I-SPY Wildlife - A 6 a Day Challenge

I've seen another oil beetle but it doesn't count.
A male blackcap.

Off the back of this I spy wildlife 6 a day challenge. I’ve decided to keep a record of all the birds that visit my garden and the more unusual insects. Only criteria it must land in my garden.

Fantastic! Sounds like the start of a book/website/summat.

Just a bird today. Which I was very excited to see .
Yellow hammer

Not sure whether this is a Bee or an Insect!!
Dark winged Bee Fly in the GH, feeding on some yellow brassica flowers. I'm fascinated by Bee Flies. https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/bee-flies...-side.html

Not sure whether this is a Bee or an Insect!!
Dark winged Bee Fly in the GH, feeding on some yellow brassica flowers. I'm fascinated by Bee Flies.  https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/bee-flies...-side.html

Very cool. It amazing how much we’re learning. I had no idea there were so many varieties of bee fly. Think we only get the heath up here. And it’s still a bit early for them .

What with oil beetles and bee flies, the poor old mining bee doesn't stand much of a chance.

My bird for the day is a pair of goldfinches. We used to get them in lage numbers but they have dwindled over the years.
I saw several bumbles but they didn't sit still long enough for me to identify them.
Insect - wireworm

Insect - crane fly titular rufina
Other - dab ( flat fish) not sure it really counts as it was dead. But it was in my garden!?

     

         
This morning while finishing a craft project in the caravan. I heard a gull making a fuse. Thought nothing of it. A little while later Bob arrived home knocked on the window ( because he’s to lazy to open the bloody door! ) and said do you know anything about fish ? Unsurprisingly I looked at him slightly confused. He followed this odd question with a request that I walk to the end of the garden path. There I found a small dead but perfectly fresh dab?
I’m guessing the gull got mugged for it and dropped it as it was flying over. But wasn’t brave enough to come into the garden for it. We had it for tea. Couldn’t let it go to waste. Luckily being a fish monger for 2 year , I know exactly how to tell if a fish is fresh and I know how to fillet it.

Wow! Fresh fish delivered to your door!!I Impressive

I have nothing to add today.

Insect - oil beetle (so google lens tells me)  he was about 4.5cm long

I'd never heard of an Oil beetle before and now, they're had a mention on a FB page for Pembrokeshire Coast (West Wales). 

These fascinating insects have one of the most unusual lifecycles around. When their eggs hatch, the tiny larvae climb onto flowers and wait for a passing bee. Hitching a ride back to the bee’s nest, they settle in, feeding on the bee’s food stores (and sometimes even its eggs!) before growing into adults and starting the cycle all over again.
Oil beetles rely on healthy bee populations and bees need plenty of native wildflowers to thrive.
That’s why Pembrokeshire’s species-rich coastal grasslands and heaths are so important. With the right management to stop scrub taking over, these habitats can support a whole network of wildlife.
We’re lucky to have three species of oil beetle here in Pembrokeshire, including the nationally rare Short-necked Oil Beetle.

Just a green finch today