Old friends, new places

We were joined briefly this week by Dr Koos Biesmeijer, so really pulled out the stops to remind him what fieldwork can be like.  We took him to a drizzley cemetery and a bare pavement first (just to whet his appetite!)

Then a potentially bleak man-made surface turned up a little gem of highly diverse vegetation, with plenty of associated invertebrate life...

Hoverfly on mignonette, in a small green patch within an expanse of concrete

Finally, today's allotment site gave us a chance to swap and share knowledge with each other and some of the allotment holders.  Damselflies, tiny wasps and a wide variety of bees and hoverflies once again proved that allotment sites seem to be the best habitat category for pollinators in Leeds. There was even a Bombus hypnorum nest in a bird box, and a shed-top green roof to add a bit of spice.  Lovely!

B. hypnorum nest in bird box on allotment