Fluff, Fungi and Fangs

Despite it being a fairly dreary, drizzly, grey kind of day I was determined to find some new stuff for my PSL, particularly more beetles if at all possible. The very first bird I spied as I walked outside was a huge, ponderous White-tailed Eagle flopping across the bay - always a nice start. It circled overhead an hour or so later offering better views, a full adult as opposed to the youngster I usually see here. A short while later a high up raptor resolved into a male Peregrine, just my second Uig sighting in over two years! I have no idea why they aren't more commonly encountered, there are certainly plenty of Hoodies, ducks and Rock Doves for them to prey upon up here.

Despite the crappy weather, the plants know it is supposed to be springtime with Coltsfoot bursting forth down by the river, the first few cones of Field Horsetail are erupting from the earth and the lone bush of Flowering Currant in my square is finally living up to its name

I know of a mature Larch that hosts Larch Woolly Adelgids, so figured I'd wander across and see if I could find any, despite it still being very early in the season. Well, I have to say I'm not sure if I found one or not! What would you say?

Adelgid or just a bit of fluff?

Think I'll have to go back a tad later in the season to find the answer to that question. But what I did find were lots of very small fungi on dead larch twigs, looking like tiny fluffy cups

As you can see from the size of my thumbnail, these really are rather tiny discos!

A bit of online detective work led me to the genus Lachnellula. There would appear to be two species that occur on dead larch twigs, L.willkommii and L.occidentalis, both of which are already known from Scotland. I'm erring towards occidentalis, but will have to go back tomorrow and gather a sample to whack under the microscope in order to check the spores. That's if I can find them again!

I ambled down to the beach and wandered the upper edge of the small strip of saltmarsh between the slip and the Rha mouth. Plenty of beachhoppers and Porcellio scaber beneath the boulders, plus a Clivina fossor with its massively elaborate digging plates on the front femurs. There are two species of Clivina in Britain, both quite similar looking. I carded my specimen and keyed it through, just to be sure.

Clivina fossor - not exactly the best angle for showing those amazing front legs...

Also found beneath the stones was this impressive, all black staphylinid

Recognising it as a (probable) member of the Staphylininae group, I ran it through the keys and was pleased to find that I guessed correctly (and doubly pleased to realise that I could probably get it to species too). Traditionally, staphylinids have been avoided by all but the most masochistic of coleopterists, but this individual keyed through absolutely beautifully. I ran it through twice, as I usually do when things go too well, and it still came through as Tasgius melanarius, one I've not knowingly seen before. Tasgius have huge curved scimitars for mandibles, the shape of which is an important aid for correctly naming the species.

Tasgius melanarius - 16mm of pure awesomeness! 

There were many features to be checked when running it through the keys, but importantly note that the pronotum narrows towards the elytra and it has an overall big-headed feel to it. Then there are the jaws. Oh my word - the jaws!

Note the narrowing, round-shouldered pronotum. And those huge great jaws!

Come 'ere and give us a kiss - honest I won't bite...

The Sickle-jawed Monster from Hell (well, Uig in this instance)

I suspect escape would be nigh on impossible once impaled on those ferocious mandibles. Or maybe they're used for jousting? Or flipping over housebricks? Anyway, that's another staphylinid keyed through with very little trouble. I might even start tackling the small ones sometime soon.

This is a 'new' beetle for Skye, all previous Inner Hebrides records are from adjacent Raasay (1999 onwards but sporadic at best). Locally it is also known from South Uist and Lewis on the Outer Hebs.