Daddy Long-legs

So here we have a little crane-fly sheltering on the inside of the greenhouse ...a very fortuitous find as there was nothing else around! No flies on this daddy long-legs being on the inside of the glass with the howling wind and rain outside!

After a long day and drive to Southampton taking #1 daughter to Uni and back I knew I still had to blip. The weather had been hideous and I motored through Wiltshire with 50mph gusts on the motorway with driving rain which became quite frightening at times. Getting home the only place out of the rain and wind was the greenhouse. Luckily for me I saw him and he didn't seem to mind me setting up the tripod under his nose.

They are nectar feeders and don't bite even though they look like very large mosquitoes. This is a male as the female has a pointed ovipositor with a fatter abdomen which holds the eggs. Their larvae or leatherjackets consume roots so can cause havoc to lawns so a good job we have chickens to rootle them out! :))