A LOOK AT THE DOCK

These mating insects are very well camouflaged among the multitude of small seeds.

And so is this small nymph of the same species. Practically invisible on this textured background.
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These are all Dock bugs (Coreus marginatus) ...

and on these shots ...
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... you can see them on their favorite host plant, the Curly dock (Rumex crispus).
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It's a very common and widespread plant in this area, especially on the coastal fields and meadows ...

... and you can usually find a nice variety of insects crawling or hiding among its seeds.

This bug ... and the one on the following photograph ...

... are two colorful variations of the same species - the Eurydema ornata bug.
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Here you can see a bunch of small nymphs of this Eurydema ornata species.

The Lady beetles are also present among the dry matured seeds. This is a mating pair of Hippodamia variegata Lady beetles.

And this is the larval version of this species.
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This colorful small weevil also chooses the Curly dock as the favorite host plant for feeding and reproduction. This is the Apion frumentarium.

In spring the seeds are still green and the Coreus marginatus nymphs are clearly visible on that background.
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On this photograph, taken in summer, the green crab spider is waiting in ambush among the brown, matured seeds ... :) and is cool a complementary combination, nice companion piece to the precedent shot.

This is the green version of the Thomisus onustus spider, a colorful species that comes in a variety of colors ... pink, white, yellow, green ...

... and this one has just caught some small, mosquito - like fly.

Here you can take a look at the small nymph of the Nezara viridula shield bug on the fresh green seeds.

This is another shot of the same nymph.

Here you can take a look at the adult Lygus pratensis bug.
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Quite a few bug species are present at the same time on the Curly dock.

Here you can see the Coreus marginatus nymph in the foreground, and the adult Lygus pratensis blurred in the background.

This is the Lygus pratensis nymph.

Here is another minuscule bug nymph hidden among the mature seeds, but this time I don't know the name of the species.

As the green seeds slowly mature they're turning into brown, and at some point they look like this. Something in between these two colors.
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These bugs look very much like Coreus marginatus ... but then ... they don't look exactly like them ... so I don't know what to say about this species ... besides that they have a camouflage well suited to the seeds in this phase of Curly dock life cycle.

Here you can see this kind of bug, on its way from one seeds covered branch to another seeds covered branch.

This is a bit wider look at the Curly dock with half matured seeds at the end of spring.

On this photograph the summer is ending and the seeds are completely brown. You can also see another shield bug species resting on this plant. I didn't found out the name of this bug. The following few shots ...

... have no insects or other small arthropods on them.

The seeds are the stars of these two shots. I find them quite beautiful.

Although the bugs, especially the Dock bugs (Coreus marginatus) are the most numerous small arthropods on this plant, both in the season of the green seeds ...

... and the brown, dry and matured ones ... although this post is over saturated with these species ...

... you can encounter some other animals too. An occasional fly, like the one on this photograph ad example. I don't know the exact species.
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Small, young Neoscona adianta spiders are waiting for the prey.

This one has caught a Common red soldier beetle (Rhagonycha fulva)

The young nymphs of the Empusa pennata mantis come in a nice variety of colors.
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The chestnut brown ones have a very good camouflage on the Curly dock in summer ...
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... just like the Dock bugs, most numerous and iconic insects on this plant.

I started the post with a mating pair of these bugs ...
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... and I'll end the whole thing with this - a very young, very small ...

... and very well camouflaged nymph of this species.
As always in these posts on HIVE, all the photographs are my work.