Garden Insects

Here is a gallery of photographs I've taken of insects in the garden of my house in south Norwich, Norfolk, UK, from 2008 onwards. Macrophotography of garden insects is rewarding because it helps one appreciate the rich variety of insects found in one's own backyard; for example, the garden attracts a surprising diversity of dragonflies and damselflies (even a spectacular male Banded Demoiselle, presumably a stray from the River Yare, and the regional specialities, Willow Emerald and Norfolk Hawker), and this was the case even before it had a small pond (from spring 2020). To me, garden insect photography has the further advantage that the only strange looks I get while stalking insects, camera in hand, are from my family.

The insects featured are ordered following the sequence in Brock's excellent field guide (Brock PD. 2019. A Comprehensive Guide to Insects of Britain and Ireland. Revised and expanded edition. Pisces Publications, Newbury). All images in the gallery are © Andrew Bourke. If you would like to use one, please contact me (see e-mail address on Contact page). If you think I've made a mistake in any of the identifications, please also let me know.

To enlarge any images (and see the scientific name), and/or to click through them, click on any one.

Banded Demoiselle, adult male	Willow Emerald, female
Large Red Damselfly, female	Large Red Damselfly, male
Azure Damselfly, female	Azure Damselfly, male
Common Blue Damselfly, male	Blue-tailed Damselfly, immature male
Southern Hawker, female	Southern Hawker, male
Brown Hawker, female	Brown Hawker, male
Norfolk Hawker, male	Migrant Hawker, female
Migrant Hawker, male	Emperor Dragonfly, female
Broad-bodied Chaser, adult female	Broad-bodied Chaser, immature male
Broad-bodied Chaser, adult male	Ruddy Darter, female
Common Darter, female	Common Darter, immature male
Oak Bush-cricket, female	Long-winged Conehead, adult female
Long-winged Conehead, female nymph	Long-winged Conehead, adult male
Speckled Bush-cricket, late-instar nymph, female	Speckled Bush-cricket, adult male
Speckled Bush-cricket, early-instar nymph (missing a hind leg)	Field Grasshopper, female
Field Grasshopper, male	Lesser Marsh Grasshopper
Hawthorn Shieldbug	Pied Shieldbug
Forget-me-Not Shieldbug (on Green Alkanet)	Woundwort Shieldbug
Vernal Shieldbug	Green Shieldbug, adult (winter form)
Green Shieldbug, adult	Green Shieldbug, nymph
Hairy Shieldbug	Gorse Shieldbug, spring form
Forest Shieldbug	Crucifer Shieldbug
Box Bug, adult	Box Bug, nymph
Dock Bug, adult	Dock Bug, nymph
Rhopalid bug	Ant Damsel Bug, nymph
Mirid bug	Mirid bug
Mirid bug	Mirid bug
Mirid bug	Mirid bug
Mirid bug	Eared Leafhopper
Issid planthopper	Lupin Aphid
Carrion beetle	Welsh Chafer
Garden Chafer	Black-tipped Soldier Beetle
Soldier beetle	Common Malachite
Soft-winged flower beetle	Pine Ladybird
Fourteen-spot Ladybird	Cream-spot Ladybird
Twenty-two-spot Ladybird	Seven-spot Ladybird
Seven-spot Ladybird, larva	Ten-spot Ladybird
Harlequin Ladybird	Harlequin Ladybird, larva
Thick-legged Flower Beetle, male	Red-headed Cardinal Beetle
Longhorn beetle	Longhorn beetle
Black-and-yellow Longhorn Beetle	Black-striped Longhorn Beetle, female
Wasp Beetle	Lily Beetle
Rosemary Leaf Beetle	Apple Fruit Weevil
Weevil	Weevil
Crane fly	Little Snipe-fly, male
Black Snipe-fly, female	Black Snipe-fly, male
Soldier-fly	Soldier-fly, female
Bee-fly	Common Stiletto Fly
Common Awl Robber-fly, female	Common Awl Robber-fly, male
Robber-fly	Robber-fly
Robber-fly, female	Empidid fly
Hoverfly, male	Hoverfly, female
Hoverfly, male	Hoverfly, female
Hoverfly, female	Hoverfly, male
Hoverfly, female	Hoverfly
Hoverfly, male	Hoverfly, female
Hoverfly, male	Hoverfly, male
Drone Fly, female	Hoverfly, female
Hoverfly	Narcissus Fly (bumble bee mimic, banded and buff-tailed form)
Narcissus Fly (bumble bee mimic, brown form)	Narcissus Fly (bumble bee mimic, banded and red-tailed form)
Narcissus Fly (bumble bee mimic, black and red-tailed form)	Hoverfly (bumble bee mimic, white-tailed form), male
Hoverfly (bumble bee mimic, red-tailed form), female	Hoverfly (hornet/wasp mimic), male
Hoverfly, female	Hoverfly (hornet mimic), female
Hoverfly, female	Stilt-legged fly
Conopid fly	Tephritid fly
Tephritid fly, male	Celery Fly
White Bryony Berry-fly	Tephritid fly
Tephritid fly	Yellow Dung Fly
Anthomyiid fly	Muscid fly, female
Muscid fly, male	Muscid fly
Greenbottle	Flesh Fly
Miltogrammine fly, male	Tachinid fly
Tachinid fly	Tachinid fly
Small Skipper	Essex Skipper
Large Skipper, male	Brimstone, female
Large White	Green-veined White
Orange Tip, male	Red Admiral
Painted Lady	Small Tortoiseshell
Peacock	Comma
Speckled Wood	Hedge Brown, male
Meadow Brown	Ringlet
Small Copper	Brown Argus, male
Common Blue, male	Holly Blue, female
Currant Clearwing, female	Red-tipped Clearwing
Elephant Hawk-moth, caterpillar	Cinnabar moth, caterpillar
Silver Y	Green Longhorn Moth, male
Longhorn micromoth, male	Micromoth
Box Tree Moth	Sawfly
Sawfly	Sawfly, female egg-laying
Rose Sawfly, larva	Sawfly, larvae
Parasitoid wasp	Parasitoid wasp, female
Ruby-tail Wasp	Tiphiid wasp, female
Yellow Lawn Ant, workers and larvae	Black Garden Ant, swarming males
Red Ant, worker	Median Wasp
Common Wasp, worker	Digger wasp
Digger wasp	Digger wasp, female
Digger wasp, female	Bee-wolf (hunting wasp), female
Ivy Bee, female	Tawny Mining Bee, female
Pantaloon Bee, female	Pantaloon Bee, male
Red Mason Bee, female	Leaf-cutter bee, female
Leaf-cutter bee, male	Large-headed Resin Bee, female sealing nest
Cleptoparasitic bee, female	Flower bee, female
Flower bee, male	Garden Bumble Bee, worker
Tree Bumble Bee, worker	Red-tailed Bumble Bee, worker
Red-tailed Bumble Bee, male	Early Bumble Bee, worker
Buff-tailed Bumble Bee, queen	Buff-tailed Bumble Bee, worker
Common Carder (Bumble) Bee, worker	Cuckoo Bumble Bee, female
Cuckoo Bumble Bee, male	Honey Bee, worker