The land snails at 2:40 have entered aestivation, with a reduced metabolism and heartbeat, which they do to survive periods of hot and dry weather (basically, most of the summer I guess!). And the reason they are high up on the plants is because it is still relatively cooler there, compared to the ground. You can see it happen all over the Med I think (I've seen it in southern Spain). Anyway, a lovely collection! Very jealous. I'd particularly love to see that Owl fly! (And I think the red and black beetle is the bee-eating beetle, Trichodes apiarius.)
What an insect filled advenure this must have been! Interestingly, you captured both a (female) rhino beetle (3:30) and its parasite the (female) mommoth wasp (11:20)! It brings back memories my childhood. :) Thanks for sharing this with us!
Great video Dave. I always wanted to visit ever since reading My Family & OA. I have been there several times and the flora and fauna is just unspoilt and beautiful, especially the snakes, tortoises and lizards. I went this year in April and will be going again next year. I love walking around that lake where you were and the bridge where the river comes out to the sea. Glad you have been as the insects are numerous and stunnung.
Great video of wonderful insect diversity. The white snails (unfortunately an invasive species here in Australia) are aestivating. They climb to avoid the hot temperatures of the soil surface. Here they climb fence posts!
My Family and Other Animals and Birds, Beasts and Relatives were both childhood favourites of mine. I still enjoy the occasional re-read. I have never managed to go to Corfu but I have always wanted to. I'm feeling very jealous! The fight between the gecko and the mantis. The description of the trapdoor spider. The scorpions in the matchbox.
Thanks for taking time on your holiday to film another video 👍 Lovely wildflowers and enjoyed seeing what wildlife there is on Corfu. Quite interesting!
That was wonderful. The snails do something similar on chalk hills near me in southern England. Sad and noticeable decline in insect diversity, especially of hoverflies and solitary bees in my garden this year (my garden is entirely planted for invertebrates and is normally heaving with insects)
The first thing I did when I graduated high school was go to Greece to see Corfu based on Durrell's books. I never got to Corfu though, as I discovered partying in the Aegean islands lol. Anyway, he was a great man, and it's a shame more people aren't aware of him.
Those shots of flower covered hillsides are wonderful. The plant covered by bee's at 8:42 looks like a Hyssop, or Agastache as they are otherwise known. What a wonderful place to spend a holiday.👍
Is this in the North-Eastern corner of Corfu? I visited the Almyros Beach resort over summer and spent days wandering around that area looking at all the insects
Very many thanks for a brilliant video Dave, and what a difference it is to see the abundance of insects Corfu has, I truly envy them. What a gorgeous Ladybird Spider and such beautiful Crickets, but is it just me or did I miss the Snails?! Will our insect life return to some sort of normal for next year? If they don’t then I fear we’ll lose our birds etc and that doesn’t bear thinking of. Many thanks Dave and very much appreciated
What a gorgeous lanscape! The snails are likely Cernuella virgata (Hygromiidae) and Theba pisana (Helicidae), hypothesis aim to climbing as a defensive behaviour to avoid being washed away by storms and flooding, usual in subarid mediterranean climate were they live. Also avoiding ground-level predation and staying together to survive as species. Beetle seems a female of Oryctes nasicornis, aka the rhyno scarab! It's right their mating season. Butterfly seems a Melitaea, maybe M. Cinxia? The red/black Meloidae is a Trichodes, alvearius/apiarius type. The 'Libelluloides' neuropter at the begining was just astonishing! Thanks for letting us travel with you! Greetings from Barcelona
