Following two days of really cold weather yesterday hailed a change, and by early afternoon it had beome warm enough for me to enjoy my first outdoor lunch of the year! A quick peek at the pond revealed two wirly-gig beetles spinning their mad dance over the surface film. Another sign of spring! Apparently, most adults don't survive the UK winter, so if you do spot one in early spring it's a sure sign they managed to hibernate; overwintering a the bottom of the pond.
The warmer weather continued into today as well, and during the afternoon we got a glimpse of two more pond dwellers; a large sleepy-looking water boatman and a water measurer moving un-characteristically fast across the surface film. Normally, they have a much more sedentary pace. Like all surface-film pond creatures water measurers have hydrophobic hairs on their legs and undersides. They are carniverous scavengers taking their fill from tiny creatures alighting upon the water's surface or mosquito larvae and water fleas beneath.
The warmer weather continued into today as well, and during the afternoon we got a glimpse of two more pond dwellers; a large sleepy-looking water boatman and a water measurer moving un-characteristically fast across the surface film. Normally, they have a much more sedentary pace. Like all surface-film pond creatures water measurers have hydrophobic hairs on their legs and undersides. They are carniverous scavengers taking their fill from tiny creatures alighting upon the water's surface or mosquito larvae and water fleas beneath.