Using it now - all's OK for me.

Wow - that's quite startling !

What a beauty. Great photo. Looks like the bigger one of the two, Volucella zonaria rather than V. inanis.

A friend of mine received a painful "sting" after putting his hand in a garden water butt with stagnant water. Subsequently suffered an infection followed by necrosis and had a finger amputated (lucky to keep his hand). Still debating what might have been the instigator.

I had a local charity group knock on the door offering to "tidy up my garden" for free since I couldn't do it myself. Told them it had taken me years to get it like this. They thought I was joking and went off a bit peeved.

Lovely Horseshoe photo !

Wonderful photo !

It really is. I 1st saw one in Trench Wood 3 years ago and remarkably it was exactly the same situation, sat on a bramble stem overhanging the path. This one in Monk Wood was at head height so just stumbled into it. They must be fairly abundant in these 2 woods. Haven't seen them elsewhere (yet!).

It's the commas that bother me the most.

Might just be an old one where the colours have faded or scales worn off. I was watching a strangely coloured pale grey and brown Red Admiral this morning but just a really old battered one.

Never seen as many as today (West Mids) ! No idea why.