Adur Flies  2006

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Flies of the lower Adur Valley including Shoreham-by-Sea

excluding Hoverflies 2006

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Flies 2007

26 October 2006
A dozen Muscid-flies, Mesembrina meridiana, were all lined up, resting, in a row on the wooden railing in the Butterfly Copse next to the Waterworks Road
 

23 September 2006 Phaonia valida  (not confirmed) Pixie Path

10 September 2006

A Hornet Robber Fly with prey landed briefly on the Pixie Path.

 

20 August 2006

A Hornet Robber Fly landed briefly on the Pixie Path.

 

17 August 2006

Two Hornet Robber Flies landed briefly on the Pixie Path simultaneously, and there was another one on the path through the southern part of Mill Hill, (near the lower car park). I am tempted to think some of these flies are the same ones as seen before since the end of July.

 

15 August 2006

Three Hornet Robber Flies landed briefly on the Pixie Path and they were sufficiently spaced apart to be different flies.

 

6 August 2006 A Hornet Robber Fly caught a Greenbottle and landed briefly on the Pixie Path. The Greenbottles were attracted by about a dozen to a dog's faex and the predatory insect pounced. This large fly was quick to fly off.  (TQ 210 064) Record from late August 2004

30 July 2006

On the southern part of Mill Hill, (near the lower car park), a Hornet Robber Fly settled on the path and another one landed briefly on the Pixie Path.

 

23 July 2006 The black and yellow Soldier Fly, Stratiomys potamida, made a short appearance in my south Lancing garden. (TQ 185 046). It may have hatched from the garden pond as this fly had done the previous year.    Photograph by Ray Hamblett (Lancing Nature Gallery)  on the flickr Sussex Wildlife Gallery

11 July 2006 Conopid fly Sicus ferrugineus  discovered on the southern part of the Slonk Hill Cutting.   ID by Stuart Roberts on the British Insects Yahoo Group

10 July 2006 A Hornet Robber Fly was spotted just north of Lancing College, near Ladywells Stream.    Report and Photograph by Noel Cornwall on on the flickr Noel Cornwall Insects Set

15 June 2006 Crane-flies are mating on the lower slopes of Mill Hill  and I daresay elsewhere as well.

12 June 2006 This fly is a common one that is seem both frequently and in widespread places, and even more often it is overlooked completely. It is probably a small Tachinid fly on Creeping Cinquefoil.

18 May 2006

 

		Greenbottle	Grey Flesh Fly,  Sarcophaga

 

The Slonk Hill Cutting (south) has hundreds of the common blow and other flies and scores of the common hoverflies throughout the warmer months.

 

10 May 2006 The small black flies Empis tessellata were common on the downs.  ID by Laurence Clemons

7 May 2006
The Alexanders, Smyrnium olustratum manage to attract so many flies, hoverflies, moths and flying insects that it is impossible to record them all. Tilius elongatus small black flies and larger Lucilla Blow-flies were noted on the Pixie Path. Crane-flies were noted in most wild places and wasteland.
 

2 May 2006 The fly first right was photographed in the Butterfly Copse at the southern end of the Waterworks Road, Old Shoreham.  These flies are the Face Fly, Musca autumnalis. ID by Laurence Clemons The picture second right was taken on 3 May 2006 in the same place and is possibly the same species.

1 May 2006

May came in with a shower. On the lower slopes of Mill Hill, a Bee-fly settled briefly on the blue anorak I was wearing. From its brown colour I am assuming this was the species Bombylius major.  The dangly St. Marks Fly, Bibio, was only around one of the long grass and ruderal plant patches.

 

Greenbottle Blow-fly Gymnocheta viridis ID by Laurence Clemons

 

On the Pixie Path, there were lots of familiar flies that I did not identify in passing. They included at least one Muscid-fly, Mesembrina meridiana. There was also a distinctive green species with a brown head illustrated above. This is one of the Greenbottles.

 

28 April 2006

I recorded four Bee Flies, Bombylius major, on our rockery (North Portslade). This is the first time I have seen these bee mimics. They were in the garden from mid afternoon (sunny day) until dusk when they disappeared.

Report by Steve Savage on the Adur Biodiversity Smart Group

 

26 April 2006

There were scores of flies around and many of them were not identified. The Alexander umbellifer plant that is common on the Shoreham downs was the principal host or attractant. The flies included a Sepsid Fly (not illustrated below) (pic).

 

 

24 April 2006

On the Pixie Path a small black fly looked familiar but it was not identified.

22 April 2006
The first Common Bee-Fly, Bombylius major, visited the back garden of 40 The Drive (near Buckingham Park), north Shoreham.
(TQ  219 063)  (This Bee-fly was recorded in Worthing on 5 April 2006.)
Message on British Insects (Yahoo Group) about the date this fly was seen (Link)
Message and Images on the Diptera.info EForum on Bee-flies
 

6 April 2006 A solitary Dotted Bee-fly (with spotted wings), Bombylius was seen on a path through the scrub in the north-west of Mill Hill.  (TQ 210 075) This is Bombylius discolor, a declining BAP (Biodiversity Action Plan) species. In Great Britain this species is classified as Nationally Scarce. This is the first time this fly has been recorded on the downs north of Shoreham. It has probably been recorded from Cissbury Ring though.  UK Known Distribution (165 squares) Checklist of UK Recorded Bombyliidae This fly should not be confused with the very similar Common Bee-fly, Bombylius major.

Further Information on Bombylius discolor

The larvae of the Dotted Bee-fly are parasites of solitary bees with the host species identified of Andrena flavipes and Andrena cineraria. Nomada fucata (recorded on Mill Hill) is a cleptoparasitoid of Andrena flavipes.

Dotted Bee-fly have a favoured nectar plant of: Ground Ivy (much preferred) and Primroses. The one on Mill Hill was seen where Ground Ivy has been noted plentiful before, but this herb also occurs plentifully on the lower slopes of Mill Hill. Bee-flies may forage far from their nesting colonies into scrub, woods and gardens.

It is in flight from the end of March, peaking in mid-April and seen until the beginning of May.
The Bee-fly follows its host bee when choosing new sites and favours open south or south-west facing unimproved or semi-improved grassland for their colonies.

Pictures and Comparisons on the Diptera Forum

22 March 2006

On the Dovecote Bank, two Yellow Dung-flies, Scathophaga stercoraria, were seen resting.

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Adur Flies > 2005

Adur Hoverflies 2006

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