Can you tell me what these flies are? They were on a wall in the garden. Are they some sort of stonefly? Albert Mason, Kilcoole, Co Wicklow
These are crane flies: not the typical daddy longlegs we see in August, but an earlier-flying species, Tipula rufina. Its larvae consume decaying plant matter, but the adults do not feed at all. Their adult life is an orgy of mating and laying eggs, then dying when they run out of energy. Most records are received by the National Biodiversity Data Centre in April and May.
I saw this bat hanging on a wall in an outside porch of my house in Letterkenny on March 15th. It stayed there, motionless, for two days, and then it departed. It was about 6x4cm. What type of bat was it and why did it stay outside of its nest for 2 days? David Kennedy, Letterkenny
Its body length of 6cm and its reddish-golden fur would seem to indicate that it was a Leisler’s bat – our largest bat species. These generally hibernate in holes in deciduous trees. Their activity ceases when ambient temperatures drop below six degrees. Some March temperatures this year were above six degrees, day and night, for a while, so the bat went out to forage. It returned to its roost again when temperatures dropped.
I found this on Béal Bán Beach in Ballyferriter after a recent big storm. Could you identify it please? Is it a spider or a velvet crab? Frank Folan, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare
It is a spiny spider crab that has lost its front pair of claws. It has a spiny, bristly shell. Velvet crabs are much smaller – up to 8cm across – and have a velvety feel to the shell and paddle-like back legs, which are used for swimming. The largest population of spider crabs in Ireland is close to the Maherees on the north side of the Dingle peninsula.
A huge hatch of these ladybirds has occurred at about this time for the past three springs. I live in an apartment on the Liffey and am surrounded by mature trees. On a warm afternoon in October/November they generally arrive in the hundreds. They have now emerged from their winter quarters. How can I help them survive out of doors this early? Have they hatched or hibernated? Penny, Dublin 8
Don’t bother your head worrying and hoosh them out into the cold. These are the invasive harlequin ladybirds, which eat our native ladybird species. They overwinter as adults – which is what they were setting themselves up for last October/November. They have now re-emerged (starving, no doubt) and are off seeking aphids to eat or, failing that, our native ladybirds. They are a very variable species but typically can have up to 21 spots and a ridge around the bottom of the wing cases.
My mother, Peggy O’Sullivan, always wanted to know why the wild spring flowers at this time of year are predominantly yellow, such as lesser celandine, dandelions and furze. Peter O’Sullivan, Rathgar, Dublin
This is true. Many of our wild spring flowers are either yellow or white. Lesser celandines, primroses and the white wild garlic, wood anemone and wild sorrel are all woodland plants. These bright colours are easily seen by early pollinating flies and bees, and this ensures their survival. The purple pigments in sea aster, sea lavender, willowherbs and thistles, which flower in autumn, need shorter nights and longer days to develop. This is why there are many more wildflowers of these colours in August and September.
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