Animal Magic

'scuse me mate, could you please tel me the way to the gap in the hedge? I'm on my way home from work you see, and I am a bit lost and its getting late...'

'Sure thing Bro', just turn right, go along the edge of the forest and you're back on the path.'

'Thanks.....mind If I take your picture?

'no, not at all'


The Cardinal Beetle (Pyrochroa serraticornis) is normally found on flowers at the edges of woodlands. It is carnivorous, feeding upon other insects.
The name cardinal actually refers to a whole group of brightly coloured, flat bodied beetles, many of which have irridescent wing casings and thorax.
All the text books say these are common, but I have never seen one before - it is a good inch long. Alfred Russel Wallace would have enjoyed this one.

Apologies to Johnnie Morris.