Is 'rare' insect a first for Rutland?

Is this a first for Rutland?

Amateur ‘macro photographer’ Nick Moore-Orton has taken a picture of a rare insect he doubts has been seen in Rutland before.

The 39-year-old chef from Uppingham was walking at Egleton Nature Reserve earlier this month with his two-year-old daughter Aria when he saw the insect.

“At first, I did not realise what it was. I had never seen anything like it before. It wasn’t until I had it identified that I noted it was one of those things you don’t see many of.”

Nick later identified the creature as a quite rare cimbex connatus, which is perhaps better known as the hornet mimic sawfly.

It was a fully grown female approximately 3cm long and 1.5cm wide.

Nick says he recorded the sighting electronically, which he believes could be a first for Rutland.

The insects are best seen in mid to late summer. They were once thought extinct in Britain, but were rediscovered in Wiltshire during the mid-1990s before spreading up from southern England towards Yorkshire.

Nick wonders if their northward shift may be due to climate change.

The father-of-one says he has always loved photography, with a special interest in taking pictures of wildlife.

He explained: “I got into macro photography. You can see things you would not normally see day-to-day. That really interested me.”

*Have you taken some close-up photos of strange and wonderful wildlife?

If you have and would like to share them with us, please email them to smeditor@stamfordmercury.co.uk.