soldiers

soldier beetles behaving normally. now the hemlock has turned into seed they have made their play ground on the Ragwort plant this year there seems to be a lot of it about some almost six foot high.

My walk to the river and town takes me behind the robins football ground where thankfully the wild life area is left to grow.

The robins ground better known as Latham park

The bright yellow flowers of the plant attract all the winged insects this one has a soldier fly, as well as the soldier beetle and the false oil beetle,this is also the plant the cinnabar moth  caterpillars breed on .because of its harmful toxic effect on horses the plant has been eradicated in most parts of the uk  and with it the cinnamon moth but I am pleased to say here in Newtown they only cut down the plant near and around the horses paddocks,

The caterpillar of the cinnabar moth.(Tyria jacobaeae)

 looks almost identical to the six-spot burnet butterfly only visual difference are the red stripes and less spots.  to see more on the burnet and soldier beetles go to A prickly situation | WILD ABOUT WALES