short spell; it was enough to fill a shallow bird bath but little more.
Today, the 3rd, a good amount of warm sun, and it brought the insects out. I've seen and recorded, Green veined white, Nomada flava bee, Solomon's seal Sawfly, Helophilus pendula, the 'footballer' because of its stripey thorax.
Green-veined White
Nomada flava (probably)
Speckled Wood took a great liking to the Garlic Mustard Plants
6th May: The first Mint Moth of the year, this is Pyrausta purpuralis
5th May: This looks like a Yellow-legged Andrena bee
5th May: The first Marmalade hoverfly of the year
Solomons Seal Sawfly It will decimate my Solomons seal plants, but its a wildlife friendly garden
Quite an interesting day for finding insects in the garden
Episyrphus bealtatus, the common Marmalade Hoverfly. I remember when these appeared by the dozen. Not any more.
I didn't know what this Bee-fly was doing so I consulted Gemini AI....
"It looks like you’ve captured a Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major) in a very specific, fascinating moment of its life cycle.
While they might look like fuzzy little bees, they are actually a highly specialised type of fly. Based on the video, here is what is likely happening:
The "Tail-Dipping" Ritual
What you are seeing on that patch of dry earth isn't just resting; it is likely a female bee-fly preparing for motherhood.
Collecting Dust: Female bee-flies have a specialised chamber at the end of their abdomen. They hover or crawl over dry, loose soil and "dip" their tails into it to collect fine dust or sand.
Arming the Eggs: She uses this dust to coat her eggs. This makes the eggs heavier (for better "bombing" accuracy) and provides a level of camouflage or protection from the elements.
The Bombing Run: Once her eggs are coated, she will fly over the entrance holes of solitary bees (like mining bees). She flickers her abdomen mid-air to "fire" an egg into or near the bee's nest.
Why do they do this?
Bee-flies are parasitoids. Once the bee-fly egg hatches near a solitary bee's nest, the larva crawls inside and waits for the bee larva to grow. Eventually, the bee-fly larva consumes the bee larva before pupating and emerging the following spring.
Key Features in your Video
The Proboscis: You can clearly see that long, needle-like "nose." It’s actually harmless to humans and is used solely for drinking nectar from flowers.
Hovering Ability: Note how it moves with the precision of a miniature helicopter—this agility is what allows them to be so accurate during their egg-laying "bombing runs."
It's a great find! These are one of the surest signs of spring in a garden or along a sunny path"
It went on to say this
"It’s quite a tactical operation for such a small insect. The process is so specialised that entomologists often refer to that specific part of her anatomy as a "sand chamber" or "dust basket."
While she looks like she's just basking on the ground, she is actually "loading up." Here’s why that dust coating is a mechanical necessity for her:
The Engineering of the "Bomb"
Ballistics: An uncoated bee-fly egg is incredibly light and translucent. By dabbing her abdomen into the dry earth, she mixes the eggs with fine grit. This adds just enough mass to ensure that when she "flicks" her abdomen, the egg has the momentum to reach the dark shadows of a mining bee's burrow rather than just drifting away in a breeze.
Desiccation Protection: The dust acts as a physical barrier, helping to prevent the egg from drying out in the sun before it hatches.
Camouflage: Coating the egg in local soil makes it nearly invisible to other predators or even the host bee, should she return to the nest entrance.
The "Planidium" Stage
Once that dusty egg hatches, a tiny larva emerges called a planidium. Unlike the fat, legless maggots we usually associate with flies, these are highly active and have bristles to help them "trek" through the soil and into the depths of the bee's nest. They are essentially the ground-force units that complete the mission after the mother has finished her aerial bombardment.
It's a brilliant bit of natural engineering—turning a bit of garden dirt into a precision-guided coating.
Did you happen to see any small, volcano-like mounds of soil nearby? Those would be the mining bee burrows she was likely targeting." There aren't any mounds of soil in the garden, So the mining bees must have a nest in the vicinity
The April 1st shot of the garden, including the Hawthorn tree just greening up, thousands of flower buds in waiting. The majority of the garden still in shade. The left side border gets a short turn in the sun when it reaches between the houses.
12th April, the borders are filling out. Should be a good show by May. Honesty plants are flowering. Hedge mustard is bushing up. Problem of dryness may become an issue. The rain barrels need topping up. I won't use tap water for plants
A Stealthy Visitor: The Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee (Bombus vestalis)
A standout moment for the April log was an encounter with a Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee, confirmed by the NHM Biodiversity group. It landed right next to me, seemingly preoccupied with a thorough grooming session—I suspect it had tangled with some spider silk, which gave me just enough time to capture some video.
This bee is a specialist parasite of the Buff-tailed Bumblebee (B. terrestris). It doesn't build its own nest or collect pollen; instead, the female enters a host nest, displaces the resident queen, and uses the existing workforce to raise her brood. While its methods are "cuckoo-like," its presence is a testament to a healthy, well-established Buff-tailed colony nearby.
And the video short on Youtube
Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee (Bombus vestalis) grooming off spider silk.
There's been some good encounters with Bee-flies , this one spent a few seconds feeding from the Lungwort. I'm pretty sure it returned when I wasn't looking.
Bombylius major feeding from Pulmonaria
Another encounter came with this Vespula vulgaris Queen Wasp. She will be looking for a nest site.
Vespula vulgaris, Queen European Wasp
I found this Eupeodes luniger taking a short pause. Hoverflies rarely sit still for any length of time. One has to be there at the right time to get a photo.
At the beginning of April I found this Hawthorn Shield Bug, close to the Hawthorn tree at the bottom of the garden
Hawthorn Shield Bug Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale
The Hairy-footed flower bees have been active on the Pulmonaria, front and back garden. The females feed most often, males mostly watch them.
13.04.2026 Got this good looking Speckled Wood by patience, waiting for it to settle with open wings
21.04.2026 Spotted this interesting Lesser Housefly - Fannia lustrator. Had identification from NHM Biodiversity Facebook group
22/04/2026 This male Helophilus pendulus showed up near the mini pond.
22/4/2026 This is a Blue Mason Bee, It settled briefly while I sat in the garden. Probably a first sighting in the area. iRecord had a problem validating it. Waiting for email confirmation
19/4/2026 This Queen Wasp has been hanging around for a few days, it likes to warm up on the Honeysuckle foliage. Hope it makes a nest elsewhere.
23/4/2026 This Syrphus ribesii stopped flying briefly.
One of our most widespread and abundant hoverflies, occurring in a variety of habitats but perhaps especially woodland. This is the main hoverfly responsible for the mysterious hum that you sometimes hear in a wood (created by thousands of males vibrating their wings as they rest on tree foliage) and males can often be seen hovering in loose swarms beneath the woodland canopy in sunbeams.~ Steven Falk
25.5.2026 Fannia lustrator , a Lesser House Fly Fannia lustrator is a fly species in the Fanniidae family. At 6.5 to 9.0mm long it is conspicuously larger than other Fanniidae and is similar in size to, or slightly larger than, the house fly, Musca domestica. It is found in the Palearctic.Wikipedia
25.04.2026 Siphona sp. Siphona is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
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25/04/2026 This Epistrope eligans allowed a photo. This species can be quite variable in the extent of the yellow striping on its abdomen, some specimens, particularly males, being nearly all black; however the overall pattern is usually similar. ~ Nature Spot
25.04.2026 Right on Cue, St Marks Fly on St Mark's Day. The St Mark's fly is small, black and shiny. It is so-called because it emerges around St Mark's Day, April 25th. Large numbers of adults can be found in woodland edges, hedgerows, fields and wetlands. ~ Wildlife Trusts.
26.04.2026 This Bombus lapidarius Red Tailed Bumblebee, frantically gathered pollen in the Welsh Poppies. Bombus lapidarius (Red-tailed bumblebee) queens are large, typically measuring 20–22 mm in length. Workers are smaller, ranging from 11–16 mm, while males are generally 14–16 mm. This species has a distinct velvety black body with a bright orange-red tail and is common in gardens, woodlands, and urban areas, often nesting underground, notes the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
29.04.2026 This Yellow Dung Fly spotted by Katherine, The yellow dung fly (Scathophaga stercoraria), also known as the golden dung fly, is a common, 5-11mm insect found in cooler temperate regions. Males are bright golden-yellow with fuzzy, orange-yellow hair, while females are duller green-brown. Adults, often seen on cow dung from March to November, are carnivorous predators. [1, 2, 3, 4]
29.04.2026 This Bellardia sp. A form of House fly Emerald Bottle.
