Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 27/06/2025A nice range of species seen in the western Mourne Mountains in Co. Down recently, including Andrena tarsata, Lasioglossum rufitarse and Dasysyrphus pinastri, which was a new one for me. 0110
Reposted by Owen BeckettCiarán Byrne @kiwibyrne.bsky.social · 04/06/2025Hoverfly Epistrophe nitidicollis, a female egg laying around Aphis sambuci colony on Elder in Kildavin, Co. Carlow over the weekend. Only the 12th Irish record and first for Carlow. 093
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 23/05/2025That looks like a Pemphredon wasp, but it's hard to tell. 120
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 22/05/2025Ancistrocerus gazella is likely, but it's too difficult to say for certain as there are other possibilities. 120
Reposted by Owen BeckettMargaret Cahill @margaretcahillbsky.bsky.social · 15/05/2025Always interrupt a phone call with your mother to investigate a black dot gliding down a downpipe. One day, it'll be something worth getting excited about that has you running for the camera. Saw my first ever Kidney-spot Ladybird tonight. It's just the second record of one for Limerick. 0351
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 16/05/2025A bit on the early side, but only by a week or two 👍 010
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 08/05/2025Yes, once they find some mud with the correct moisture content they'll keep coming back. 110
Reposted by Owen BeckettCiarán Byrne @kiwibyrne.bsky.social · 04/05/2025Couple of beetles from the dunes at The Raven, Co. Wexford today. Phylan gibbus (Tenebrionidae), Melanimon tibialis (Tenebrionidae) & Charagmus griseus (Curculionidae). 0131
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 04/05/2025Andrena lapponica female. Is there Bilberry nearby? 110
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 26/04/2025I'd agree John. The foodplant can also provide a clue. Do you know what it was on? 110
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 25/04/2025It's the only Priocnemis species that flies in April. The rest generally don't appear until late May. Can you record it with NBDC? 110
Reposted by Owen BeckettDean Mac Cú Uladh @dmac00.bsky.social · 22/04/2025Join me on behalf of Buglife for City Nature Challenge 2025 in Belfast for hoverfly surveying Lagan Meadows, 25th April, 12-2pm I will be joined by Jen Farrar from BSBI who will be discussing all things trees! @bsbiireland.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social www.buglife.org.uk/events/surve...buglife.org.ukBuglife Events ~ Surveying for hoverflies and trees with Buglife NIFind out more about our upcoming events related to invertebrates, insects and bugs. 0146
Reposted by Owen BeckettCarlos M Herrera @cmhmaliani.bsky.social · 13/04/2025This pic from a Cheilosia hoverfly unknown to me is from 14 May 2019. Sent the specimen to a specialist, who found to be an undescribed species. Ever since then I've named it 'Cheilosia new.sp'. Finally, I'm happy to learn that it has been already named for science (can't reveal the name so far) . 4578
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 05/04/2025Yes I'd be happy with that. Nice find, not a species you see every day! 110
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 03/04/2025Large Sallow Mining Bee (Andrena apicata) female and male seen along the river Barrow in Carlow recently. An underrecorded species in Ireland, but the populations in this area seem to be quite strong and it was the most abundant mining bee during my visit. It's a willow specialist, peaking in April. 1131
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 28/03/2025Cheers Jim, nice to see you here on the 'other side'! 020
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 26/03/2025A nice surprise this week was finding Andrena praecox locally in Co. Armagh. This is the second NI record of this early spring species, which is generally very scarce north of Dublin. It's probably underrecorded due to its early flight period and habit of foraging high up in willows. 1201
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 26/03/2025Your other bee is likely to be Andrena scotica from what I can, but I can't rule out Andrena trimmerana. 110
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 20/03/2025Two female Cheilosia grossa seen in Dublin and Wicklow recently. An attractive yet overlooked hoverfly which flies in March and April. The larvae mine thistles, so it's worth having a look on dandelions or willows growing close to thistle rosettes: species.biodiversityireland.ie/profile.php?... 1180
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 20/03/2025Andrena apicata, Andrena praecox and Andrena clarkella males observed in Cos. Armagh, Dublin and Wicklow over the past week. The females shouldn't be too far behind, especially now that the pollen source of these three species, willow catkins, are starting to appear en masse. 0131
Reposted by Owen BeckettIan Beavis @ianbeavis.bsky.social · 10/03/2025If they're in a sunny spot, root plates can offer great nesting sites for solitary bees (and wasps later in the season) because they're equivalent to the bare ground of a vertical bank. 0123
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 28/02/2025Three bumblebee species, Bombus lucorum, Bombus terrestris and the most notable one, Bombus hypnorum, enjoying the winter heather in Armagh today. This species only arrived in Ireland around 10 years ago, but is now quite common in the northeast in particular. 0233
Reposted by Owen BeckettIreland's Incredible Invertebrates! @microwild.bsky.social · 15/02/2025Make sure to grab your ticket for my upcoming online talk, Irish Bees for Beginners. Or maybe you can get one as a late Valentine's Day gift for someone who loves bees, insects or invertebrates! If you're not in, you can't win.* *Knowledge is the prize. 🙂 bit.ly/irish-bees-2...bit.lyIrish Bees for BeginnersCome learn the real buzz about Irish bees! Join us for a beginner-friendly event on Ireland's native bee fauna. 0248
Reposted by Owen BeckettCarlos M Herrera @cmhmaliani.bsky.social · 05/02/2025Anthophora hispanica es mi especie favorita de ese género. Tamaño de abejorro y velocidad de avión. Con suerte la podréis ver por estas fechas alredededor de plantas de Erophaca baetica. Aquí un macho repostando un instante, sin parar el motor. Lo mejor de mi día de abejeo. 16111
Reposted by Owen BeckettCarlos M Herrera @cmhmaliani.bsky.social · 07/02/2025Empezando la diversión. Un pequeño muestrario de abejas que ya están volando estos días en el bajo valle del Guadalquivir: macho de Eucera nigrilabris y hembras de Andrena florentina, A. trimmerana y A. antigana. 1465
Reposted by Owen BeckettJoan Díaz-Calafat @jdiazcalafat.bsky.social · 06/06/2024Velvet ants (Mutillidae and Myrmosidae) are pretty cool creatures! Despite their name, they are actually wasps, and not ants. (Most) males are winged, and females do not have wings. 1217
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 11/01/2025Are you in North America Matt? It looks a bit like Andrena nigerrima. Andrena nigra and Andrena nigricula may also be possible. I'm not too familiar with Nearctic Andrena, but it might be a useful starting point 🙂 110
Reposted by Owen BeckettNick Royle @royleresearch.bsky.social · 06/01/2025One week to go before the closing date on this ansum PhD. Like rainforests? Like Beetles? Like Devon and Cornwall? Then resolve to apply now! 0169
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 01/01/2025A summary of the most interesting observations from my field trip to southern and central Spain in May 2024, including new records and floral preferences of some rare mining bees (Andrena) and blunthorn bees (Melitta): www.researchgate.net/publication/...researchgate.net(PDF) New records and ecological notes on six little-known Iberian Bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)PDF | New sites and ecological information are presented for six little-known bees in Spain. Andrena nilotica, Flavipanurgus granadensis, Melitta... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ... 041
Reposted by Owen BeckettButterfly Conservation Europe @europebutterfly.bsky.social · 27/12/2024An important discovery of new population of the Endangered Euchloe bazae in southern Spain by our partners in @asoczerynthia.bsky.social . www.researchgate.net/publication/...researchgate.net(PDF) Contributions to the distribution, biology, and conservation of Euchloe bazae Fabiano, 1993 (Lepidoptera: Pieridae): discovery of a new population and new host plant in the province of Granada (...PDF | ABSTRACT: Euchloe bazae is an endemic butterfly of the Iberian Peninsula with a highly restricted and disjunct distribution, classified as... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on R... 03214
Reposted by Owen BeckettTim Worfolk @timworfolk.bsky.social · 13/12/20242024 Highlights #5. One of the best wasp-mimics I've ever seen: Temnostoma vespiforme, a spectacular hoverfly I found in Brittany, France while cycling along the Nantes-Brest canal. It's got all the right markings and even waves its front legs to look like long wasp antennae. #Diptera #Hoverfly 4343
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 14/12/2024It is an irrefutable fact that some endangered insects can't be identified without checking them under a microscope. How can we ever hope to understand their ecological requirements if you can't identify them? To illustrate this, these three bees are different species. One rare, two common. 1222
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 11/12/2024Spruce Cone Bug (Gastrodes abietum) seen in Loughgall, Co Armagh. This species was first found in Ireland by @joshecology.bsky.social earlier this year and has since been found at three sites. It lives on the cones of Norway Spruce, so it's probably more widespread than current records suggest. 0141
Reposted by Owen BeckettPhil Stevenson @philstevenson.bsky.social · 18/11/2024Digging below the surface: Hidden risks for ground-nesting bees such as bumble bee queens & the hoary squash bee, are commonly exposed to pesticide residues in soil which can lead to lethal & sublethal impacts on behavior & brood prodn. #SabrinaRondeau in #sciencemag www.science.org/doi/full/10....science.orgDigging below the surface: Hidden risks for ground-nesting beesHidden risks for ground-nesting bees 03120
Owen Beckett @obeckett98.bsky.social · 13/11/2024It's hard not to get dragged down by the negativity on Twitter, so thought I'd give this a go. Here's a lovely Heather Mining Bee (Andrena fuscipes) from the Mourne Mountains, Co. Down last year. 3547
