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John

@astrapian.bsky.social
77 followers 143 following 61 posts

Amateur naturalist. Conservationist. Socialist. Suffolk-based.

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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
A lovely little fly in my overflowing moth traps in East Suffolk last night - Trupanea amoena, which seems to have only about a dozen UK records...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
@ukbutterflies.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
After avoiding likely released ones at Ipswich and Ringstead, I finally cracked and went to see the Queen of Spain Fritillaries at East Tilbury today. Though possibly released, I hope they're locally bred from migrants earlier this year... @bc-cambs-essex.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Sadly, there is no way of knowing, I agree, but just the balance of probability is considerably greater that such a large number in one place were released (when this is known to be happening in some places) than migrated together/found one another.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
On pretty much any flat sheep grazing land, it's an easy win-win, I'd suggest...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Presumably they're assumed to be releases, with ten in one field?
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Certainly, what started as three QoS together in a field near Ipswich, one very much appearing to be paint-marked on the wing, have to go down as releases. Where they - and others released with them - then went frustratingly clouds the picture. I don't know what possesses some people...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
Market Weston Fen was a lush haven of flowers this week, given months of drought in Suffolk. Highlights included Marsh Fragrant Orchid, Grass of Parnassus, Fine-leaved Water-dropwort, & Pink Water-Speedwell... @suffolkwildlife.bsky.social @suffolk-nats1929.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
@neilsmothman.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
A trip to the Brecks this week included finding my first Common Gromwell at Market Weston Fen. As usual, I checked for any leaf mines or caterpillars and was delighted to find this Gromwell Ermine caterpillar... @suffolkwildlife.bsky.social @suffolk-nats1929.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
I was lucky yesterday in East Suffolk to watch this Lime Hawkmoth caterpillar trying to get away from a parasitic wasp (Callajoppa cirrogaster) that is laying eggs in it
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
‪@dragonflydamselfly.bsky.social @britishdragonflies.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
A day down in Essex with @ipswichbirder.bsky.social yesterday produced a few cracking invertebrates which haven't yet made their way to Suffolk much, or at all... details on photos
Fiery Clearwing (Pyropteron chrysidiformis) - it is hard to know the true picture for this species, but it seems to be expanding from Thames corridor strongholds. This individual was just ~30 miles from SuffolkCow-wheat Shieldbug (Adomerus biguttatus) - just one Essex/Suffolk border record from MorleyRambur's Pied Shieldbug (Tritomegas sexmaculatus) - not far from south Suffolk now, and surely arriving soonWhite-legged Damselfly (Platycnemis pennipes) - just edges into South Suffolk, but abundant where we saw it in South Essex
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
This smart fly, Orellia falcata, appears to be uncommon in Suffolk (I'm unsure as iRecord is down), amd was new for me. Its larvae feed on Goat's-beard (Tragopon pratensis) which it can be seen hanging onto in the photo... @teamdiptera.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
A nice female-type Red-veined Darter at East Lane, Bawdsey, Suffolk this morning @britishdragonflies.bsky.social @dragonflydamselfly.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
A Pyracantha in my East Suffolk garden is pumping out nectar, attracting many hoverflies and this new species for me - Long-horned General (Stratiomys longicornis), an uncommon species of upper saltmarsh and grazing marshes in the South East @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
This is a shockingly bad article, written in many cases as unsupported and ecologically-/conservation-naive opinion but, because of its location, appearing as 'science'. I would not give it much air time...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Frankly there are a lot of bold and unsupported statements in that paper (to be polite), which unsurprisingly appears to be written by someone without ecological qualifications. I'm shocked, but not surprised, that it passed peer review. Science is polluted by commercial considerations these days...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Early stage Phyllocoptes eupadi?
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
In that case, I wish for a Euchromius ocellea tonight...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
@norfolkmoths.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
@norfolkmoths.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
One Small Mottled Willow made it as fas as Horsey Corner, Norfolk, last night @migrantmothuk.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Spuleria flavicaput, new for me from Horsey Corner last night - one of many moths with a common food plant (Hawthorn for this one) yet a strangely local distribution... Is this a new location for Norfolk @jameslowenwild.bsky.social ? Can't quite tell from norfolkmoths...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
@mothiduk.bsky.social Is this possibly Epinotia tetraquetana (facing left) and E. immundana (facing right)? I'm trapping new Suffolk sites and not familiar with the species yet!
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Incredible!
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Interesting - I've only looked for P. primulae in one location in Suffolk and found it easily. I'll have to try more widely. I see much less C. majus...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
This highlights the hidden mental burdens conservationists carry. The weight of loss every day - when the best I can often aim for is to slow the rate of loss - is heavy. To be honest, it is not the small wins that sustain me, but the moral duty to do what is right: news.mongabay.com/2026/03/the-...
news.mongabay.com
A profession built on hope, strained by loss
Earlier this month, Jeremy Hance’s “‘An epidemic of suffering’: Why are conservationists breaking down?” and the follow-up commentary “Emotional and psychological stresses beleaguer conservation profe...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
I love stumbling upon a new gall - Sunday's surprise from my garden was my first Lasioptera rubi (Raspberry Gall Midge) gall, on a raspberry cane.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
What happens when one of the greenkeepers is the county moth recorder! But, yes, credit to them for employing him specifically for a conservation focus...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
Agreed, and there is certainly no pressing need for that, as the article misleadingly suggests - it could be done twenty years from now if that was ultimately seen by all stakeholders as the least bad approach.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
www.thepoke.com/2026/02/27/t...
thepoke.com
This fabulous takedown of Matt Goodwin after his defeat to the ‘woke Greens’ is a supremely satisfying watch
Spare a thought – only kidding! – for Reform UK’s Matt Goodwin, who despite all the huffing and puffing by Nigel Farage suffered by-election defeat at the hands of the Green Party’s Hannah Spencer. It...
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Reposted by John
The Green Party of England & Wales @greenparty.org.uk · 22/01/2026
Help us make hope normal again. Join the Green Party now.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
@benphalan.bsky.social
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
I'm struggling to see what comment of mine you're replying to (still getting the hang of Bluesky!) I believe White Stork was native a long time ago & climate change has made the UK more suitable again, so I don't think it's cut and dry (not that I'm enthusiastic about its reintroduction, as I said)
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
You mean 'apart from when money is available for collecting an evidence base'? If so, I'd certainly agree, and perhaps that's more common in the UK, but it is definitely a rarity in international conservation funding!
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
My response seems to have provoked some criticism, so it may be useful to clarify - my key question is what would the counterfactual be if this project wasn't funded? Could it be much better engagement of people with nature to protect species truly at risk? Yes. *Would* it be? I don't think so...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
I'm 100% for evidence-based logical decisions, but the reality is that funding pots don't usually have time to wait for good evidence.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
I'm not convinced. It could just as easily be said that big flashy species are an easy entry engagement point for those not previously interested. That rings true to me - as a birder who then got into mammals, and now with a pan species interest - but I'd prefer to see evidence of either argument...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Perhaps... as I said, I'm much less familiar with UK conservation. However, I've seen few good efforts personally. This would be a much more compelling argument if it was shown a good effort was turned down in favour of the reintroduction, but my suspicion is that is not the case...
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
I completely agree that it's using populism to leverage funds for biodiversity. What unintended long term consequences do you see, and why?
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
I don't know total project costs, but see that £500k comes from the 'London Green Roots' funding pot, which is restricted to engaging local communities with nature. Many such funding pots in the UK have limited flexibility, and so much lower biodiversity conservation benefits from grants than this!
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
25 years in intn'l conservation has taught me money is most easily raised by a high profile story, preferably with charismatic megafauna. Stork reintroduction would not be top of my list, but if that's what it takes to raise funds to conserve habitats that support a range of species, I'm for it!
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
It’s time for soft secession
How blue states can use their economic clout to stand up to Trump’s agenda—starting with California.
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
Over 50 years old, and I've just made my first ever donation to a political party because we really need HOPE in these dark times... @zackpolanski.bsky.social @greenparty.org.uk
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TheBossRoss 🧶 @thebossross.bsky.social · 24/11/2025
"If you go back a million minutes, get to the start of 2023. If you go back a billion minutes, you get to the Roman Empire. That's the scale of inequality we're living with." Zack Polanski Such a brilliant illustration.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 10/11/2025
Trump: "Nobody knows what magnets are."
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
Some superb fungi in East Suffolk in the last couple of weeks. For starters, here is my first Piggyback Rosegill (Volvariella surrecta) - a species which feeds on decaying Clouded Funnel (Clitocybe nebularis)
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John @astrapian.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
Amazing! Would you mind dropping me a message, please? Your settings don't allow me to message you...
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Reposted by John
Natalie Bennett @nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
Joining is easy! join.greenparty.org.uk
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