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'Wildlife of Rogart' is now available. 

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Also the HBRG Bumblebee Atlas.

*** 2007 Supplement now available for free download ***.
   
Date Some recent news not yet included in the main pages, and news of additions etc. to the site.  for inclusion here.  Or post your own comments and observations on the HBRG Forum (information on the Contact page).  Red rows at the top are time-limited announcements of events etc.; green rows are news items from the previous 2 weeks; grey rows are older news items.
ASPEN CONFERENCE Download details of this event in Boat of Garten on 3-4 October 2008 here.
 TRIPS & TRAINING For field trips and training events, see the field trips page.
Look back to Jan  Feb  Mar  Apr  May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
9 July 2008 Some recent significant finds in the Highlands are a second Scottish record since 1923 of the horsefly Atylotus fulvus (Glenmoriston); only the fourth Scottish record, and the farthest north, of the wasp-bee Hylaeus confusus; significant northward extensions to known range of the wasps Mimumesa dahlbomi and the scarce Crossocerus leucostomus (all near Muir of Ord).  Two of these were in an old sand quarry - superb habitat for a variety of solitary bees and wasps.  If you have such a thing near you, and would like to know what it holds, please contact .
28 June 2008 A surprise find in my Strathpeffer garden was a Chicken of the Woods Laetiporus sulphureus.  The NBN map suggests this might be as far NW as it gets.  It proved very tasty indeed!  Picture.
25 June 2008 Near Inverness yesterday, I came on an insect I had never heard of before: the 11-spot Ladybird Coccinella unidecempunctata.  It serves as a reminder of the national recording scheme, and that there are many more than just the familiar 7-spot.  That website has excellent pictures of all the British species.
20 June 2008 Jane Bowman found two insects of interest to HBRG conversing about the weather on a clump of Wild Thyme.  Picture.  More information about conopid flies is here.
18 June 2008 The Shark Trust is organising an 'egg-case hunt' - details at http://www.eggcase.org.  There are some excellent identification resources on the site.
16 June 2008 A beautifully marked crab spider Philodromus margaritatus was photographed by Jane Bowman in Glenmoriston recently.  It has a very disjunct distribution (map), and has recently been added to the UK BAP priority list.  The colour is designed to protect it against a lichen-covered trunk.  Picture.  Top.
30 May 2008 The Slave-making Ant Formica sanguinea has (as a result of our Ant Atlas work) turned out to be a lot more widespread and common than was previously thought, in all sorts of habitats.  Jane Bowman has recently found several nests in Glen Moriston, including this hard-worker. Please report any apparent 'wood ants' in places where there are no mound nests.  A guide to identification is here, and more information can be had from the link on the left.
27 May 2008 Researching around a possible (I think highly probable, though it will never be officially that!) Marsh Warbler singing at Strathpeffer yesterday, I found a super birdsong site which is well worth visiting at The Virtual Bird.
26 May 2008 The rare Great Crested Newt is turning up in new sites on the Black Isle.  Please report any finds to HBRG.  Rory Russell found a new site recently >1km from the nearest known site. It can be recognised by its dark warty skin and yellow/black pattern on the belly (picture).  They are often found in gardens near breeding sites, under stones or in greenhouses.  ***Great Crested Newts are protected by law and you need a licence from SNH to catch or handle them.*** 
21 May 2008 An exciting new lichen discovery in Highland has been reported here (.pdf file, 80kB).  Never assume that what what you come across in this area is old hat!
19 May 2008 A new version of the Scottish Aculeate List is available here.
9 May 2008 A surprise visitor to Knoydart was a Hoopoe, found and photographed by Pitt Klemm.  Picture.
6 May 2008 Another find by Jane Bowman is the Beefly Bombylius major.  This is the season for them, if we get hot sunny days.  Please report all sightings, and look out for any solitary bees in association (the Beefly larva lives in their nests).  More information.  Picture.
1 May 2008 Jane Bowman has photographed an early Cuckoo and the rare lichen Peltigera leucophlebia.  (Sharp-eyed readers may notice that this was originally reported as the very similar P. britannica which was the subject of the field visit after our spring meeting on 5 April.)  Pictures.  Top.
22 Apr 2008 The GBIF website is now up and running.  HBRG's datasets contribute to this Global Biodiversity Information Facility through NBN Gateway.  It is an excellent resource.
16 Apr 2008 A second instalment for the day, with another 3 Willow Warblers singing at Strathpeffer, and the first Peacock butterfly of the year.  Also active in the sunshine were Green Tiger Beetles, and two of the willow-feeding solitary bees Andrena clarkella and A. ruficrus.
16 Apr 2008 A singing Willow Warbler near Dingwall today, the first heard this year.  In the past few days both Pinkfeet and Greylags have been heading north. Last night I saw the first Daubenton's Bats of the year, air temperature 2C, and with a -4C reading in the mornings of 15 and 16 April.
12 Apr 2008 Three Swallows at Strathpeffer today, the first of the year here.
11 Apr 2008 The first Small Tortoiseshell of the year at Strathpeffer was on the wing today.  No Peacock yet.
4 Apr 2008 The first moth-trapping session of the year for Jane Bowman produced nine Rannoch Sprawlers, an RDB species. Picture. Top.
29 Mar 2008 Jimmy McKellar offers a number of amazing sites tracking migrant birds to and from Britain.  Check out his posting of 29 March on the HBRG Forum.  They are well worth looking at for a variety of reasons, and quite addictive!
26 Mar 2008 A late start for bumblebees this year, with the first at Strathpeffer on the second latest date on record.
22 Mar 2008 John Chester reports the stranding of 2 separate Long-finned Pilot Whales on Eigg on 8 and 10 March.
22 Mar 2008 Some signs of spring reported recently were the first bumblebee at Dornie on 15 March (from Brian Neath, so far the only report I have had), and a Peacock butterfly at Redcastle near Inverness on 16 March (Martin Hind).
13 Mar 2008 The HBRG taxon database has been updated.  Summaries of the data held are available on the taxon database page. Top.
29 Feb 2008 A few reports of early spawning frogs in the west Highlands, Skye and Strathpeffer have come in since 22 February.  Picture.  Please remember to report Frog, Toad, newts, Viviparous Lizard, Slow-worm and Adder for the NARRS survey (and copy to HBRG).
27 Feb 2008 A surprise visitor to the garden was a single Waxwing feeding on the remaining rosehips.  It was being mobbed by a dozen or so Blue Tits and Chaffinches, to the extent that I thought at first there must have been a ground predator nearby.
21 Feb 2008 The updated maps of ants for the atlas scheme can be downloaded here.  Ants will soon be starting their activity, so please report finds in remote areas, or wood ant mounds anywhere outside Strathspey.
21 Feb 2008 A Ptarmigan was seen at close quarters by Jane Bowman in Glen Moriston. Picture. Top.
9 Jan 2008 Ian Strachan reports baleen plates from Fin Whale washed up on the beach in W Sutherland over the festive season.  Picture.
7 Jan 2008 Some sunshine had Yellowhammer, Great Tit and Greenfinch all singing at Strathpeffer.  A trifle optimistic!   The Moorhen (below) has also introduced a friend to its unconventional behaviour.
1  Jan 2008 A Moorhen which appeared on my garden bird table in January 2007 re-appeared on Hogmanay.  Picture. Top.
21  Dec 2007 More appropriate for the season, but a wonderful thing to find in one's garden, is this Water Rail photographed by Jane Bowman through her window!
21  Dec 2007 A report we were not expecting at this time of year was of a fledgling Dunnock being fed on the Black Isle on 7 December in David O'Brien's garden.  As he commented, 'I don't imagine it will have survived this cold snap'.  At -10C, it does seem unlikely!
13  Dec 2007 The 2007 report on the State of British Mammals is available here (.pdf, 2Mb).
4 Dec 2007 Not content with rediscovering a population of Andrena marginata, Jane Bowman photographed, in September, a horsefly which has been identified as the first Atylotus fulvus found in Scotland since 1923!  See what it looks like here.
1 Dec 2007 The 2007 supplement to the HBRG bumblebee atlas is now available as a .pdf file, 190kB, here.  Top.
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