Delighted to find Thereva valida (Dark Northern Stiletto) at Ashberry yesterday. A rare stiletto fly, but with known population on south side of North York Moors. Thanks to @kitenet.bsky.social for confirming from photos. @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Senotainia conica (Small Shadower Fly) at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve, lurking around Oxybelus uniglumis nests outside rabbit burrows, waiting to lay an egg on the wasp's diptera catch. Rabbit droppings make perfect watchpoints! @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Clouds of butterflies today at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve. Marbled White seems to be particularly widespread locally this year...over 30 here earlier in the week. @ynuorg.bsky.social @bcyorkshire.bsky.social @celastrina59.bsky.social

Eupeodes corollae and Episyrphus balteatus...just two of many hoverflies, blow flies and wasps with orchid pollinia attached to their faces; at a North York Moors site this morning, around Marsh Helleborine, Fragrant orchid and more. @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social #pollinators

Leptometopa latipes (Milichiidae)...2-3mm freeloader fly. Seem to be few records nationally, but conservative estimate of 5000 today at Bempton Cliffs, where I suspect they associate with seabird guano. They were all over the cliff edge hand rails! @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Tree Snipefly (Chrysopilus laetus) new to Yorkshire at garden centre in Shiptonthorpe VC61 . Seen 11 days ago but no pot with me...thankfully still on same apple tree today! Maybe garden centres explain the spread north? @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Drino lota, a tachinid fly whose larvae are parasitoids of Elephant Hawk-moth caterpillars. A regular denizen each year of the Rosebay Willowherb at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve. @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Black-fringed Moss-snipefly (Ptiolina obscura) on a mossy oak at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve today. Hoping for more rain, so that their mossy habitat starts to moisten up after a very dry period. @ynuorg.bsky.social @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @dipteristsforum.bsky.social

A good find by @doublekidney.bsky.social . One to look out for on Limes, as well as Parna tenella, which rolls leaf edges on low sucker growth and would also be new for Yorkshire. @ynuorg.bsky.social

Double Kidney@doublekidney.bsky.social · 3mo ago

The sawfly Parna apicalis on small-leaved lime at Hackfall Woods is the first definite record for Yorkshire. Thanks to @suillia.bsky.social for the confirmation.

St Mark's Fly, Bibio marci, is drifting away now for another year, making way for its rather swish relatives, Bibio leucopterus (females confusingly with black wings) and Bibio hortulanus (my favourite of the genus...often on Cow Parsley). @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Another dry spring in East Yorkshire...not the best for many insects, but Spring Heath Robberflies (Lasiopogon cinctus) are loving it out on the open, sandy grassland of Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve.🌞 @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Ridiculous how bold some male Whitethroats are at this time of year...this one was in full, scratchy song almost touching distance away at @northcavewet.bsky.social yesterday, while I was checking for sawflies on Rowan. @ynuorg.bsky.social @yorkswildlife.bsky.social

Norellisoma flavicorne, the Grey Mantis Dung Fly...a small, Meadowsweet-associated dung fly with impressive raptorial bristles on the forelegs. A common species on beds of Meadowsweet around the @ldvnnr.bsky.social . @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

This is DST’s 5th year of BioBlitzes for naturalists, as we work to identify the biodiversity at this restricted MOD site. We are very grateful to everyone who has generously provided invaluable support to our progress. Check iNaturalist DST Leconfield Conservation project. 2026 poster below.

Sallow Longhorn (Adela cuprella), posing appropriately on Salix, and an Orange Underwing (Archiearis parthenias), both at Allerthorpe Common @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve this sunny morning. @bcyorkshire.bsky.social @doublekidney.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

🦟Not just House Flies! Join Mike Ashworth for an intro to British Muscidae on 27 April, 7:30 - 9:00pm 👉 Book now: www.northwestinvertebrates.org.uk/event/muscid...

If you're within reach of Northamptonshire on Sat 16 May there's a soldierfly identification workshop with the Wildlife Trust: learn how to identify soldierflies using keys, specimens & microscopes (suitable for beginners & more experienced) www.wildlifebcn.org/events/2026-...

Identifying and Recording Soldierflies and Allies with Martin Harvey | Wildlife Trust for Beds Cambs & Northants

Learn how to identify soldierflies using keys, specimens, and microscopes (suitable for beginners and more experienced recorders)

wildlifebcn.org

Sawfly by-catch having a spruce-up after removal from the sweep net. 🙂 One of a few Dark-edged Beeflies (Bombylius major) at Thornton in the @ldvnnr.bsky.social today. @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Lots of Mire Mourner sawflies (Dolerus madidus) in a rushy meadow at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve today. Males with abdomen orange-banded; females with orange more extensive, over the thorax as well. Things really starting to liven up now. 😃 @ynuorg.bsky.social #symphyta #sawflies

March's newsletter is now available to download from the website - a fantastic edition covering everything from news on our upcoming conference to a plea from @suillia.bsky.social to help find flies in caves! 🪰🌳🐌Previous copies of the newsletter can be downloaded here: www.ynu.org.uk/news-events/...

How about a globular springtail on a dead fallow deer to brighten up a Sunday evening? #springtails #collembola @ynuorg.bsky.social

Crack open the champagne...I just passed 1000 identifications of Suillia variegata on @inaturalist.bsky.social ! Easily the most commonly recorded spiny-winged fly across Europe....and easily the easiest member of the family to identify from a photo! 🙂 #heleomyzidae @dipteristsforum.bsky.social

Scoliocentra villosa ♂ on a fallow deer corpse at #AllerthorpeCommon this week. A favourite spiny-winged fly, found around badger setts, carrion and in caves. This one rather lacking in the fore tarsal area! #Heleomyzidae @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

Trypodendron domesticum...a chunky little 3mm wood-boring beetle I see occasionally on tree trunks, though this one was on top of a dead fallow deer yesterday at #AllerthorpeCommon in East Yorkshire. @ynuorg.bsky.social @yorkswildlife.bsky.social #coleoptera

Several more bee-flies seen today - hurray 😍 So far we have records for Surrey, Beds, Bucks, Kent, Herts, Middlesex and Guernsey. Where will they appear next? Please enjoy looking out for them and send in your sightings for #BeeFlyWatch - 📸 of the Herts bee-fly by @allanburrows.bsky.social

Blue Shieldbug (Zicrona caerulea) under a blue sky at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve yesterday. @ynuorg.bsky.social

Simulium reptans, male with large and small facets to the eyes; females feed on mammals inc. humans. Anyone ecologists needing help with diptera backlog from this year? Or planning lots of diptera work next year, please contact me if I can help. Please share, ta! www.dipteraid.co.uk

Limnellia surturi...a rather smart, rather little shore fly (Ephydridae) on sand outside a rabbit burrow at Cali Heath @yorkswildlife.bsky.social reserve yesterday. Looks to be a new VC record. #Ephydridae #shoreflies @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social

2026 Sawfly season started for me today with 2 Sooty Grievers (Dolerus anthracinus) at Millington Pastures VC61. Associated with quality chalk grassland here and flies (very) early, so is it really as uncommon as 2 records in last 50 years suggests? @ynuorg.bsky.social #yorkshiresawflies #symphyta

Nice morning at Bempton Cliffs...birds were good, spiny-winged flies were better! 😀 Hundreds of Heleomyza serrata, Tephrochlamys rufiventris, Gymnomus caesius and more on handrails by the cliff edge. Always worth having a few pots in the pocket. 😉 @dipteristsforum.bsky.social @ynuorg.bsky.social