Species are grouped under their associated taxonomic classification as shown below, starting with what are commonly known as 'the big five' insect orders, followed by the smaller divisions before the eight-legged arachnids and ground-dwelling species. The section, loosely referred to as 'soil and leaf-litter invertebrates' will be expanded as the website evolves, similarly with the final pages that will focus on lichens, slime mould and certain types of fungi.

Navigation is straightforward via thumbnail images and/or buttons. That said, it would still be useful to have a quick look at the 'about' page, particularly if this is your first visit, as it explains the background and structure of the site, as well as providing further information regarding descriptions and taxonomy.

Although primarily acting as a personal record for sightings from around my local area of East Dorset and the New Forest I hope, that if you share the same interests, you'll enjoy browsing through.

Note: website designed for wider screens and not yet adapted for mobile.

about

Welcome to the macro photography offshoot of tickspics.com - focusing on 'small world' nature subjects.

HYMENOPTERA

Bees, Wasps, Ants and Sawflies

Hymenoptera is our largest insect order with around 7,800 species, of which close on 90% are wasps. It is a very diverse group with a rather complex taxonomic structure that can be a bit tricky to understand and, although it's important to follow the classification when listing individual species and their associated families, it makes a lot more sense here to adopt a relatively simple approach for quickly accessing the appropriate section.

APOCRITA | Aculeata

Bees

APOCRITA | Aculeata

Stinging Wasps

APOCRITA | Parasitica

Parasitic Wasps

APOCRITA | Aculeata

Ants

SYMPHYTA

Sawflies

DIPTERA

True Flies

The 'Checklist of the Diptera of the British Isles' recognises in excess of 7,200 types of fly, which puts this order just behind Hymenoptera in terms of the total number of species. In fact, these two major orders together account for around 60% of all British insects. There are 109 fly families of which 84 are placed within the more advanced Brachycera suborder, and with the remaining 25 regarded as Lower Diptera and classified under Nematocera. Although gnats and midges win the contest for the sheer number of species, it's usually the larger flies that attract more general interest with the most photographed species being hoverflies, which is why I've given that particular family its own page accessible from the following Brachycera section link.

BRACHYCERA

Flies

NEMATOCERA

Craneflies, Gnats, Midges

COLEOPTERA

Beetles

With well over 4,000 recognised species, Coleoptera is the third largest group of British Insects although, when you look at the incredible number and variety of beetles worldwide, they totally eclipse all other insect orders by a ratio of just over 2:1.

HEMIPTERA

True Bugs and Hoppers

Closely associated with beetles, but with their own distinct characteristics, true bugs are in the order Hemiptera together with various hoppers and numerous plant-parasitic species. My primary interest is with the bugs and the hoppers, which are separated into their own suborders.

LEPIDOPTERA

Butterflies and Moths

I suspect that butterflies are our most photographed insects even though there are only 57 resident British species. They are in the same taxonomic order as moths, but separated into their own superfamily Papilionoidea. Butterflies are obviously popular because of their bright colours and the fact that they're daytime flying species, whereas most moths are nocturnal. There are around 2,500 species of moth on the British list in 65 families, which are divided into macro and micro moths.

Butterflies

Moths

The remaining insect orders are often placed within convenient groups of similar and/or related species:

Grasshoppers and related insects

ORTHOPTERA

Grasshoppers & Crickets

DERMAPTERA

Earwigs

BLATTODEA

Cockroaches

PSOCODEA

Barkflies

NEUROPTERIDA - Lacewings and Allies

NEUROPTERA

Lacewings

MEGALOPTERA

Alderflies

MECOPTERA

Scorpionflies

RAPHIDIOPTERA

Snakeflies

PALEOPTERA and Riverflies

ODONATA

Dragonflies & Damselflies

EPHEMEROPTERA

Mayflies

TRICHOPTERA

Caddisflies

PLECOPTERA

Stoneflies

And to wrap up, here are the non-insect arthropod species, starting with the eight-legged arachnids, followed by some of the important 'soil and leaf-litter invertebrates' that are not covered elsewhere.

ARACHNIDA

ARANEAE

Spiders

OPILIONES

Harvestmen

As well as centipedes, millipedes, woodlice and springtails that are featured here, the general term of 'soil and leaf-litter invertebrates' also includes small ground spiders, plus various insects such as earwigs, cockroaches and certain species of beetles, all of which are covered within their respective sections. The tiny species like bristletails, pseudoscorpions and mites is a specialist subject in its own right but, even so, I would like to include some information if only by way of an overview. I will add a page at some point once the rest of the website is up and running properly and I have better images of some of these tiny creatures.

MYRIAPODA

Centipedes & Millipedes

ISOPODA

Woodlice

COLLEMBOLA

Springtails

MESOFAUNA

(an overview)

Soil and Leaf-litter Invertebrates

Slime Mould, Lichen and Fungi

Although it wasn't my original intention, venturing into the fascinating world of fungi has been a natural progression of discovery, which has provided an added interest especially during the winter months when there are less opportunities for finding insects. My focus though, will remain with the smaller and/or more detailed subjects, particularly lichen, slime mould when I can find them and certain types of fungi. The larger more common species, typically referred to as mushrooms or toadstools, are outside of the scope of what I want to cover.

The section is currently 'work in progress' with my attention at the moment on lichens where I'm cataloguing and recording in excess of a hundred photographed species. It will be the first part to go live and will be the most comprehensive and, almost certainly, the only section that will include descriptions for every species.

MYXOMYCOTA

Plasmodial Slime Mould

ASCOMYCOTA

Lichens

Ascomycete Fungi

BASIDIOMYCOTA

Basidiomycete Fungi