Nothing particularly unusual about this insect, other than it is the latest date in the year I have seen still flying. It was feeding rather lazily on the blossom of a False Castor Oil plant (
Fatsia japonica). I am pretty sure it is a Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) rather than the similar looking Tree Wasp. The Fatsia must be one of the latest flowering plants around as it is just getting into the swing of things and looks like it may keep going a while longer. It was attracting a surprising number of insects in the weak sunshine this afternoon despite the low temperatures.
There are surprisingly few records of this species in Mapmate (124) but I guess people tend to not record such a ubiquitous species! This is the latest November record, the only other being one of Barry's from 2nd November.
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Here are some close-ups of the wasp, which if you read the comments below you'll see I am struggling to id. If anyone reading this can offer any suggestions I would appreciate it!
Also a late record of the very common hoverfly Eristalsis tenax from the same plant on the same day.
Here are some close-ups of the wasp, which if you read the comments below you'll see I am struggling to id. If anyone reading this can offer any suggestions I would appreciate it! 
The antennae look long - I wonder if it's a male (13 segments as opposed to 12 on females - but I can't quite count them from the photo).
ReplyDeleteA large bumblebee flew past me in Whitchurch yesterday, despite it being cloudy and not particularly mild. It looked like a queen Bombus terrestris.
Having potted one up this afternoon and looked at it under the microscope it doesn't really fit neatly with the defining characters on the BWARS web site for V vulgaris, V germanica or D sylvestris... I will try and get some macro photos loaded up of the key features and see if we have any wasp experts out there!
ReplyDeleteThis has got me puzzled the face markings are telling me this is a tree wasp (D. sylvestris) even down to the yellow at the bese of the antennae but the body markings are that of a common wasp. Its a tough one.
ReplyDeleteIt is a tough one Mike! I popped it on iSpot too: http://www.ispotnature.org/node/381240?nav=users_observations where the concensus seems to suggest V germanica... I potted up another one in the garden today (incredible they are still flying in these weather conditions!) so I will have a look at that tomorrow to see if it any easier to id. Incidentally I had ruled out D sylvestris on the basis of a very short ocular malar space, and according to the info on the BWARS web site, Dolichovespula wasps apparently die out much earlier in the year than Vespula do. More later I dare say...
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