Not much doing

Had a bit of a natural history lull the last couple of days. Work and other stuff has meant very little time to get outside and stare at things or tackle some of the identification backlog I have waiting for me. My carrion trap has failed to attract anything more than flies and the hawthorn in my garden has pretty much gone over.

However I did manage 20 minutes in the garden at lunchtime. There was a cool wind but in sunny sheltered spots it was rather pleasant.

There were a fair number of  Cocksfoot Moth Glyphipterix simpliciella sat around on various plants. They are tiny things but despite their ubiquity at this time of year they are always worth a closer look. Stunning little things. Trying to get a focused shot in the wind was nigh on impossible.

I also beat this caterpillar off some hedgerow elm and it gave me a chance to have another look at the recent Caterpillar field guide.

I managed to mess up the ID fairly easily before being put right (Thanks Graeme). This is a Common Quaker caterpillar and probably one I will regularly encounter, given how common it is.

Hopefully the weather and my enthusiasm will pick up over the next few days.