Chloromyia formosa (Scopoli, 1763)

We've been neglecting the flies quite unfairly.

Male. Photographed in Bosham, West Sussex, UK, in June 2012, using an Olympus E-420 with 40-150mm Zuiko lens and 3 KOOD magnifiers.

This rather hairy little fellow is

Chloromyia formosa 

(Scopoli, 1763)

Also known in the UK as the Broad Centurian. It's colourful, reasonably common and - important note - harmless. As an adult it's a pollinator, as a larva it eats decaying leaves, and doesn't intentionally land on food or sewage, so really, about as unimposing as an insect can be. 

Another angle, female in this instance, to give you some idea of the overall form of the animal:

Female, same place, time and camera.

 And with that, I suppose we should get on with the Taxonomy.

- Sarginae     
- Stratiomyidae
- Stratiomyoidea 
- Tabanomorpha   
- Brachycera           

See also Senaspis haemorrhoa, Helophilus pendulus, Episyrphus balteatus, Diasemopsis meigenii, Metadon inermis and Dolichotachina caudata.

- Diptera                    

See also Megistocera filipes.

- Antliophora               

See also Panorpa germanica.

- Panorpida                    

See also Metisella willemi, Acada biseriata, Anthocharis cardamines, Laelia robusta, Zebronia phenice and Crambus pascuella.

- Endopterygota               

See also Phyllobius pomaceus, Otiorhynchus atroapterus, Malachius bipustulatus, Oedemera noobilis,Cheilomenes lunata, Melolontha melolontha, Neojulodis vittipennis, Demetrias atricapillus, Anthia fornasiini, Synagris proserpina, Vespula germanica, Astata tropicalis, Andrena nigroaenea and Hagenomyia tristis. 

- Eumetabola                      

See also Pephricus, Anoplocnemis curvipes, Ranatra, and Grypocoris stysi.

- Neoptera                            

See also Cyathosternum prehensile, Lobosceliana loboscelis, Stictogryllacris punctata, Sibylla and Humbe tenuicornis.

- Metapterygota                      

See also  Rhyothemis semihyalina, Pseudagrion hageni, Enallagma cyathigerum and Lestinogomphus angustus.

- Pterygota                                
- Dicondylia                                 
- Insecta                                         
- Hexapoda                                      
- Arthropoda                                      

See also Hyllus argyrotoxus, Argiope bruennichi, Enoplognatha ovata, Alopecosa barbipes, Dicranopalpus ramosus and Ligia oceanica. 

- Ecdysozoa                                         
- Protostomia                                         
- Nephrozoa                                             

See also Hipposideros vittatus, Troglodytes troglodytes, , Chalcophaps indica, Ardea goliath, Sterna hirundo, Burhinus vermiculatus, Thelotornis capensis, Lygodactylus capensis, Trachylepis varia, Zootoca vivipara, Chiromantis xerampelina, Rana temporaria and Synchiropus splendidus

 - Bilateralia                                                

- Eumetazoa                                                 

- Animalia                                                       
- Eukaryota                                                       

And that is all, folks!

Oedemera nobilis (Scopoli, 1763)

To ease you back after one post where certainty is currently impossible, here's one where it's unavoidable:

Photographed in August 2012, in Bosham, West Sussex, UK, using Olympus E-420 DSLR, Zuiko 40-150 mm lens and three KOOD magnifiers.

This colourful character is a male of the common European species

Oedemera nobilis

(Scopoli, 1763). 

also known as, in the UK, the swollen-thighed beetle, a pollen-feeding species seen frequently on almost all flowers from June through to August.

Where many pollinators have vastly different early diets, the larvae of these beetles are also herbivorous, feeding on Broom and Thistles, and for their overwintering, presumably require the dead stems of these plants to be left uncut. Certainly in the area where this was photographed, abundance has increased dramatically since a half-acre or so of land on the edge of the salt-marsh has been set aside from farming and mowing, and turned to rough grassland.

 Here's another angle to illustrate the thigh in question, on a more evenly coloured individual:

And with that, once more into the taxonomy:

- Oedemerini

- Oedemerinae

- Oedemeridae  

- Tenebrionoidea 

- Cucujiformia       

See also Malachius bipustulatus, Otiorhynchus atroapterus and Cheilomenes lunata.

- Polyphaga              

See also Melolontha melolontha.

- Coleoptera                

See also Demetrias atricapillus and Anthia fornasiini.

- Coleopterida                

- Endopterygota                

See also Senaspis haemorrhoa, Helophilus pendulus, Episyrphus balteatus, Diasemopsis meigenii, Dolichotachina caudata, Megistocera filipes, Panorpa germanica, Acada biseriata, Anthocharis cardamines, Laelia robusta, Zebronia phenice, Crambus pascuella , Andrena nigroaenea, Synagris proserpina, Vespula germanica, Astata tropicalis, Hagenomyia tristis and Metadon inermis.

- Eumetabola                       

See also Pephricus, Anoplocnemis curvipes, Ranatra and Grypocoris stysi

- Neoptera                               

See also Cyathosternum prehensile, Lobosceliana loboscelis, Stictogryllacris punctata, Sibylla and Humbe tenuicornis

- Manopterygota                         

See also Pseudagrion hageni, Enallagma cyathigerum and Rhyothemis semihyalina

- Pterygota                                      

- Dicondylia                                       

- Insecta                                                  

- Hexapoda                                                 

- Arthropoda                                                   

See also Ligia oceanica, Dicranopalpus ramosus, Enoplognatha ovata, Argiope bruennichi and Hyllus argyrotoxus

- Ecdysozoa                                                        

- Protostomia                                                          

- Nephrozoa                                                               

See also Burhinus vermiculatus, Sterna hirundo, Ardea goliath, Chalcophaps indica, Thelotornis capensis, Trachylepis varia, Lygodactylus capensis, Hipposideros vittatus, Rana temporaria, Chiromantis xerampelina, Synchiropus splendidus and Troglodytes troglodytes

- Bilateralia                                                                    

- Eumetazoa                                                                       

- Animalia                                                                              

- Eukaryota                                                                                 

                  

Argiope bruenicchi (Scopoli, 1772)

We're adding an abstract twist to our 'Wasp' theme...

Onwards!

 - Eukaryota
   - Animalia
     - Eumetazoa
       - Bilateralia
         - Nephrozoa - see also Thelotornis capensis, Lygodactylus capensis, Chalcophaps indica, Sterna hirundo, Ardea goliath, Trachylepis varia and Hipposideros vittatus.
           - Protostomia
             - Ecdysozoa
               - Arthropoda - see also Ligia oceanica, Enallagma cyathigerum, Pseudagrion hageni, Sybilla, Stictogryllacris punctata, Cyathosternum prehensile, Pephricus, Anoplocnemis curvipes, Hagenomyia tristis, Zebronia phenice, Laelia robusta, Anthocharis cardamines, Acada biseriata, Panorpa germanica, Megistocera filipes, Diasemopsis meigenii, Episyrphus balteatus, Helophus pendulus, Demetrias atricapillus, Anthia fornasinii, Melolontha melolontha, Otiorhynchus atroapterus, Malachius bipustulatus, Senaspis haemorrhoa, Astata tropicalis, Synagris proserpina  and Vespula germanica.
                 - Chelicerata
                   - Arachnida - see also Dicranopalpus ramosus
                     - Micrura
                       - Megoperculata
                         - Araneae
                           - Opisthothelae
                             - Araneomorphae
                               - Neocribellatae
                                 - Araneoclada
                                   - Entelegynae - see also Hyllus argyrotoxus
                                     - Araneoidea - see also Enoplognatha ovata
                                       - Araneidae
                                         - Argiopinae

Argiope bruenicchi

(Scopoli, 1772)

As orb-weavers in general have small heads and small eyes, they might consider perching high in vegetation, or perhaps face up, to encourage a more appealing angle, but no, the Wasp Spider (A.K.A. Bruenicch's Argiope) - did you see the link to my 'wasp day'? -  builds its web around a foot off the ground in rough grassland, and sits in the middle looking straight at the ground.

It is a fairly specialist predator of grasshoppers, so possibly it has its reasons. 

As a recent arrival in the UK, having spread here more-or-less naturally from Europe, it is also one of our most recogniseable spiders: 

 It's still limited to the south of the island, but continues a spread north where rough (read - uncultivated and unmowed) grassland is available. It's also one of the few spiders native to the UK that I wouldn't confidently assure you is completely harmless, although - with its large size and bright colours, coupled with it's requirement for a relatively undisturbed habitat, it's rather unlikely that you'll come into accidental contact with it anytime soon.

That's all, folks!