We usually see a good number of Cockchafers flying around our Acer and Silver Birch trees on warm evenings. Occasionally we see Stag beetles, and this seems to have been a good year for them. A few days ago we even found a female climbing the brick wall on the outside of our house. Two evenings ago, when it was very warm and sultry, I wandered over to the fence after our alfresco meal, and noticed this large beetle on top of the plinth of one of our wooden planters. I wish I had taken a better photograph, but it was about 8.45 pm and the light was fading fast. Despite calling this a 'large beetle', which it was, I have a hunch it may be a (female?) Lesser Stag as it was certainly considerably smaller than some we have seen and was definitely a matt black colour.
I posted these photographs on iSpot this evening, and it will be interesting to see whether others agree with my tentative identification or not. The People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) have an excellent website here, which includes information on the #greatstaghunt.
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