Low Level Hoverflies

My rather little feeble, un-beflowered garden doesn't really have a lot to offer. It doesn't see a massive amount of summer sun due to the trees, and any time any good cover of wild flowers gets going, the gardener next door hacks it down "as a favour".

But I do have a smallish buddleia, now much more brown than purple, a holly tree my Polish neighbour murdered the bottom half of to let some light into her flowers - technically most of the trunk is on her side - and below this, another cropping victim.

It's some form of ivy, I think, and it has recently come into bloom with small creamy flowers. It doesn't seem to attract bees so much, but instead acts as an attractor for wasps - think there's another nest in my roof again judging by the numbers of small males I'm finding dying in the flat - and also hoverflies of varying species.

Picked up these three yesterday, a couple of bombylans looking types with the big black hourglass on the abdomen, and a more "traditional" one. I've seen the wasp hoverflies on it too, but alas not one of the hornet hoverflies sadly; only at the castle grounds.

That was a magnificent beastie!

Si

Words and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 22.08.15

Not quite

Better! Lovely hourglass marking

You can tell this is on the mobile phone!!! But it was in my hand...