6-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - GROUND BUG (LYGAEUS SAXITALIS)

Spilostethus saxatilis is a species of bugs belonging to the family Lygaeidae, subfamily Lygaeinae.

This species can be found in the Euro-Mediterranean-Turanian Region, with a more northern distribution relative to Spilostethus pandurus,[citation needed] at least as far east as Iran.

It is present in most of Europe (Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine),[2] and in the Oriental realm.

These bugs prefer warm, dry open areas, meadows and fields. They can also be seen on the rocks (hence the species name saxatilis, which is derived from the Latin word saxum, meaning rock).

Spilostethus saxatilis can reach a length of 8.5–12.5 millimetres (0.33–0.49 in). Bodies of these bugs are characterized by black and red markings of different shapes. Pronotum is red, with two broad, irregularly shaped longitudinal black stripes. The hemilytra have black and red markings, while the membrane is black, without white spot. The outer edge of the corium is black. The connexivum is alternately red and black colored. Antennae and legs are black.

These polyphagous bugs feed on seeds and juices of various plants, especially Aspleniaceae, Asteraceae and Apiaceae. Spilostethus saxatilis is a univoltine species. The mating takes place in May and June. The new adult generation will appear in August. Adults overwinter.

6-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - COMMON GERANIUM BRONZE BUTTERFLY (Cacyreus marshalli)

6-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - COMMON COCKCHAFER (Melolontha melolontha)

5-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - COMMON GERANIUM BRONZE BUTTERFLY (Cacyreus marshalli)

5-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - SEED BUG (Spilostethus furcula)

Spilostethus furcula is a species of seed bug in the family Lygaeidae, found in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.

Adults can exceed one centimetre in length. The head is small, with a pair of bulging eyes on both sides. Long antennae with four segments, pronotum "kind of shield located between the head and the abdomen, red with black spots, the abdomen is covered by hemyelytra "chitinous wings whose function is to protect the true wings. The true wings are membranous and greyish or brown. The Scutellum "triangular piece located below the pronotum, black in colour and the abdomen with a zebra-like margin of red and black, these being its main characteristics.

5-6-2017 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - SPOTTED FLYCATCHER (Muscicapa striata)

5-6-2017 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - EUROPEAN SERIN (MALE) (Serinus serinus)

5-6-2017 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - RED EARED SLIDER TERRAPIN (JUVENILE)

5-6-2017 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - EURASIAN COOT (Fulica atra)

5-6-2017 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - EURASIAN COOT (JUVENILE) (Fulica atra)

The Eurasian coot, Fulica atra, also known as the common coot or Australian coot, is a distinctive waterbird with a slaty-black body, a glossy black head, and a striking white bill topped with a white frontal shield. This bird is a member of the Rallidae family, which includes rails and crakes. Both sexes exhibit similar plumage, making them indistinguishable in the field.

Adult Eurasian coots measure 36–38 cm in length with a wingspan of 70–80 cm. Males are slightly heavier than females, weighing around 890 g compared to the females' 750 g. The species is characterized by its white bill and frontal shield, which contrast sharply with its all-black body. Juveniles are paler with a whitish breast and lack the facial shield, which develops fully by one year of age.

The Eurasian coot is found on freshwater lakes and ponds and has adapted well to urban environments, often seen in city parks and gardens with water bodies.

This bird has a broad range across the Old World, including Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of North Africa. It is a resident in milder regions but migrates south and west from much of Asia during winter.

The Eurasian coot is less secretive than many rails, often visible on open water or grasslands. It is territorial and aggressive during the breeding season, with both parents defending their territory. In non-breeding seasons, coots may form large flocks. They are reluctant flyers, preferring to run across water surfaces, and are known for bobbing their heads while swimming.

This species is known for its noisy demeanor, producing a variety of crackling, explosive, or trumpeting calls, which are often heard at night.

Coots build bulky, sometimes floating nests, concealed in vegetation or in the open. Both sexes construct the nest, with the male gathering materials. Clutches typically contain 6-10 buff-colored eggs speckled with black or dark brown. Both parents incubate the eggs, which hatch after 21-24 days. Chicks are precocial and nidifugous, with distinctive orange-red tips on their down.

Omnivorous in nature, the Eurasian coot consumes small live prey, including other birds' eggs, as well as algae, vegetation, seeds, and fruit. It employs various feeding techniques, both on land and in water.

The Eurasian coot is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN and is protected under the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA).

22-3-2017 TROGON LODGE, COSTA RICA - VOLCANO HUMMINGBIRD (Selasphorus flammula)

The Volcano Hummingbird, scientifically known as Selasphorus flammula, is a diminutive and vibrant member of the "bee hummingbirds" tribe Mellisugini. This species graces the highlands of Costa Rica and Panama with its presence and is notably featured on Costa Rica's 20 thousand colones bill.

Adult males of the Volcano Hummingbird are characterized by their bronze-green upperparts and striking mauve-purple gorget, with the rest of the underparts predominantly white. They possess rufous-edged black outer tail feathers, and their breast sides are tinged with buffy to pale cinnamon, speckled with green. Females, while also bronze-green above, have green central tail feathers with rufous bases, a black band near the end, and buffy to white tips. Their throats are whitish with dusky bronze speckles. Juveniles resemble adult females but have buffy fringes on their upperpart feathers.

The Volcano Hummingbird (Selasphorus flammula) is a very small hummingbird which breeds only in the mountains of Costa Rica and Chiriqui, Panama. This tiny endemic bird inhabits open brushy areas, paramo, and edges of elfin forest at altitudes from 1850 m to the highest peaks. It is only 7.5 cm long. The male weighs 2.5 g and the female 2.8 g. The black bill is short and straight. The adult male Volcano Hummingbird has bronze-green upperparts and rufous-edged black outer tail feathers. The throat is grey-purple in the Talamanca range, red in the Poas-Barva mountains and pink-purple in the Irazú-Turrialba area, the rest of the underparts being white. The female is similar, but her throat is white with dusky spots. Young birds resemble the female but have buff fringes to the upperpart plumage.

These hummingbirds inhabit semi-open to open high mountain slopes, thriving in environments such as páramo, second growth on landslide scars or ashfall areas, scrubby pastures, and the edges of elfin forest and taller forest.

The Volcano Hummingbird can be found across various high-elevation locations in Costa Rica and western Panama, with the nominate subspecies residing on Volcanoes Irazú and Turrialba in central Costa Rica.

During the breeding season, which spans from August or September to February, males establish small territories for courtship displays, while females construct nests of plant down and spider web adorned with moss and lichens. Post-breeding, some individuals may descend to lower elevations or migrate to adjacent mountains, allowing for subspecies intermingling.

While foraging, the Volcano Hummingbird emits soft chip notes. Males produce a thin whistled 'teeeeeuu' and a twittering 'scolding' call during confrontations with other males. The male's tail feathers create a series of broad-frequency pulses during their dive display.

The female Volcano Hummingbird crafts a cup nest on the outermost end of a twig, typically between 1 and 5 meters above the ground, occasionally on a rootly drooping from an earth bank. The specifics of the incubation period and fledging time remain a mystery.

The Volcano Hummingbird forages for nectar from a diverse array of small flowers and also consumes small arthropods, either caught on the wing or gleaned from foliage and spider webs.

The IUCN has classified the Volcano Hummingbird as Least Concern, with a fairly large range and a stable population estimated between 20,000 and 50,000 mature individuals. The species is found in protected areas and may even benefit from human activity, as it is more abundant in open areas than in forested ones.

Although this species may have a small range, it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size may be moderately small to large, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

4-11-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - WHITE WAGTAIL (Motacilla alba)

11-12-2014 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - GREAT TIT (Parus major)

10-2-2016 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - BUFF TAILED BUMBLE BEE (Bombus terrestris)

Bombus terrestris, the buff-tailed bumblebee or large earth bumblebee, is one of the most numerous bumblebee species in Europe. It is one of the main species used in greenhouse pollination, and so can be found in many countries and areas where it is not native, such as Tasmania.[2] Moreover, it is a eusocial insect with an overlap of generations, a division of labour, and cooperative brood care. The queen is monogamous which means she mates with only one male. B. terrestris workers learn flower colours and forage efficiently.

B. terrestris is most commonly found throughout Europe and generally occupies temperate climates. Because it can survive in a wide variety of habitats, there are populations in the Near East, the Mediterranean Islands, and Northern Africa as well.[6] Additionally, it has escaped captivity after being introduced as a greenhouse pollinator in countries where it is not native, so this bee is now considered an invasive species in many of these places, including Japan, Chile, Argentina, and Tasmania. Nests are usually found underground, such as in abandoned rodent dens. Colonies form comb-like nest structures with egg cells each containing several eggs. The queen will lay egg cells on top of one another. Colonies produce between 300 and 400 bees on average, with a large variation in the number of workers.

2-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - COMMON DARTER DRAGONFLY (FEMALE) (Sympetrum striolatum)

2-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - HOUSE SPARROW (MALE) (Passer domesticus)

The house sparrow (Passer domesticus) is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. It is a small bird that has a typical length of 16 cm (6.3 in) and a mass of 24–39.5 g (0.85–1.39 oz). Females and young birds are coloured pale brown and grey, and males have brighter black, white, and brown markings. One of about 25 species in the genus Passer, the house sparrow is native to most of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin, and a large part of Asia. Its intentional or accidental introductions to many regions, including parts of Australasia, Africa, and the Americas, make it the most widely distributed wild bird.

The house sparrow is strongly associated with human habitation, and can live in urban or rural settings. Though found in widely varied habitats and climates, it typically avoids extensive woodlands, grasslands, polar regions, and hot, dry deserts far away from human development. For sustenance, the house sparrow routinely feeds at home and public bird feeding stations, but naturally feeds on the seeds of grains, flowering plants and weeds. However, it is an opportunistic, omnivorous eater, and commonly catches insects, their larvae, caterpillars, invertebrates and many other natural foods.

4-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - EURASIAN COLLARED DOVE (Streptopelia decaocto)

4-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - SPECKLED WOOD BUTTERFLY (Pararge aegeria)

The speckled wood (Pararge aegeria) is a butterfly found in and on the borders of woodland areas throughout much of the Palearctic realm. The species is subdivided into multiple subspecies, including Pararge aegeria aegeria, Pararge aegeria tircis, Pararge aegeria oblita, and Pararge aegeria insula. The color of this butterfly varies between subspecies. The existence of these subspecies is due to variation in morphology down a gradient corresponding to a geographic cline. The background of the wings ranges from brown to orange, and the spots are either pale yellow, white, cream, or a tawny orange. The speckled wood feeds on a variety of grass species. The males of this species exhibit two types of mate locating behaviors: territorial defense and patrolling. The proportion of males exhibiting these two strategies changes based on ecological conditions. The monandrous female must choose which type of male can help her reproduce successfully. Her decision is heavily influenced by environmental conditions.

The average wingspan of both males and females is 5.1 cm (2 in), although males tend to be slightly smaller than females. Furthermore, males possess a row of grayish-brown scent scales on their forewings that is absent in the females. Females have brighter and more distinct markings than males. The subspecies P. a. tircis is brown with pale yellow or cream spots and darker upperwing eyespots. The subspecies P. a. aegeria has a more orange background and the hindwing underside eyespots are reddish brown rather than black or dark gray. The two forms gradually intergrade into each other. Subspecies P. a. oblita is a darker brown, often approaching black with white rather than cream spots. The underside of its hindwings has a marginal pale purple band and a row of conspicuous white spots. The spots of subspecies P. a. insula are a tawny orange rather than a cream color. The underside of the forewings has patches of pale orange, and the underside of the hindwing has a purple-tinged band. Although there is considerable variation with each subspecies, identification of the different subspecies is manageable.

4-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - ANGLE MOTH (Ortaliella perspersata)

The Angle Moth (Ortaliella perspersata) is a species of insects with 118 observations.

4-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - SPANISH GATEKEEPER BUTTERFLY (Pyronia bathseba)

25-5-2015 GENOVES, VALENCIA - OLD WORLD SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY (Papilio machaon)

Papilio machaon, the Old World swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. The butterfly is also known as the common yellow swallowtail or simply the swallowtail (a common name applied to all members of the family, but this species was the first to be given the name). It is the type species of the genus Papilio. This widespread species is found in much of the Palearctic (it is the only swallowtail in most of Europe) and in North America.

This species is named after Machaon (Ancient Greek: Μαχάων, romanized: Makháōn) a figure in Greek mythology. He was a son of Asclepius.

Papilio machaon was named by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae in 1758, alongside nearly 200 other species of butterfly. Later, Pierre André Latreille designated it as the type species of the genus Papilio. The specific epithet machaon refers to Machaon, son of Asclepius in the works of Homer.

28-4-2014 MARXUQUERA, VALENCIA - QUEEN OF SPAIN FRITILLARY BUTTERFLY (Issoria lathonia)

lathonia) is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae.

This migratory species is widespread in most of Europe, in North Africa, Canary Islands, and in the eastern Palearctic realm (Central Asia, Himalayas, Baluchistan, and Western China). These butterflies live in open areas, in dry lawns, agricultural wastelands and in extensive crops at altitudes between sea level and 2700 m.

Issoria lathonia is a medium-sized butterfly with a wingspan of 38–46 millimetres (1.5–1.8 in). The wings show a deep orange-violet background, with rounded black spots arranged in regular rows and suffused with greenish gray in the females. The underside of the hindwings is decorated with large pearly nacreous spots and it is crossed by a postdiscal row of black eyespots with pearly pupils. Some pearly spots also appear at the apex of the forewings.

The caterpillar can reach a length of 35 millimetres (1.4 in). It is grayish brown, with black spots, and relatively short brown spines with white tip, and a double row of dorsal white streaks. The suspended chrysalis is dark brown, with a large white saddle-shaped stain and some smaller ones of the same color, resembling a bird's dropping.

The imago is loosely similar to Speyeria aglaja, Fabriciana adippe and Brenthis daphne, which have the same orange color on the upperside of the wings, but show different markings and spots. Moreover, the underside of the hindwings does not have the large pearly spots characteristic of the Queen of Spain fritillary.

The Queen of Spain fritillary (Issoria This species is present almost throughout the year, with three or four successive generations. The eggs are laid separately on the underside of the leaves of the host plant. The larval cycle is exceptionally short. The pupation takes place among the low vegetation, between a few leaves united by silk. This species may overwinter at all larval stages.

Adults are strong flyers and fly from March to October. The heat-dependent caterpillars feed on Viola species (wild pansy or heartsease (Viola tricolor), field pansy (Viola arvensis), Viola canina, Viola odorata, Viola calcarata, Viola lutea, Viola biflora), lucerne (Medicago sativa), borage (Borago officinalis), Anchusa, Rubus and Onobrychis species.

In the dry regions Issoria lathonia carries out a seasonal vertical migration between hardy evergreen shrubs and small trees of plains and mountain fir pines, where it remains in summer to descend in autumn at low altitude.

3-6-2017 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - GREY HERON (Ardea cinerea)

3-6-2017 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - MOORISH GECKO (Tarentola mauritanica)

8-5-2017 ARCOS DE FRONTERA, ANDALUSIA - SPOTTED OWL (Strix occidentalis)

8-5-2017 ARCOS DE FRONTERA, ANDALUSIA - RED TAILED HAWK (Buteo jamaicensis)

25-6-2014 PEGO MARSHES, ALICANTE - EUROPEAN MOORHEN (JUVENILE) (Gallinula chloropus)