Unknown creatures in the long grass

The meadow I visited on Saturday was so rich with life that I still haven't got a full handle on what I saw. There was a few species that I just didn't recognise. There were a couple that I couldn't even identify afterwards. How is it that the average person knows all about life in Africa and yet doesn't know half the things that live in the fields around his home? How is it that I see something completely new every time I go outside?

The answer is - because Earth is a wonderful world. Here living alongside us, whoever we are, is a multitude of life so diverse that no single human being can know everything about it. The plants and animals here on Earth are like the stars in the sky. Some people understand how they work, some might be able to group them into families, but nobody could ever know each individually. That is why the Universe is so amazing. It is easy to be humbled by the complexity of its workings. All around us is more than we could ever know. For the curious there is an endless feast of curiosities. Its not the knowledge that gives the pleasure, it is the discovery.

And what better pleasure could be had than starting a day having no clue what an animal is that you have photographed and then finding a community of people able and willing to tell you what you have found. The Wild about Britain website is fantastic. I posted a pictures of two unknown creatures and within a day both had been identified. Thanks to users Toby and Nutmeg.

So here we are, two meadow species new to me.I would like you to meet the nymph (which is the word used to describe the childhood stages of an insect) of a Meadow Plant Bug (Latin name Leptopterna dolabrata). This creature seemed quite happy sitting on a blade of grass and wasn't disturbed by me. Here is some juicy gossip, apparently the Meadow Plant Bug feeds on the growing seed heads of long grasses causing the grass to abort the seeding process. Bad news if you are a wheat farmer. However, its natural home is in the grass. It is our fault that it is attracted to the huge fields of wheat we plant. It makes you question why we have the right to use pesticides. Maybe farmers should create more edge of field habitats for insect eating birds. Maybe the supermarkets should pay the farmers enough to allow them to rest some land in this way. Maybe the government should make the supermarkets do this. Maybe we should make the government make them. Maybe we should get our bread from farm shops where there is a commitment to organic farming methods.

The other creature I saw was this pretty little moth. To me it looked like most moths. Small, dull and mothlike. However that ignorance is my problem. The variety and beauty of our native British moths is incredible. This chap is called the Chimney Sweeper (Latin name - Odezia Atrata) and is widely described as an unusual moth. In fact you could call it a goth of the moth world. It stands out like a sore thumb dressed in black and hanging out in the sunshine whilst contemplating why the world thinks it is strange. It is almost completely without markings, with the exception of a pair of white edges on its wings. Here are three facts about the Chimney Sweeper that I bet you didn't know.

1) It gets browner as it wears out (don't we all)

2) You don't really find them further south then here.

3) The caterpillars eat only the pignut plant (which I don't really know)

Anybody wanting to see this moth in their patch needs to obtain some seeds from a pignut plant. That sounds fun, I may do that. Another project you could do is try and photograph the caterpillar. As far as I can tell there is no image of the caterpillar of this moth on the web. This would be difficult as several moth and butterfly species lay on this plant. You would have to inspect every Pignut plant in late summer and collect representative specimens of egg laden leaves. Then all you have to do is watch and wait (and continue to feed) to see what each caterpillar turns into. Maybe a good project for a keen 12 year old.