Nesactium is an important archaeological site, a place where a Roman town once stood, and a pre-Roman one before that. But this isn't a post about that aspect of Nesactium.
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I visited the lush woods around the archaeological park on a few occasions in June, where I photographed some interesting small invertebrates and plants. Today, I'm ready to show you all that in a lengthy post with quite a few interesting species.
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This photograph shows a small chunk of the scenery and conveys the overall atmosphere I experienced in the woods. You can see a leaning trunk of a tree and various low vegetation around it.
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Here you can see the woodlouse I found on the ivy that was covering the ground around the tree. The scientific name of this species from the Armadillidiidae family is Armadillidium vulgare.
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In the same shady area under the trees, on the leaves of ivy, I also photographed this crane fly.
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From some angles, when illuminated with the flash, its wings appeared beautifully iridescent.
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The scientific name of the species is Dicranoptycha fuscescens.
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It belongs to the Limoniidae family.
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After about ten minutes in that place ...
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... I decided to spend some time in the narrow, open space by the side of the road that leads through the forest.
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The plants there looked great when photographed against the dark background provided by the shady area under the nearby shrubs and small trees.
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This photograph shows two plants, the nettle-like Melissa officinalis and the young shoots of the climbing shrub Clematis vitalba.
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Here you can see an interesting bush cricket nymph posing on the leaf of the Melissa officinalis. The scientific name of the species is Acrometopa macropoda.
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This shot shows the same nymph from a different angle.
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The area covered with Melissa officinalis and grass was teeming with life. I found quite a few interesting small invertebrates there.
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This highly decorative isopod with intricate markings, which is resting on the upper surface of the Melissa officinalis leaf ...
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... is the Philoscia affinis ...
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... a woodlouse from the Philosciidae family.
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On the leaf of the tall Hordeum secalinum grass, I found an insect I had never seen before. It was one of those exciting, unforgettable experiences that happen rarely becouse I explored the area thoroughly over the last few decades. Chances to see a species for the first time are fairly low for me in this place.
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This is the Dichrostigma flavipes, a snakefly from the Raphidiidae. Snakeflies belong to the small order Raphidioptera with only two families, Raphidiidae and Inocelliidae. Their common name derives from the elongated thorax and the mobile head that makes them appear a bit snake-like in certain movements. These predatory insects that feed on small prey such as aphids and mites spend most of their adult lives in the canopy of the trees. The Dichrostigma flavipes shown in these photographs is a female. The pretty long, saber-like organ on its abdomen is an ovipositor.
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Here you can see a Leptophyes punctatissima bush cricket female resting in an interesting pose among the leaves near the top of the Melissa officinalis plant. On a nearby plant of the same kind ...
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... I photographed this spider from the Philodromidae family, a Philodromus dispar female.
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Dactylis glomerata grass was in bloom. Among the tiny flowers at the top of the plant, I found this bug from the Miridae family.
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Here you can see two bugs of that same species on another ear of Dactylis glomerata grass. If you compare the sharp one in the foreground of these two shots with the blurred one out of the shallow in-focus area or with the bug in the previous photograph, you'll notice some differences in the color and markings. That's becouse the bug in the previous image is a male, while the sharp bug in these two shots presented in one image is a female.
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The scientific name of this species that feeds on inflorescences of various grasses is Stenotus binotatus.
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Here you can see a bug from the Coreidae family ...
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... resting on the top of the Hordeum secalinum grass.
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The scientific name of the species is Coriomeris denticulatus. Its primary host plants are various clovers.
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The species shown in these two shots was already introduced, a bit earlier in the post, but ...
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... but, since the color can slightly vary from individual to individual ...
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... I decided to show you a slightly different-looking Philoscia affinis.
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Here you can see the two variations posing next to each other.
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This wide shot shows the roadside edge of the forest. The vegetation is a mix of trees, shrubs, and creepers. The dense foliage of the Carpinus orientalis tree is there. The Clematis vitalba creeping shrub as well. The Hedera helix, commonly known as the common ivy. And some other stuff. All cool, photogenic plants.
The tiny flower, seen through the macro lens in this photograph, belongs to one of the plants from that area.
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The Osyris alba.
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Here you can see a flower of the same kind but from a different angle.
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Only one of the many Osyris alba plants on that stretch of terrain was in bloom.
Here you can see a flower whose petals are partially withered.
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The flower shown in this photograph has almost completely lost its petals.
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Osyris alba is a semiparasitic shrub that can survive on its own, like other green plants, through photosynthesis, but its roots can also tap into the roots of nearby plants and extract their sap.
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Here, you can see two tiny weevils...
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... mating on the leaf of the Carpinus orientalis tree.
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The beetles were well hidden on the lower surface of the leaf.
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Here you can take a look at one of the Carpinus orientalis branches. The structure made of the bracts that hold the fruits is right in the center of the shot. You can easily recognize it becouse its shade of green is noticeably lighter than the rest.
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These weevils belong to the Curculionidae family. The scientific name of the species is Polydrusus picus.
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Polydrusus picus feeds and reproduces on a wide variaty of broadleaved trees, including the Carpinus orientalis. The male shown in these photographs has a nymph of a mite attached to the lower part of its body. These nymphs are only hitchhikers. They use the host to reach new areas. The adult mites are mobile and active hunters that don't need a ride.
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In these two photographs, you can take a better look at the cluster of fruits on the Carpinus orientalis tree. The fruits look like smaller leaves.
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This moth was resting on the upper surface of the leaf.
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It belongs to the Tortricidae family. The scientific name of the species is Epagoge grotiana.
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I can't tell you the name of the species here, but there is something I know for sure about the tiny insect shown in this photograph. This is an ant-mimicking nymph of a bug from the Miridae family. It could be something from the genus Pilophorus or Systellonotus.
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This set of four photographs shows a moth larva.
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The scientific name of the species is Lymantria dispar.
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The family is Erebidae.
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These caterpillars prefer oaks but can feed on many other shrubs and trees, both broad-leaved and coniferous.
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Here you can see a wide shot for a change. The foliage in the picture belongs to the Carpinus orientalis trees.
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This is Melissa officinalis again, one of the herbaceous plants from the narrow grassy area between the road and the trees. In the following photograph ...
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