Billy witch dancing

It's the time of year when common cockchafers, also known as Billy witch, spang beetles and may bugs, turn up in the moth trap. This is a male and can easily be distinguished from the females by counting the number of 'leaves' on their remarkable antler-like antennae - males sport seven ‘leaves’ while females have only six. These leafy antennae can detect pheromones, enabling males to find females even in the dark. This isn't the sharpest of my shots, but it gives a sense of movement, as the beetle warms up ready to fly away. I've put a couple of other shots in the extras.


Ben's Maths exam went much better than yesterday's physics - there had to be one reasonably straightforward paper! He spent the afternoon relaxing before making a start on the next tranche of revision.