Looking back over the last year, it has been a rather poor one for wildlife, dominated by weather that was too cold, too wet or too windy. The total of 742 species recorded for the year was the worst since 2019 and was around 20% fewer than the average we’ve seen over the last 5 years. However, there has been a number of species that I’ve not seen before particularly amongst the birds; Waxwing, Lesser Redpoll, Cattle Egret and Long-tailed Duck were species that I’ve not seen in Leicestershire before. Most of these have already appeared in Nature Notes over the last twelve months so I thought I would highlight some of the other new species that have turned up. Back in June, a number of Beautiful Demoiselles put in an appearance at Fosse Meadows; these have been recorded in the county over the last couple of years so I was pleased to see them at last. Like several species of dragonfly and damselfly, they have become established in the UK recently as the climate warms up and have gradually moved northwards. Although usually found around swift-flowing streams with clean gravel, they now seem to be established in several small streams in the south of the county.

Also in June I came across my first ever Bee Orchid at nearby Bagworth Heath. Although formerly very scarce in the county they can now be seen widely in their preferred habitat of short, rough grass as well as banks and quarries. The plant is a mimic with the velvety lip looking like a female bee. Male bees are attracted to the flower to attempt to mate, but ends up pollinating the flower instead. The species of bee imitated is not found in the UK so all of the plants we see here are self-pollinated. Although it takes some imagination to visualise them as a bee, they are certainly a most remarkable flower.

Towards the end of July a strange and unique insect appeared in my back garden – a brown weevil around 7mm long known as an Acorn Weevil – Curculio venosus. The adult females lay their eggs in immature acorns; the larvae hatch and eat the kernels. They then bore holes in the shell and emerge to spend the next year or two in the soil before maturing into adults. These live as a parasite on various species of oak trees, but with no oaks in the vicinity it is difficult to see where this one could have come from.

Another unexpected find at one of the lakes at Bagworth Heath last July was the Lake Pondskater – Aquarius paludum. This is a large pondskater (around 15mm) that is found on the surface of a variety of freshwater habitats. Like all pondskaters they live on insects and spiders that stray onto the surface of the water, piercing them with their proboscis and sucking out the contents. Their limbs are covered with water-repellant hairs which allows the pondskater to walk on water. The limbs also detect vibrations on the surface of the water which is how they detect small animals that are stuck in the surface film.

Roesel’s Bush-cricket is a large cricket (13-26mm) that is common in meadows in the south of England, but which now appears to be spreading northwards. The species is now found throughout Leicestershire including Fosse Meadows which is where I found this one. It is usually wingless and is dark brown with orangey legs, green face and a distinctive cream border to the thorax. They feed mostly on grass and other vegetation. It appears to be another beneficiary of climate change as the population is increasing locally.

The final highlight for the year was a moth, Olive-tree Pearl (Palpita vitrealis), which turned up in my garden in late October. It is a rare immigrant to Britain from southern Europeand is usually found near to the south coast of England. Although rarely recorded in Leicestershire, at least 12 have been recorded in the last two years so this may be another species that is increasing in numbers. However, as it feeds on Jasmine and Olive it is unlikely to become a resident here.

So it seems that it wasn’t such a bad year after all. Several new species, some large, some small but all of them interesting in their own way. I am looking forward to a better year and I wish you all a good year’s nature spotting.