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  • Mark McCaughreanmarkmccaughrean@mastodon.social
    Oct 29, 2026, 5:10 PM

    Let's start with the biggest wasp & we'll come back to another at the end.

    This is a European hornet (Vespa crabro; 🇩🇪 Hornisse) found by the ivy. It probably got gunged after it died, but gave me the chance to make a 24-image macro stack. Could have done with even more steps, tbh 🤷‍♂️

    #Heidelberg 🏰
    #Photography 📷️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️
    #BugOfTheDay 🐞
    #MacroPhotography 🔬
    #InsectsOfMastodon 🪰
    #BackGardenEntomology 🪲

    A close-up view of the head of a hornet, showing details in its large dark brown compound eyes, its yellow clypeus and mandibles, and the ruddy area at the top of the head that's typical of this species. The face and legs are partly covered in some gunge, perhaps from a snail or other creature.
    A wider view of the same macro stack, showing the whole of the hornet, back to the tip of the abdomen. The hornet is lying on its back, so the underside is seen, and the picture has been rotated by 180 degrees to show the face in the normal orientation.
    💬 2🔄 4⭐ 0

Replies

  • Mark McCaughreanmarkmccaughrean@mastodon.social
    Oct 29, 2026, 5:20 PM

    The ivy remains the hot-bed of garden activity at the moment, with many species buzzing around. Hard to shoot there though, standing on steep steps, awkwardly stretching to reach the feeding bugs.

    Among them, several bur-marigold flies (Campiglossa bidentis; 🇩🇪 Rainfarn-Bohrfliege).

    #Heidelberg 🏰
    #Photography 📷️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️
    #BugOfTheDay 🐞
    #MacroPhotography 🔬
    #InsectsOfMastodon 🪰
    #BackGardenEntomology 🪲

    A small fly seen side on on the edge of a leaf, against a dark background. The fly has a grey and brown abdomen with some hairs, a grey thorax with dark bristles, and large red and green metallic eyes. The legs are light brown and the edge-on wings show light and dark patterns.
    The same fly seen from above, showing the patterned wings in a bit more detail, although they're folded and have iridescence. The grey thorax and head are seen better, with a light stripe between the compound eyes, and light brown antennae.
    The same fly seen from above and to one side, but this time on a different leaf and with it's wings spread, showing the light and dark spotted wing pattern more clearly.
    A fly of the same species, but unlikely the same individual, seen half an hour later on a white door. The fly is seen from above with the wings spread, but also the abdomen can be seen through it – this has yellow lateral bands on a dark base, and a siphon-shaped tip.
    💬 1🔄 3⭐ 0
  • Mark McCaughreanmarkmccaughrean@mastodon.social
    Oct 29, 2026, 5:24 PM

    Not a new species for the year, but this is one of several bay leafhoppers (Synophropsis lauri; 🇩🇪 Lorbeerzirpe) basking in the autumn sunlight.

    #Heidelberg 🏰
    #Photography 📷️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️
    #BugOfTheDay 🐞
    #MacroPhotography 🔬
    #InsectsOfMastodon 🪰
    #BackGardenEntomology 🪲

    A leafhopper seen side on on an ivy leaf in sunlight. The leafhopper has a pale green head and eyes, with an orange thorax, and then grey-brown wings with many white veins and some black patches. The legs are pale and spiny.
    💬 1🔄 3⭐ 0
  • Mark McCaughreanmarkmccaughrean@mastodon.social
    Oct 29, 2026, 5:38 PM

    Back to the many wasp species in the ivy, including these – I think they're common European yellow jackets (Vespula vulgaris; 🇩🇪 Gemeine Wespe).

    I say I think, because the facial markings are odd, but they might be males – their faces are variable & they often feed on ivy flowers in autumn.

    #Heidelberg 🏰
    #Photography 📷️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️
    #BugOfTheDay 🐞
    #MacroPhotography 🔬
    #InsectsOfMastodon 🪰
    #BackGardenEntomology 🪲

    A large yellow jacket wasp with characteristic yellow and black colouration, seen side on feeding on ivy flowers. The wasp has large, thick black antennae, with yellow patches near the base. The black compound eyes are surrounded by yellow, while the mandibles are more orange. The thorax is black on top with longitudinal stripes and a triangular patch at the wing root. There are more yellow bands further back on the thorax. The wings are side on, but are amber, while the legs are yellow with orange near the joints. The wasp is covered in hairs, dark on the head and thorax, lighter on the abdomen.
    The same wasp seen more from behind, showing some of the interlaced yellow and black marking on the abdomen, and the yellow patches at the base of the thorax.
    The same wasp seen face on, showing the dark eyes, black antennae, and the yellow clypeus. It has two small black dots one above the other, and there is a black notch in the part above. This is not typical of V vulgaris, in which the queens and drones have an inverted arrowhead on the clypeus, but the males are apparently much more variable. It also doesn't resemble the pattern of V germanica, which has a triangle of black dots.
    Another view from behind, albeit likely of a different individual, as this picture was taken a few minutes before the others. It nevertheless shows the black and yellow pattern on the abdomen well – it's fairly plain, without too much ornamentation or separate black spots.
    💬 0🔄 2⭐ 0
  • r3n3g4de_42r3n3g4de@pixelfed.social
    Nov 1, 2026, 8:59 PM
    I once found a rather gigantic dead spider in the attic....Also used it for Stacking practice.

    There is a new Stacking Program , that just had its first release. OpenSource, Crossplatform

    "FocusForge" By "jjjsood" on github, the Author seeks beta testers. I put it to use already, good results;

    Is in active developement. Feed it TiFFs, and it will Stack nicely!
    💬 0🔄 0⭐ 0
  • Mark McCaughreanmarkmccaughrean@mastodon.social
    Nov 1, 2026, 11:08 PM

    @r3n3g4de Interesting. I’ve been very happy with ShineStacker of late – it does a great job when it has a decent set of images, plus has a good retouching tool.

    Will have a look at FocusForge & see how it might compare 👍

    💬 0🔄 0⭐ 0