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Saturday 30 June 2007

Weather: Mild, patchy cloud, occasional light rain, light breeze.

Day 80… Not too bad, but we could have done without the rain. Yesterday evening, when I had a look at how things were going there was an irritated looking The Drinker flapping about inside the trap, eventually it managed to escape and the fact that it wasn’t there in the morning rather makes me wonder how effective the "trap" actually is.

When Lucas and I went out to see what we had caught at around 07:45 we found we hadn’t caught very much. I think things are really only going to start picking up after we get a reasonably prolonged period of good weather, which at the current rate isn’t looking particularly likely. We did get one new species a Short-cloaked Moth representing another new family. Looking at this and the other British members of this family leads me to suppose that; either the distinction between what constitutes a "macro" and a "micro" moth is pretty arbitrary or there must be some exotic members of the family which are an awful lot larger than their British cousins… The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.

Nolidae

• 1 Short-cloaked Moth Nola cucullatella Linn.

Noctuidae

• 3 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 4 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Sword-grass A. ipsilon Hufn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Southern Wainscot Mythimna straminea Treit.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Oecophoridae

• 2 Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella Stain.

Tortricidae

• 1 Cnephasia Sp.

Alucitidae

• 1 Twenty-plume Moth Alucita hexadactyla Linn.

Pyralidae

• 4 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 5 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 1 Crambus perlella Scop.

Pterophoridae

• 3 Emmelina monodactyla Linn.

Short-cloaked Moth

Friday 29 June 2007

Weather: Mild, clear to start heavy rain by dawn, very windy.

Day 79… This weather really is getting to be beyond a joke, when I look at the ominously rising river level at the bottom of the garden it’s easy to believe things could be much worse - but there again, at least this isn’t the "Sheffield Moth Diary". I put the trap out last night in the belief that the rain wasn’t going to set in until about 09:00 this morning (Ta, BBC website!) - oh how mistaken I was!

At about 06:30 this morning I rushed out, grabbed the trap and put the whole thing (moths and all) in the garage where a little while later Lucas and I examined its contents. There wasn’t much to report - a pared down version of night’s catch with a few alterations - if a little more bedraggled. I did however notice that, on closer examination, what I had initially assumed to be another Cream Wave proved to be a Common White Wave. This prompted me to review my original Cream Wave identification on 27 June. I now believe that the photo is of a Common Wave and the other supposed Cream Wave on that day was in fact a Common White Wave. The Cream Wave yesterday was a Common White Wave (I should have paid more attention to the photo I took of it then), so no Cream Wave at all. We did get one new species, new to the trap that is, a Brown House-moth (I can’t believe it would have taken very long to find one if we had wanted to before).The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Peppered Moth Biston betularia Linn.
• 1 Common White Wave Cabera pusaria Linn.
• 1 Common Pug E. vulgata Haw.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.
• 1 Coxcomb Prominent Ptilodon capucina Linn.

Noctuidae

• 1 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 8 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 3 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 3 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 2 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 3 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Common Wainscot Mythimna pallens Linn.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 2 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.

Oecophoridae

• 1 Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella Stain.

Tortricidae

• 1 Cnephasia Sp.
• 2 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 8 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Endotricha flammealis D. & S.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.

Pterophoridae

• 1 Emmelina monodactyla Linn.

Common White Wave Brown House-moth

Thursday 28 June 2007

Weather: Cool, early rain, clearing later, light breeze.

Day 78… It felt somewhat milder than on the previous night even though the weather forecast was predicting 6°C which really is just plain ridiculous for this time of year. There was certainly more activity around the trap at 11:00 than the night before so maybe things might not be too awful.

Lucas and I found many more moths (still fewer than we should though) this morning than we did yesterday and there was a good variety too, no new species though. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Peppered Moth Biston betularia Linn.
• 1 Common White Wave Cabera pusaria Linn.
• 2 The Engrailed Ectropis bistortata Goeze.
• 1 Foxglove Pug Eupithecia pulchellata Steph.
• 1 Common Pug E. vulgata Haw.
• 1 Double-striped Pug Gymnoscelis rufifasciata Haw.
• 1 Riband Wave Idaea aversata ab. remutata Linn.
• 2 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.

Notodontidae

• 1 Sallow Kitten Furcula furcula Cl.
• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.
• 1 Coxcomb Prominent Ptilodon capucina Linn.

Arctiidae

• 1 Common Footman Eilema lurideola Zinck.

Noctuidae

• 1 The Sycamore Acronicta aceris Linn.
• 3 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 7 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 2 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 4 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 2 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 Common Wainscot Mythimna pallens Linn.
• 4 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.

Pyralidae

• 4 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 1 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.

Wednesday 27 June 2007

Weather: Cool, mostly clear, light breeze.

Day 77… At about 11:00 last night I went to see what was going on with the trap. The air outside felt ridiculously cold and I could see my steamy breath in the light of the trap, in and around the trap was nothing, not a dicky bird so, despondently, off I trudged to bed.

Back out at 06:45 with Loobi to find a very thinly populated trap - only nineteen moths in total. Surprisingly, considering the size of the catch, we did get two more new species. I can’t help but notice the chilly weather seems to be most disliked by the smaller moths, we’re seeing very few micros or geometrids at the moment. The new species we caught this morning were; The Drinker (our first representative of the family) and two Cream Waves. The catch was as follows:

Lasiocampidae

• 1 The Drinker Euthrix potatoria Linn.

Geometridae

• 1 Common Wave Cabera exanthemata Scop.
• 1 Common White Wave Cabera pusaria Linn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Arctiidae

• 2 The Cinnabar Tyria jacobaeae Linn.

Noctuidae

• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 5 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 2 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 2 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Crambus pascuella Linn.

The Drinker Common Wave

Tuesday 26 June 2007

Weather: Cool, partial cloud, occasional rain, windy.

Day 76… After the horrors of last night a brief interruption in the deluge prompted me to put the trap out, albeit with a feeling of deep pessimism.

Out at about 07:00 (Lucas overslept - honest!) to find a trap containing a remarkable number of moths given the conditions. We even had two new species as well, a Dark Sword-grass and two Light Arches which made it all seem worthwhile. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.

Sphingidae

• 1 Elephant Hawk-moth Deilephila elpenor Linn.

Noctuidae

• 1 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 12 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Sword-grass A. ipsilon Hufn.
• 2 Light Arches Apamea lithoxylaea D. & S.
• 1 Dark Arches A. monoglypha Hufn.
• 1 Silver Y Autographa gamma Linn.
• 1 Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica Fabr.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Alucitidae

• 1 Twenty-plume Moth Alucita hexadactyla Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 2 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Endotricha flammealis D. & S.

Light Arches Dark Sword-grass

Monday 25 June 2007

Weather: Cold, continuous heavy rain, windy.

Absolutely no point.

Sunday 24 June 2007

Weather: Mild, dry start, heavy rain later, breezy.

Day 75… The nights are drawing in and the weather seems to be getting wetter. It feels like winter is just around the corner.

After waiting for a break in the (almost torrential) rain Lucas and came to the conclusion at about 08:15 that there wasn’t going to be one so we went out anyway - at least we had the parasol that was sheltering the trap to keep us dry. Considering it had be raining for most of the night there was a remarkable number of moths for us to examine, we even had another two new species: The Dun-bar and an Apple Ermine. (I’m guessing it’s an Apple Ermine because not only do its markings fit the bill, but because of the proximity of its foodplant - apple - which apparently is the only reliable way of telling the ermines apart - even genital dissection doesn’t help here.) The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 2 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.
• 1 Blood-vein Timandra comae Schmidt

Arctiidae

• 1 Common Footman Eilema lurideola Zinck.
• 2 Rosy Footman Miltochrista miniata Forst.

Noctuidae

• 1 Knot Grass Acronicta rumicis Linn.
• 5 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 11 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 2 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Pale Mottled Willow Caradrina clavipalpis Scop.
• 1 The Dun-bar Cosmia trapezina Linn.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 2 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.

Alucitidae

• 1 Twenty-plume Moth Alucita hexadactyla Linn.

Pyralidae

• 5 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.

Yponomeutidae

• 1 Apple Ermine Yponomeuta malinellus Zell.
• 1 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

The Dun-bar Apple Ermine

Saturday 23 June 2007

Weather: Mild, occasional showers, breezy.

Day 74… One or two short sharp showers just after dark but by morning the skies were mostly clear and everything was relatively dry.

Lucas and I were out at about 07:30 this morning. The trap was fairly well stocked and we had seven new species to add to the list. The only one of which that I can state categorically that I know what it is, is the Swallow-tailed Moth, the rest are more or less vague stabs in the dark. The first "stab" is a Double-striped Pug - very small and with quite pointy wings this seems to be the best fit, we also had a Marbled Orchard Tortrix (I think), a Crambus perlella (pretty confident), a Gracillariid Sp.* (frankly, just to tiny to identify - it was only half the size of the gracillariid we caught on the 17th, but it does look suspiciously like the Azalea Leaf Miner?), an Agonopterix Sp.* - this one looks like it could be one of three species: heracliana, ciliella or scopariella all of which fly from August to May which is a tad confusing - there again I might be utterly wrong and it’s not an Agonopterix at all. The last species we caught flew off before it could be photographed but it was a most unusual (to me) Plume Moth, it had strongly patterned terra-cotta coloured wings but what it was I have no idea, hopefully it’ll return to be photographed. The catch was as follows:

* The ever reliable Mr Bayley has suggested that these two identifications can be "firmed up" as reflected below.

Geometridae

• 1 Scalloped Oak Crocallis elinguaria Linn.
• 1 Freyer’s Pug Eupithecia intricata Freyer.
• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Double-striped Pug Gymnoscelis rufifasciata Haw.
• 1 Riband Wave Idaea aversata ab. remutata Linn.
• 1 Swallow-tailed Moth Ourapteryx sambucaria Linn.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.

Arctiidae

• 1 Common Footman Eilema lurideola Zinck.
• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 3 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 12 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 2 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Pale Mottled Willow Caradrina clavipalpis Scop.
• 1 The Fan-foot Herminia tarsipennalis Treit.
• 3 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 1 Marbled White Spot Protodeltote pygarga Hufn.
• 1 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum Linn.

Tortricidae

• 3 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 1 Marbled Orchard Tortrix Hedya nubiferana Retzius.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 5 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 5 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 1 Crambus perlella Scop.
• 2 Eudonia mercurella Linn.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.
• 1 Scoparia subfusca Haw.

Gracillariidae

• 1 Azalea Leaf Miner Caloptilia azaleella Brants.

Oecophoridae

• 1 Agonopterix heracliana Fabr.

Pterophoridae

• 1 Emmelina monodactyla Linn.
• 1 Unknown

Swallow-tailed Moth Double-striped Pug

Crambus perlella Marbled Orchard Tortrix

Azalea Leaf Miner Agonopterix heracliana

Friday 22 June 2007

Weather: Mild, frequent showers, light breeze.

Day 73… It was dry when I put the trap out but as heavy rain was forecast I stood the parasol over the trap and it kept everything perfectly dry - splendid.

Back to the 06:45 routine with just me and Lucas this morning. Despite the overnight rain, we had another well stocked trap to examine with another four new species. These were: firstly and most obviously an Elephant Hawk-moth (at last! another species of Hawk-moth), a rather damp and bedraggled Barred Yellow, a Double Square-spot and a White Plume Moth. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Barred Yellow Cidaria fulvata Forst.
• 2 Scalloped Oak Crocallis elinguaria Linn.
• 1 Common Carpet Epirrhoe alternata Müll.
• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.

Sphingidae

• 1 Elephant Hawk-moth Deilephila elpenor Linn.

Arctiidae

• 1 Scarce Footman Eilema complana Linn.
• 1 Common Footman E. lurideola Zinck.

Noctuidae

• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 5 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 5 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 2 Pale Mottled Willow Caradrina clavipalpis Scop.
• 1 The Fan-foot Herminia tarsipennalis Treit.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 2 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 Shoulder-striped Wainscot Mythimna comma Linn.
• 4 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 1 Marbled White Spot Protodeltote pygarga Hufn.
• 1 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum Linn.
• 1 Double Square-spot X. triangulum Hufn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 3 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Cnephasia Sp.
• 1 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 4 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 3 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 1 Dioryctria Sp.
• 1 Eudonia pallida Curt.
• 1 Ringed China-mark Parapoynx stratiotata Linn.
• 1 Udea olivalis D. & S.

Yponomeutidae

• 1 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Pterophoridae

• 1 White Plume Moth Pterophorus pentadactyla Linn.

Barred Yellow Elephant Hawk-moth

Double Square-spot White Plume Moth

Help! There’s an elephant standing on my finger!

Thursday 21 June 2007 (Summer Solstice)

Weather: Mild, mostly clear, light breeze.

Day 72… Mild and still, just the way we like it.

A very early start today (some of us have an appointment with royalty don’t you know…?). Lucas, Phoebe and me were all out trap inspecting at 06:15 and we had another good catch. Five new species to report too; a really beautiful little Rosy Footman, The Fan-foot (it didn’t hang around long enough for me to inspect its feet, so why its called what it is, we might never know), a Purple Clay, what I’m pretty sure is a Southern Wainscot (there’s quite a lot of reed growing in the nearby river) and lastly a micro which I haven’t been able to track down - I think it might be a gelechiid of some sort but nothing seems to quite match. We also had a new record number (four) of Water Boatmen which were just lying around on the floor of the trap looking terribly confused. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 2 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 2 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Common Carpet Epirrhoe alternata Müll.
• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 2 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.
• 3 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.
• 4 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Garden Carpet Xanthorhoe fluctuata Linn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Arctiidae

• 2 Scarce Footman Eilema complana Linn.
• 1 Common Footman E. lurideola Zinck.
• 1 Rosy Footman Miltochrista miniata Forst.
• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 2 The Miller Acronicta leporina Linn.
• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 12 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 3 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 2 Pale Mottled Willow Caradrina clavipalpis Scop.
• 1 Purple Clay Diarsia brunnea D. & S.
• 1 The Fan-foot Herminia tarsipennalis Treit.
• 2 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 4 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Southern Wainscot Mythimna straminea Treit.
• 5 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 1 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 1 Lozotaeniodes formosanus Geyer

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 3 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 4 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 2 Eudonia pallida Curt.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.

Yponomeutidae

• 2 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Unknown

• 1 Unknown

Rosy Footman The Fan-foot

Purple Clay Southern Wainscot

No Idea

Wednesday 20 June 2007

Weather: Warm, thundery start, then mostly clear, light breeze becoming quite windy.

Day 71… After having concluded at 21:00 last night that the forecast thunder storms and accompanying heavy rain had missed us entirely I decided it was safe to put the trap out. As soon as I had started the rain and thunder came and continued for about an hour, the skies then cleared and so finally, I did put the trap out.

Just Lucas for company at 06:45 this morning. I’m very glad to say things are again back on track with regards to the variety of species we caught (not hard after the past couple of nights). We also had five new species, the first is, I think, The Engrailed (which if it is, could apparently, equally well be a Small Engrailed - who knows?), we also had a Common Carpet (dreadful photo I know but clear enough to identify it I think), a "typical form" Riband Wave (not, of course, a new species), a Yellow-tail, a Common Footman and finally the tortricid Lozotaeniodes formosanus - a very attractive little moth.

I’m very glad to report that the Emperor Moth larvae have started to pupate, four have gone so far, only another seventy to go! During the time that we’ve been rearing them we’ve had two interlopers coming in on the apple leaves. The first, which we’ve had for the past fortnight, I found under the newspaper at the bottom of the cage when I was cleaning them out this morning, putting two and two together I placed him (or her) on top of some compost in a small box. He (or she) immediately buried himself (or herself). I never got around to trying to identify him (or her) - medium sized, green and vaguely stripey - so we’ll just have to wait and see. The other interloper was a Grey Dagger (photo to follow), this is the first time I’ve been able to be absolutely certain when identifying a Grey Dagger, their larvae are very distinctive and look nothing like those of the Dark Dagger - unlike the adults.

The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 1 The Engrailed Ectropis bistortata Goeze.
• 1 Common Carpet Epirrhoe alternata Müll.
• 1 Freyer’s Pug Eupithecia intricata Freyer.
• 1 Riband Wave Idaea aversata Linn.
• 2 Riband Wave Idaea aversata ab. remutata Linn.
• 3 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Brown Silver-line Petrophora chlorosata Scop.
• 2 Pine Carpet Thera firmata Hb.
• 1 Garden Carpet Xanthorhoe fluctuata Linn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Lymantriidae

• 1 Yellow-tail Euproctis similis Feuss.

Arctiidae

• 1 Common Footman Eilema lurideola Zinck.
• 2 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 1 The Miller Acronicta leporina Linn.
• 1 Grey Dagger A. psi Linn.
• 13 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis Linn.
• 3 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 4 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 The Rustic Hoplodrina blanda D. & S.
• 1 Common Wainscot Mythimna pallens Linn.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Variegated Golden Tortrix Archips xylosteana Linn.
• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 1 Aleimma loeflingiana Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Lozotaeniodes formosanus Geyer
• 1 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 8 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 3 Eudonia mercurella Linn.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.

Pterophoridae

• 1 Emmelina monodactyla Linn.

The Engrailed Riband Wave (typical form)

Common Carpet Yellow-tail

Common Footman Lozotaeniodes formosanus

Tuesday 19 June 2007

Weather: Mild, mostly clear, light breeze.

Day 70… A cooler and fresher night, the sun finally came out at about 16:00 yesterday afternoon and it stayed clear more or less all night.

Out at 06:45 with Lucas, Phoebe joined us a little later. We found a trap that was very thinly populated, there were even fewer moths than we had on the previous night. The only notable thing about the catch was the seven Buff Ermines, I guess something triggered a mass emergence yesterday.

Worst night for a long time - rubbish! The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Pine Carpet Thera firmata Hb.

Arctiidae

• 7 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 1 The Spectacle Abrostola tripartita Hufn.
• 11 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Rustic Hoplodrina blanda D. & S.

Pyralidae

• 3 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.

Monday 18 June 2007

Weather: Mild, overcast, incessant rain, still.

Day 69… Undeterred by the foul weather I decided to put the trap out on the patio under the parasol and on the table, I figured that as there was little or no wind everything should stay dry throughout the night.

Out at 06:45 with Lucas and Phoebe (whose moth enthusiasm had been thoroughly rekindled by our visit yesterday to The Warnham LNR Wildlife Day). The plan to keep the trap dry had worked a treat but whether leaving the trap on in constant and fairly heavy rain was worth the electricity is debatable. We caught some moths but considerably fewer than on recent nights. It was also only the second time this month (when the trap has been out) that we’ve no new species to report. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Foxglove Pug Eupithecia pulchellata Steph.
• 1 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.

Noctuidae

• 6 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 12 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Treble Lines Charanyca trigrammica Hufn.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 1 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.

Tortricidae

• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker

Pyralidae

• 3 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 2 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.

Sunday 17 June 2007

Weather: Mild, overcast, occasional light showers, breezy.

Day 68… The weather forecast suggested that that Saturday’s rain would die out and it would become clear and fine by the morning, well that is what they said and I think it’s fair to say the heavy showers we had up until about 10:00 rather proved them wrong.

An 08:00 start this morning - we were waiting for the rain to stop. Yet again the trap was reasonably well stocked, quite a wide variety of species, but except for the Heart & Darts and Chrysoteuchia culmellas there was only one or two of anything. Four new species to report though. The only new "macro" was a Marbled White Spot, the three "micros" were a Large Fruit-tree Tortrix, an Endotricha flammealis and what I presume is a Gracillariid Sp. - I have to confess that this one is only included because I managed to get a half decent photo of it and its posture is the only reason I have identified it as a Gracillariid. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Arctiidae

• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 1 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 22 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica Fabr.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 2 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 Pale-shouldered Brocade L. thalassina Hufn.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Marbled White Spot Protodeltote pygarga Hufn.
• 1 Straw Dot Rivula sericealis Scop.

Tortricidae

• 1 Large Fruit-tree Tortrix Archips podana Scop.
• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 2 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 2 Crambus lathoniellus Zinck.
• 10 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Endotricha flammealis D. & S.

Gracillariidae

• 1 Gracillariid Sp.

Yponomeutidae

• 2 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Marbled White Spot Large Fruit-tree Tortrix

Endotricha flammealis Gracillariid Sp.

Saturday 16 June 2007

Weather: Mild, variable cloud cover, showers, breezy.

Day 67… Much fresher feeling, less humid and fairly windy but by no means cold, so it should still make for good mothing.

Out at 07:45 with Loobi this morning. There was a fair bit in the trap, the most obvious occupant being a lovely, fresh Lime Hawk-moth, it would be good to see some different Hawk-moths but I suppose it’s only appropriate that we should see more Lime Hawk-moths in Lindfield, named after the Linden trees which still grow in profusion around here. We only had one new species this morning, a Blood-vein. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Scalloped Oak Crocallis elinguaria Linn.
• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.
• 2 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.
• 1 Blood-vein Timandra comae Schmidt
• 1 Pine Carpet Thera firmata Hb.

Sphingidae

• 1 Lime Hawk-moth Mimas tiliae Linn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Arctiidae

• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 3 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 24 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 2 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 2 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 1 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.

Tortricidae

• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 2 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.

Yponomeutidae

• 1 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Blood-vein

Friday 15 June 2007

Weather: Warm, variable cloud cover, rain at times, still becoming breezy by morning.

Route 66… A very warm and muggy night, it was drizzling as I put the trap out but after last nights no show I wasn’t going to be deterred.

It was good to be back out this morning with Loobi even though everything was a little damp. As we approached the trap we were both intrigued and I have to say a little excited by the large grey presence sitting on the outside (Poplar Hawk? Eyed Hawk?). As we got closer we were equally disappointed when it revealed itself to be a snail - not even a Poplar or Eyed Snail - oh well. Inside the trap there was plenty to see though with a selection of new sightings to report too. Again it’s fair to say there’s a fair degree of uncertainty involved with the identifications but at least some I’m sure are right. Of the new "macros" there was a Flame Carpet, our first Silver Y of the year (I’m sure by now we would usually have seen one or two flying during the daytime at least), a Pale-shouldered Brocade, an Ingrailed Clay and a Beautiful Hook-tip. From The "micro" department we had a Flax Tortrix (I think) and what looks like it could be an Acleris Sp. of some sort.

My extraordinarily reliable source informs me the Acleris Sp. is in fact an Aleimma loeflingiana and the Flax Tortrix should just be considered as a Cnephasia Sp. as the Cnephasias can really only be distinguished by genital - which is, of course, too painful and humiliating to be practical.

The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Foxglove Pug Eupithecia pulchellata Steph.
• 1 Common Pug E. vulgata Haw.
• 1 May Highflyer Hydriomena impluviata D. & S.
• 3 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.
• 1 Flame Carpet Xanthorhoe designata Hb.

Arctiidae

• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Swallow Prominent Pheosia tremula Cl.

Noctuidae

• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 26 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Silver Y Autographa gamma Linn.
• 4 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Treble Lines Charanyca trigrammica Hufn.
• 1 Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica Fabr.
• 2 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 Pale-shouldered Brocade Lacanobia thalassina Hufn.
• 1 Beautiful Hook-tip Laspeyria flexula D. & S.
• 1 Shoulder-striped Wainscot Mythimna comma Linn.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 4 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 1 Straw Dot Rivula sericealis Scop.

Tortricidae

• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 1 Aleimma loeflingiana Linn.
• 1 Cnephasia Sp.
• 3 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 2 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 2 Pseudargyrotoza conwagana Fabr.
• 2 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 3 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 2 Crambus Sp.
• 1 Ringed China-mark Parapoynx stratiotata Linn.

Pterophoridae

• 1 Emmelina monodactyla Linn.

Incurvariidae

• 1 Adela reaumurella Linn.

Flame Carpet Silver Y

Ingrailed Clay Pale-shouldered Brocade

Beautiful Hook-tip Cnephasia Sp.

Aleimma loeflingiana

Thursday 14 June 2007

Weather: Mild, damp, occasional rain, still.

The weather forecast was worse than the reality so I was persuaded to not put the trap out last night which is a shame as I bet it would have been a really good night. As there’s nothing to report it seems entirely appropriate that I should post the photo I took on this day last year. I found it sitting on the inside of the kitchen window and it was the first (and only) clearwing I have seen, it is, I believe, a Sallow Clearwing - the other possibility is that it’s a Currant Clearwing but it lacks the coloured wing tips which I believe a Currant Clearwing would have. Better luck with the weather tonight I hope.

Sallow Clearwing

Wednesday 13 June 2007

Weather: Mild, clear, very light breeze at first becoming still.

Day 65… Cooler clearer and much less humid than its been on recent nights although there was a very light mistiness around very early this morning.

Same time as usual this morning. Lucas and I found another reasonably well stocked trap with yet more new species, just a couple though. Oh, and there was a pug that hasn’t as yet been identified - it doesn’t quite fit the descriptions of any we’ve caught previously and is also a little larger than others we’ve caught. The two that have been identified are; a Treble Brown Spot and The Snout. It's been pointed out to me by Sam Bayley, that our recent Turnip Moths were in fact Heart & Clubs (it was a 50:50 decision for me at the time so I opted for the apparently more common Turnip Moth) so the records for earlier catches have been updated. Catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Blotched Emerald Comibaena bajularia D. & S.
• 1 False Mocha Cyclophora porata Linn.
• 1 Freyer’s Pug Eupithecia intricata Freyer.
• 1 Treble Brown Spot Idaea trigeminata Haw.
• 1 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.

Arctiidae

• 3 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 2 Grey Dagger Acronicta psi Linn.
• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 28 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 The Rustic Hoplodrina blanda D. & S.
• 1 The Snout Hypena proboscidalis Linn.
• 2 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Variegated Golden Tortrix Archips xylosteana Linn.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 1 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 2 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus lathoniellus Zinck.
• 1 Crambus pascuella Linn.

Treble Brown Spot The Snout

Freyer’s Pug

Tuesday 12 June 2007

Weather: Warm, mostly overcast, still.

Day 63… More of the same on the weather front though the sun didn’t appear at all during the day on Monday.

We were out at 06:45 again, of course. The trap was reasonably well stocked though not quite up to the standards of recent nights. Still, we had more new species to report; a Scalloped Oak, a False Mocha, a Riband Wave (this one is known as ab. remutata and is, apparently, as frequent as the "Typical form" which has a darker band across the wings instead of the two outer lines on this specimen - why it should be called "Typical" when each form is equally prevalant I can’t quite work out..?) and lastly a Variegated Golden Tortrix. Catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 1 Scalloped Oak Crocallis elinguaria Linn.
• 1 False Mocha Cyclophora porata Linn.
• 1 Riband Wave Idaea aversata ab. remutata Linn.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.

Notodontidae

• 1 Buff-tip Phalera bucephala Linn.

Arctiidae

• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 3 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 29 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Treble Lines Charanyca trigrammica Hufn.
• 1 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 Common Wainscot Mythimna pallens Linn.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 2 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.

Tortricidae

• 1 Variegated Golden Tortrix Archips xylosteana Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 2 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 2 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Eudonia pallida Curt.
• 1 Scoparia subfusca Haw.

Yponomeutidae

• 2 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Scalloped Oak False Mocha

Riband Wave (ab. remutata) Variegated Golden Tortrix

Monday 11 June 2007

Weather: Warm, clear skies at sunset becoming overcast by morning, still.

Day 62… It felt very slightly cooler this morning as a result no doubt, of the clearer sky for part of the night, nevertheless still very good conditions.

Lucas and I were back to our weekday 06:45 routine this morning. We found the trap full of highly active moths some of which were impossible to prevent flying off when we opened it up. A Brown Silver-line, which is new to us, did settle briefly nearby so I was able to grab a quick (and a little blurred) photo. Other new species we caught were a Burnished Brass, a Bramble Shoot Moth and an Agapeta hamana. I’m fairly confident with my identification of these last two being, as they are, quite distinctive in their markings.

As an aside, I’m becoming intrigued by the number of species we’re seeing that are listed as heath or moorland species, the latest being the Brown Silver-line (a bracken feeder). We’ve also had Scarce Footman, Broom Moth True Lover’s Knot and the Emperor Moth amongst others. As far as I’m aware there’s nothing that could be considered heath or moorland for miles around and the garden stands about 35m above sea level so not exactly an upland location either.

Talking of Emperor Moths, the larvae are doing fine and have just started their final moult - much to the relief of the bramley that they've been feeding on. They’re getting quite spectacular now at about 60mm long. Their colour is now a darker, olive green with black bands, each band studded with seven bristly white or yellow tubercles.

The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 2 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Sharp-angled Carpet Euphyia unangulata Haw.
• 1 Foxglove Pug Eupithecia pulchellata Steph.
• 1 May Highflyer Hydriomena impluviata D. & S.
• 2 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.
• 1 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.
• 1 Brown Silver-line Petrophora chlorosata Scop.
• 1 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria D. & S.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.
• 1 Pine Carpet Thera firmata Hb.

Arctiidae

• 2 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 1 Grey Dagger Acronicta psi Linn.
• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 30 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 1 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Burnished Brass Diachrysia chrysitis Linn.
• 3 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 2 The Rustic Hoplodrina blanda D. & S.
• 1 Common Wainscot Mythimna pallens Linn.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 5 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 1 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Agapeta hamana Linn.
• 2 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Red-barred Tortrix Ditula angustiorana Haw.
• 1 Bramble Shoot Moth Epiblema uddmanniana D. & S.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 2 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus Sp.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.

Yponomeutidae

• 1 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Brown Silver-line Burnished Brass

Bramble Shoot Moth Agapeta hamana

Sunday 10 June 2007

Weather: Warm, overcast, still.

Day 61… Yet more of this lovely weather for moths (and humans for that matter), still, very warm and humid. Looking at the trap last night at about 23:30, it was again teeming with life, so much so in fact I wonder exactly how much actually stays until morning and how much just pays us a passing visit.

A little earlier this morning - we were out at 07:30 and yet again the trap was well stocked with a wide variety of species, quite a few of which were new but there was also a selection of species that had reappeared after quite a long absence - like the Bright-line Brown-eye we saw yesterday. As always the new species have been identified with varying degrees of confidence, in particular, the Pine Carpet - I’m really not sure about this one. We also had (in no particular order) a Scarce Footman, an Orange Footman (I’m quite sure about these two though not 100% - one of the main problems with identification is that it’s impossible to rely on what the texts give as the flight season for a particular species, there seem to be plenty of moths around at the moment which we shouldn’t really be seeing until July and it’s been like it all year). New species continued (after that short digression): a Small Angle Shades, a Broom Moth, two Turnip Moths (it’s distinctly possible we’ve had these before but they’ve been overlooked and assumed to be particularly well marked Heart & Darts). We also had two new Pyralids; a Ringed China-mark - the larvae of this species are aquatic so I guess it originated in the nearby river - and a Crambus lathoniellus (I think) - we’ve probably had this one before and again it’s been overlooked too.

I think this was our best night yet with 84 moths representing 35 different species taking the species total for this month to well over 50. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Peppered Moth Biston betularia Linn.
• 1 Blotched Emerald Comibaena bajularia D. & S.
• 1 Sharp-angled Carpet Euphyia unangulata Haw.
• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Brimstone Moth Opisthograptis luteolata Linn.
• 1 Pine Carpet Thera firmata Hb.

Arctiidae

• 1 Scarce Footman Eilema complana Linn.
• 1 Orange Footman Eilema sororcula Hufn.
• 2 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Notodontidae

• 1 Coxcomb Prominent Ptilodon capucina Linn.

Noctuidae

• 1 The Miller Acronicta leporina Linn.
• 2 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis Hufn.
• 36 Heart & Dart A. exclamationis Linn.
• 2 Shuttle-shaped Dart A. puta Hb.
• 1 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha Hufn.
• 3 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Broom Moth Ceramica pisi Linn.
• 1 Small Angle Shades Euplexia lucipara Linn.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Shoulder-striped Wainscot Mythimna comma Linn.
• 3 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 1 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 2 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.

Tortricidae

• 3 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 1 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Red-barred Tortrix Ditula angustiorana Haw.
• 1 Epiblema cynosbatella D. & S.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 4 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus lathoniellus Zinck.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.
• 1 Ringed China-mark Parapoynx stratiotata Linn.
• 1 Udea olivalis D. & S.

Yponomeutidae

• 2 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Pine Carpet Scarce Footman

Orange Footman Small Angle Shades

Broom Moth Heart & Club

Ringed China-mark Crambus lathoniellus

Udea olivalis

Saturday 09 June 2007

Weather: Warm, overcast, still.

Day 60… Another warm and humid, hopefully very productive night.

A typically Saturday late start - we didn’t get out until 08:00 this morning. At this time of year that means there’s already been more than three hours of daylight (sunrise is at about 04:45) giving the moths plenty of time escape or be eaten by hungry birds, consequently our results are probably a little skewed - I’m sure for instance that we didn’t see as many micros this morning as we would have done if we’d been out earlier. The trap was still pretty well stocked though, with still more new species to report. The first was a The Cinnabar which flew off the moment the trap was opened, we also had a The Spectacle (Before I told him what the moth was called I showed it to Loobi head on and asked him what he thought it might be called, his immediate suggestion was a "Goggle Moth", which I think is probably even more apt), a Small Blood-vein and a Tawny-barred Angle. The catch was as follows:

Hepialidae

• 1 Common Swift Hepialus lupulinus Linn.

Geometridae

• 2 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 2 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.
• 1 Brimstone Moth Opisthograptis luteolata Linn.
• 1 Small Blood-vein Scopula imitaria Hb.
• 1 Tawny-barred Angle Semiothisa liturata Cl.

Arctiidae

• 2 White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda Linn.
• 1 The Cinnabar Tyria jacobaeae Linn.

Noctuidae

• 1 The Spectacle Abrostola tripartita Hufn.
• 1 The Sycamore Acronicta aceris Linn.
• 34 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis Linn.
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea Linn.
• 1 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 2 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 2 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 1 Straw Dot Rivula sericealis Scop.

Tortricidae

• 2 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 1 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 2 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.

The Spectacle Small Blood-vein

Tawny-barred Angle

Friday 08 June 2007

Weather: Very mild, overcast, rain towards morning, light breeze.

Day 59… Conditions were very different last night, much warmer and a close, humid feel, the wind had finally dropped to a very light breeze too. The rain we had was I think, only brief though we got quite a wetting (apparently we were on the far western edge of a band of severe storms heading northwards through Kent). From recent experience and contrary to what I said yesterday regarding butterflies and moths liking similar conditions, rain like we had last night seems to be just what moths like.

Lucas and I were out at 06:45 to find a very well stocked and rather damp trap. As soon as the trap was disturbed a small cloud of little moths flew off - what they were we’ll never know but what was left kept us occupied for quite a while. Not only did the trap contain lots of moths there was also a huge selection of Caddis flies, wasps, mosquitos, midges, beetles and a rather forlorn looking Water Boatman. I have to try really hard to avoid paying any attention to these as the distraction could become serious, the moths are sufficiently time consuming as it is. Speaking of moths, we caught a few new species: Of the "macros" we caught a Blotched Emerald, two True Lover’s Knots (apparently a species of heath and moorland - so what it’s doing here I don’t know - the larvae must have fed on the heather in the next door neighbour’s garden) , a The Rustic (or at least I think it is - there were two, what I’m sure were, Vine’s Rustics to compare it with). From the "micros" department we had a Udea prunalis and a Udea olivalis (the photo I took of the latter was terribly out of focus and therefore unreproduceable but the moth looked similar to U. prunalis but with white spots on the fore wings). There were also a couple of as yet unidentified species - listed as unknown 3 & 4, unknown 4 flew off before allowing itself to be photographed but it looked just like a tiny version of the Pseudargyrotoza conwagana that we had the other day. (Unknown 1 is the same species we had on 06 June.)* The catch was as follows:

* All now resolved - thanks to S.B.

Hepialidae

• 1 Common Swift Hepialus lupulinus Linn.

Geometridae

• 3 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata Hufn.
• 1 Blotched Emerald Comibaena bajularia D. & S.
• 1 Foxglove Pug Eupithecia pulchellata Steph.
• 2 Common Pug E. vulgata Haw.
• 1 Clouded Border Lomaspilis marginata Linn.
• 3 Green Pug Pasiphila rectangulata Linn.

Arctiidae

• 2 White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda Linn.
• 1 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 2 The Sycamore Acronicta aceris Linn.
• 27 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis Linn.
• 4 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 2 True Lover’s Knot Lycophotia porphyrea D. & S.
• 2 Vine’s Rustic Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S.
• 1 The Rustic H. blanda D. & S.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.
• 2 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta Linn.
• 1 Minor Sp. Oligia Sp.
• 2 Straw Dot Rivula sericealis Scop.

Tortricidae

• 5 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 4 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 2 Red-barred Tortrix Ditula angustiorana Haw.
• 2 Light-brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana Walker
• 1 Pseudargyrotoza conwagana Fabr.
• 1 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Bee Moth Aphomia sociella Linn.
• 3 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus pascuella Linn.
• 1 Small Magpie Eurrhypara hortulata Linn.
• 1 Udea olivalis D. & S.
• 1 Udea prunalis D. & S.

Incurvariidae

• 3 Adela reaumurella Linn.

Blotched Emerald True Lover’s Knot

The Rustic Common Swift (cf. 26 May)

Udea prunalis (and friend) Red-barred Tortrix

Thursday 07 June 2007

Weather: Mild, overcast, windy.

Day 58… Almost identical conditions to those of last night so presumably we can expect a similar catch.

Yes you guessed it, Loobi and I were out trap inspecting at 06:45 again to find, well, not very much really. These conditions are not ideal and I suppose our catch the night before was unrepresentative and what we caught last night was probably more realistic, after all one wouldn’t expect to see a lot of butterflies in similar daytime conditions. The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata Haw.
• 1 Garden Carpet Xanthorhoe fluctuata Linn.

Arctiidae

• 3 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum Hufn.

Noctuidae

• 21 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis Linn.
• 4 The Flame Axylia putris Linn.
• 1 Pale Mottled Willow Caradrina clavipalpis Scop.
• 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba Linn.

Tortricidae

• 1 Codling Moth Cydia pomonella Linn.
• 2 Celypha lacunana D. & S.
• 4 Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana Linn.

Pyralidae

• 1 Chrysoteuchia culmella Linn.
• 1 Crambus pascuella Linn.

Incurvariidae

• 1 Adela reaumurella Linn.

Yponomeutidae

• 1 Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella Curt.

Wednesday 06 June 2007

Weather: Mild, overcast, windy.

Day 58… Another cool(ish) and windy night. I relocated the trap in the hope of allowing it to be seen from a wider area, in an attempt to attract a greater number of moths, doing this necessitated putting it in a position more exposed to the wind.

Out with Loobi at 06:45 sharp (The neigbours have started setting their clocks by us). The trap looked pretty well stocked too, the downside being it was well stocked with "micros". I wondered whether I should just pretend they weren’t there or whether I should be thourough and meticuluous and catalgue and photograph them all, sadly I opted for the latter - I don’t think Lucas would have let me do anything else. I think, or rather hope, I’ve identified most of them but there’s still a couple still outstanding. There was also a pug that I hadn’t looked at closely at first (assuming it to be a very worn common pug or similar) but on closer examination proved to be in immaculate condition, with very pale and lightly speckled wings. It turns out it wasn’t a pug at all but what is I think a Small Dusty Wave. The only other new "macro" was The Sycamore. Hopefully things are looking up now, all in and including the horrible micros, we had 31 species which makes it our second best night so far.

More thanks to Sam Bayley for setting the records straight as regards some of the recent micros (see below).

The catch was as follows:

Geometridae

• 1 Light Emerald Campaea margaritata Linn.
• 2 Common Pug E. vulgata Haw.
• 1