Rose chafer

by | Jul 27, 2012 | All, Insects & Spiders, Italy

In late May, the pyracanthus ‘Soleil d’Or’ in our garden in Tuscany was in full bloom and alive with insects. Among the invading horde buzzing around me as I approached with my camera was this vivid green beetle who was feasting in delight on the abundance of delicious pollen. It was fascinating to watch it and its companions making their way among the flowers, with legs sticking out in all directions grasping a petal here and a leaf their in order to maintain balance. He is called a rose chafer (Cetonia aurata), the distinctive feature being the small triangular area between the wing cases just below the thorax.

According to Mr Wikipedia, ‘rose chafers are found over southern and central Europe and the southern part of the UK where they seem to be sometimes very localized. They are a very beneficial saprophagous species (detritivore), their larvae are the insect equivalent of earth worms and help make very good compost where they are often found in great numbers.’

Canon 1DMkII with Canon 70-200mm f4L IS lens at 70mm and Canon EB12 tube; ISO400 f16 1/320. Cropped and adjusted in Lightroom

Arachno nursery

by | Jul 25, 2012 | All, Insects & Spiders, Italy

Delicately woven between between the tips of a rapidly-growing vine shoot and the chestnut pole upright of a pergola in my garden in Tuscany, this crop of newly-hatched crop of tiny spiders were flexing their legs and navigating their way around the threads of their home. When I came across the nest, there were around 3-400 of these little fellows – each about 2-3mm long. The weather was deteriorating and there seemed to be a group decision to move to another part of the nest that was higher up the pole.
The challenge with this shot was that the spiders were very small and the group about 3cm deep. Added to that, the numerous threads gave a translucency to the subject that affected the definition of many of the spiders. Not only that, the lighting levels were lousy.

Canon EOS 40D with Canon f2.8L 28-70mm lens at 48mm with Canon 25mm extension tube; ISO800 f5.6 1/160