Grasshopper whisperer at @CitizenZoo. Semi-retired optometrist. Old Africa hand. Friend of @desert_lions. Supporter of @NorwichCityFC + @LincolnCity_FC
Out largest and most handsome grasshopper species, the Large Marsh Grasshopper, Stethophyma grossum.
Re-introduced into Norfolk after 50 years absence by the @CitizenZoo Hop of Hope project.
And doing well!
@NaturalEngland@NorfolkWT@wildlifebcn@WildKenHill
@AWPRCO Pretty confident this nymph is Meconema thalassinum. But definitely need to watch out for the recently-arrived Southern Oak Bush-Cricket, M. meridionale, whose wings remain very small even when adult. Has been found in W Norfolk.
@AWPRCO It’s a mopane worm, larva of the mopane emperor moth. It’s eating leaves of the mopane tree.
I’ve eaten quite a few of these in my time, dried ones are nice dipped in tomato sauce! Rich in protein, widely eaten around the Kalahari.
As usual at this time of year we have people on worried about having a bumblebee ‘hive’ in their garden.
‘Are they dangerous?’
‘Should I have them removed?’
‘Will they be there forever?’
Here’s a quick #bumblebee#lifecycle thread to explain.
Please #retweet for the #bees.
1/14
@the_beeguy@DeborahMeaden Nice informative thread. We have a bumblebee nest in our garden for the first time I can remember this summer. It’s fascinating!
As usual at this time of year we have people on worried about having a bumblebee ‘hive’ in their garden.
‘Are they dangerous?’
‘Should I have them removed?’
‘Will they be there forever?’
Here’s a quick #bumblebee#lifecycle thread to explain.
Please #retweet for the #bees.
1/14
@mycathardy@DailyPicTheme2 I did this on our apple tree.
Unfortunately, we got 2x male mistletoe plants and consequently no white berries. But I did like the male flowers.
Large Marsh Grasshoppers strutting their stuff on the BBC! 😮
@CitizenZoo’s Norfolk & Cambs-based “Hop of Hope” grasshopper rewilding project was show-cased on The One Show (BBC iPlayer: Wed 29 April, approx 17.55-22.30 mins).
@NorfolkWT@NENorfolkSufflk@Buzz_dont_tweet
I’m sure many of you are interested in the plight of our rarest UK Grasshopper…..so a piece I filmed last year about the reintroduction of Large Marsh Grasshopper at Wild Ken Hill with @Stuvigreen should be on The One Show tonight, 7pm on BBC One.
Hundreds of dolphins washed ashore in Somalia, after Chinese fishing vessels used powerful SONAR to chase Tunas.
Chinese fishing vessels loitering illegally inside Somalia's waters, are causing huge environmental damage!
@AWPRCO@savebutterflies@BC_Norfolk The iridescent colour is not due to pigmentation, but it is structural colour, resulting from the position/spacing of the microscopic scales on the underside of the wing. Explained nicely below.
Extreme macro revealing the intricate world of wing scales on the Green Hairstreak (Callophrys rubi). This delicate butterfly is the only diurnal species in Germany whose wings feature these vivid metallic green scales on the underside. Unlike most butterflies, where color comes from pigments, the shimmering emerald green here is created purely by structural coloration. Tiny, precisely arranged microscopic structures in the scales act like natural diffraction gratings, refracting and interfering with light to produce this intense iridescence that changes subtly with the angle of view. A breathtaking hidden universe visible only at extreme magnification. Nature’s own masterpiece of optical engineering.