Box Bug

After the dire weather of yesterday, it was a relief to wake to clear skies, though this meant the morning was the chilliest so far this autumn. After dealing with my emails I set off to do a couple of hours of plant recording near Greatford, which was slightly curtailed when I found part of my route blocked by flooding from the River Glen. 

Out of the wind, it felt quite pleasant in the warm sunshine, and the flowering Ivy was covered with various insects, including the occasional Ivy Bee (almost ubiquitous around Peterborough now) and this Box Bug, another species that's currently spreading north in response to climate change. 

Historically very rare (RBD1) and known only from Box Hill in Surrey, where it feeds on Box trees, this bug now occurs widely in the south-east of England and beyond. It's exploiting different foodplants, and has been found on hawthorn, buckthorn, yew and plum trees.