small hairy bug on window

Found this hairy little character on the outside of the patio doors this morning. The grid is 2mm so, excluding the antennae, it is not much bigger than that, and doesn't appear to have any obvious wings. I haven't a clue where to start to look for this one, so any help appreciated.

Early spawn

A rogue clump of frog spawn appeared in our garden pond on 7th February. I say rogue clump because the spawning is usually quite synchronised, but so far there have been no other clumps to join it - and little frog activity in the evenings.

This is the earliest date we've seen spawn since digging the pond in 2009, and quite surprising given the recent chilly weather. Previous first dates have ranged from 14th Feb (2013) to 27th Feb (2010 and 2012). I expect there'll be some more to join it during the latter half of this month.

Scarlet Elf Cup ?

Returning to Creigiau after a walk around Pentyrch, taking in Craig-y-Parc and Ty'n y Coed, and noticed small pockets of these brightly coloured fungi on the side of the path. A brief internet search suggests Scarlet Elf Cup, Sarcoscypha coccinea - confirmation/correction would be appreciated.

A very useful website

There are loads of mapping websites out there. I was told about this one a few months ago and have found it far more useful for biological recording than any of the others.

http://www.cucaera.co.uk/grp/

The main advantage over other sites is that vice-county boundaries are shown, which is very helpful in those tricky borderline areas. It also shows various grids on the screen, including 100x100m and tetrads (2x2km), depending on how zoomed in or out you are. As with most mapping websites, you can flick between OS, aerial and streetmap views. When you click on the map, the vice-county and elevation (in metres) at that location are helpfully shown in a box on the left of the screen.

It was set up by a beetle recorder in Lincolnshire, which explains why it is so good for biological records.

Hedgehog SOS

Does anyone know of a place I could take an underweight hedgehog I found wandering around my garden, today?

hedgehog in December !

Removed a hedgehog from the road in Creigiau yesterday afternoon and placed it under a hedge for safety. Don't think I've ever seen one this late in the year before.

Opilio canestrinii

This huge harvestman was on our house wall a couple of days ago.

Opilio canestrinii

This is the second time I've seen canestrinii in the garden, the first being in August last year. It is described as an invasive species: it was first recorded in the UK as recently as 1999 and has spread rapidly, being recorded in Glamorgan for the first time in 2007 (by Greg Jones). Since then there have been quite a few records from across the county.

On the continent it is said to have replaced two other Opilio species in some areas, so it seems that it is not a benign invader - which is a shame as it is rather handsome. This one had a leg span of a whopping 11.5cm. The orangey red body and almost black legs, combined with the large size, are distinctive.