Country diary: A great pretender lurking on the riverbank | Nic Wilson

Charlton, Hertfordshire: While there are heartening numbers of pollinators here today, a few have unwittingly become lunch for a wasp spiderGreat swathes of water mint along the River Hiz have attracted an astonishing array of pollinators, given the paucity of insects this summer. Almost every pale lilac flowerhead hosts a different species - green-veined white and small heath butterflies, mint moths, drone flies, honeybees and bumblebees.The drone flies are methodical, probing each tiny tubular flower in turn, while the green-veined whites flit from cluster to cluster. A wasp plumehorn (or lesser hornet hoverfly) climbs into view, its honey-yellow abdomen barred with black. Two huge, brown compound eyes meet on the top of the head, indicating that it's a male. Named for its mimicry and feathery aristae (bristles on the antennae), this hoverfly species has larvae that feed on wasp and hornet grubs. Continue reading...