** January to May 2004 Moth Records Archive **
(Photos have been removed in order to save
webspace.)
New
species for this year are indicated by
lavender text.
31st
May 2004
Jan Haseler’s latest report as follows: New
species for me in my Tilehurst garden moth trap last night (30/5) were:
1 figure of eighty; 1 pale oak beauty; 1 shark; 1 grey
arches; 1 buff tip; 1 setaceous hebrew character; 1 spectacle.
I was looking at your 2004 moth list, and see that I have
also had: shears (1 last night, 2
22/5); dotted chestnut (1 16/4)
(I also had 8 yellow shell at Lardon Chase on 28th
May.)
From David Redhead : An overnight moth trap in my garden resulted in a poor catch owing to the low overnight temperatures. Only 12 species, 25 moths and nothing new to report. After two months of moth trapping in my garden I have worked out my current top ten macro-moths - 1st Treble Lines (70), 2nd Common Quaker (56), 3rd Hebrew Character (38), 4th Clouded Drab (35), 5th Chocolate Tip (18), 6th Swallow Prominent (17), 7th Light Brocade (16), 8th= Flame Shoulder, Pebble Prominent, Poplar Hawkmoth, Seraphim (15). My garden is well surrounded by trees - hence the high proportion of tree feeders. I wonder how this top ten compares to others regularly trapping moths in their garden? Interestingly I get very few micros (with the exception of Mother of Pearl later in the summer) which is just as well as I can identify very few of them.
30th
May 2004
On a visit to Finemere today, Dave Wilton reports
these moths: a Blood-vein, a Mother Shipton, two or three
unidentified Carpets and a Lackey caterpillar.
The UTB field trip to Ivinghoe Beacon yesterday, 29th
May, recorded the following moths (full report available on the butterfly sightings page):
Pyrausta Nigrata, Mother Shipton, Common Carpet, Burnet Companion, Cinnabar, Green Carpet, Yellow Shell and Silver-ground Carpet, Clouded Silver and (by a process of elimination) a Wood Tiger.
Keith Mtchell ran a trap overnight in his garden in Stoke
Goldington on Friday and caught 97 moths of at least 32 species, 3 of them new
to the UTB 2004 Species list:
Blood-vein; Brimstone (5); Brown
Rustic (2); Buff Ermine; Buff-tip (2); Campion; Clouded Silver (4); Clouded-bordered Brindle;
Common Marbled Carpet (2); Common Swift (30); Common
Wainscot (3); Flame; Flame Shoulder (2); Heart and Dart (2); Lime-speck Pug; Mottled Pug (4); Muslin female
(unusual at light); Pale Prominent; Poplar Hawk-moth (2); Rustic Shoulder-knot
(5); Scorched Wing (2); Setaceous Hebrew Character; Shuttle-shaped Dart;
Silver-ground Carpet (2); Spectacle (2); Treble Lines (3); White Ermine (2);
White-spotted Pug (2); Noctuids, pug and small ermine spp yet to be positively
id'd (11).
29th
May 2004
The following records are from a moth trap run by
Jan Haseler in her Tilehurst garden, 27/28 May:
1 bright-line brown-eye; 1 brimstone; 2 dark/grey dagger
(not sure which); 2 flame shoulder; 2 heart and dart; 1 light brocade; 1 lychnis; 1 marbled minor; 1 mottled pug; 1 pale mottled willow; 1 pale
prominent; 1 pale tussock; 1 peppered moth; 1 poplar hawkmoth; 6 shuttle-shaped
dart; 2 treble lines; 5 vine's rustic.
Peter Hall ran a trap in his Ballinger garden on
25/05/04 and recorded 33 species, 9 new for the 2004 UTB species list:
Macros: Oak Hook-tip; Chinese
Character; Red Twin-spot Carpet; Silver Ground Carpet; Red-green Carpet; Grey
Pine Carpet; Spruce Carpet; Broken-barred
Carpet; Foxglove Pug; Brown Silver-line; Brimstone Moth; Scalloped
Hazel; Peppered; Pale Oak Beauty; White-pinion Spotted; Privet Hawk; Buff-tip; Lobster; Marbled Brown; Pale tussock; Orange Footman; White Ermine; Cinnabar; Heart
& Dart; Shuttle-shaped Dart; Flame Shoulder; Bright-line
Brown-eye; Clouded-bordered Brindle; Rustic Shoulder-knot; Treble
Lines; Nut-tree Tussock and these micros: Pseudargyrotoza
conwagana; Alucita hexadactyla (Twenty-plume)
28th
May 2004
Some casual daytime moth sightings reported as
follows:
Keith Mitchell spent a couple of hours today, 28th, at the Blue Lagoon Reserve in Bletchley and recorded 15+ Burnet Companions.
Dave Wilton visited
Finemere Wood Reserve, Bucks, Fri 28th May: he saw a Mother Shipton and several Lackey moth caterpillars
which were sunning themselves beside the track leading up to the reserve.
On the Aston Rowant Field Trip meeting on 25th
May: Adela reaumurella; Aethes tesserana; Pyrausta purpuralis;
Pyrausta nigrata; Silver-ground Carpet; Common Carpet; Green Carpet; Mother
Shipton; Burnet Companion.
27th
May 2004
Wendy & Mick Campbell went to Lodge Hill today and saw a number
of moths: 17
Cinnabar, 2 Pyrausta Nigrata, 4 Lesser Treble-bar and a Burnet Companion.
Wednesday 26th – David Redhead paid an afternoon visit to Sydlings Copse and found numerous Grass Rivulets and a singleton Latticed Heath, Burnet Companion and Lesser Treble-bar flying. The grassland area was awash with Yellow Rattle which is the foodplant of the Grass Rivulet.
After leaving Sydlings Copse I went to Whitecross Green Wood to check on Brown Hairstreak caterpillars and saw a Mother Shipton moth.
Wednesday 26th/Thursday 27th ran an overnight moth trap in our
garden in Oxon
and, in spite of some overnight rain, got by far my best haul to date - 33
species, 84 moths:
Treble Lines (28), Heart & Dart
(7), Light Brocade (5), Brown Rustic (3), Spectacle (3), Clouded silver (2),
Clouded-bordered Brindle (2), Figure of Eighty
(2), Grey Pug (2), Rustic
Shoulder-knot (2), Setaceous Hebrew Character (2), Shuttle-shaped Dart (2),
Swallow Prominent (2), Vine's Rustic
(2), White Ermine (2), Buff-tip, Common
Marbled Carpet, Common Quaker, Common
Wave, Common White Wave, Elephant
Hawk moth, Flame, Flame Shoulder, Green Carpet, Marbled Minor, May Highflier, Pale Oak Beauty, Peppered Moth, Small Clouded Brindle,
Small Magpie, Small Phoenix, Spruce Carpet, Turnip Moth. Also
found a Common Pug in living room. Treble Lines has now become my moth
of 2004 with 63 in total displacing Common Quaker with 56. But with advent of
the first Heart & Darts how long will the Treble Lines reign last?
26th
May 2004
These 2 reports in from David Redhead yesterday:
During a walk round Bernwood Forest today, 25th May,
which included a detour into the meadows, we had quite a varied haul - several
Burnet Companions, Mother Shipton, Common Heath, an Oak Eggar caterpillar (fully
grown), 2 Figure of Eight caterpillars (one fully grown and one 2/3rds grown)
and several geometrid moth caterpillars. The Oak Eggar caterpillar was on an
oak sapling - in spite of its name this is not a commonly listed foodplant. All
the others were on blackthorn. [See also butterfly
sightings page.]
I ran my
moth trap overnight Sunday/Monday. Catch a bit down at 17 species and 35 moths
but two new ones for me & UTB this year - Clouded-bordered
Brindle & Sandy Carpet.
Also, David has had confirmation that a micro he trapped on 19th May
was Phtheochroa rugosana.
25th
May 2004
Jan Haseler took a break from the monthly work
party at Moor Copse, Berks, this morning, 23rd May,
to check the wood spurge plants, and managed to spot a single Drab Looper in Hogmoor.
24th
May 2004
Keith Mitchell comments: “National Moth Night, 22nd May, was a non-event in my frost pocket of a garden in Stoke Goldington. The Skinner Trap produced just two moths! Knot Grass (first for garden) and Common Swift.”
23rd
May 2004
National Moth Night was held on Saturday 22nd
May and two traps were run in Bernwood where the temperature dropped down to 6 degrees by midnight, resulting in some shivering
enthusiasts! No False Mocha (the target species) was recorded. Thanks to Peter
Hall for providing the following records:
Moth Trap 1: BERNWOOD - OAKLEY WOOD CORNER
Barred Umber; Brimstone Moth; Chocolate-tip; Common White Wave; Cream Wave; Green Carpet; Grey Birch; Maiden's
Blush; Pale tussock; Pebble Hook-tip;
Scalloped Hazel; Scoparia ambigualis;
Small White Wave; Tawny-barred Angle
Moth Trap 2 - BERNWOOD - OAKLEY WOOD
Brimstone Moth; Common White Wave; Great
Prominent; Green Carpet; Grey Pine Carpet; Maiden's Blush; Nut-tree
Tussock; Pale Oak Beauty; Pale tussock; Pebble Hook-tip; Pebble Prominent;
Poplar Hawk; Scalloped Hazel; Scoparia ambigualis; Scorched
Carpet; Seraphim; Shuttle-shaped Dart; Tawny-barred Angle; Treble
Lines.
Alistair Driver had a disappointing haul from last night (22nd) at Ali's Pond LNR. Clear skies and low temperatures resulted in only 9 moths of 5 species! No new records, although Peppered Moth and Scalloped Hazel were firsts for me for the year. Details as follows:
Peppered Moth 2, Treble Lines 3, Set. Heb Char. 1, Shuttle-shaped Dart 2, Scalloped Hazel 1.
The
following moths were seen by David Fuller on Thursday evening, 20th
May, in Maidenhead:
Buff-tip; Grey Pine Carpet; Red green
Carpet; Hebrew character; Pale tussock 2; Clouded Silver 2; Willow Beauty
Dave Maunder reports a couple of moths seen in Aylesbury
recently:- Sycamore moths (2) - 1 on 20th, 1 on 21st, also 1 Cinnabar on 18th,
+ 1 Emmelina monodactyla.
21st
May 2004
I ran a Skinner trap overnight in my garden on 19th in warm, partially overcast conditions and had my best catch this year (48 moths, 21 species). I am still a novice in mothing terms and was taken aback by the sheer variety and beauty of the catch. The Puss Moth was absolutely stunning. I now admit to being a total addict! Keith Mitchell.
Silver-ground Carpet;
Brimstone (4); Chinese Character (2); 2 Lime Hawk-moth (2); Eyed Hawk-moth; Pale Tussock; Puss
Moth; Hebrew
Character; Common Swift (6); Flame Shoulder (2); White Ermine (3); Buff Ermine; Buff-tip; *Dark
Brocade; Clouded
Silver (2); Campion (fresh with
purple/pink marbling, very scarce in Milton Keynes area); Flame (3); Shuttle-shaped Dart (4); Pebble
Prominent (2); White-spotted Pug (5); *Brindled Pug (4)
[* Errata 2nd June: Dark Brocade should read
Rustic Shoulder-knot, Brindled Pug (4) should read Mottled Pug (4).]
20th
May 2004
David Redhead: Another good night's moth trapping last night with 25 species
and 52 moths. Much the same species as the 17th May but Treble Lines most
numerous with 12 and three new species this year for me and UTB - Brown Rustic, Poplar Grey & Tawny-barred Angle.
Micro: Epiblema cynosbatella.
19th
May 2004
David Fuller recorded 4 species in
his trap last evening:
Lime Hawk moth 2; Pale
Pinion 1; Hebrew Character 1; Shuttle-shaped Dart 1
Forgot to
include a Ruby Tiger in my Seven
Barrows report for 17th May - spotted roosting in the grass by Wendy. I think
this is a first for UTB 2004 list. David Redhead.
Here is Alastair Driver’s report from the moth
trap he ran at Ali's Pond LNR on 17th May:
Still not
getting great numbers here in Sonning - only 21 moths of 11 species from
trapping at Ali's Pond LNR last night, 17th May. However 2 were new
for my parish records - Coxcomb Prominent
and Chocolate Tip - both beauties and both species I used to dream of
catching as a kid but never did! The former hasn't appeared yet this year on
the Upper Thames list by the looks of it. Also is it possible for somebody to
put my mind at rest with the attached id? Are they both Pale Mottled
Willow? [One of the 2 moths
photographed is definitely Pale Mottled Willow. ID of the second moth to follow
shortly.]
18th
May 2004
Alastair Driver reports: Couldn't resist setting the trap on Sunday night
(16th) having missed out on recent fine nights due to enjoying a different sort
of "wildlife" associated with the Challenge Cup final in Cardiff on
Saturday! Only 16 macro-moths but 13 species. New for my parish records was Clouded Silver. The only other that hasn't
appeared on your 2004 list yet was Common Swift
apart from a possible Grey Pug, which I have attempted to photograph and
will e-mail the image for corroboration (or not!). Trying again tonight at
Ali's Pond LNR so more news to follow tomorrow hopefully!
17th
May 2004
“Last night my best moth trap of the year to date”, says David Redhead, “with 25 species and 50 moths. May Bugs decreasing - down to 21. 8 additions to my 2004 list and 6 for the UTB 2004 list.
Chocolate Tip (5), Poplar Hawk moth (5), Treble Lines (5), Flame Shoulder (4), Pale Prominent (4), Seraphim (4), Light Brocade (3), Shuttle-shaped Dart (3), Brimstone Moth, Brindled Pug, Common Carpet, Common Quaker, Early Grey, Eyed Hawk moth, Green Carpet, Iron Prominent, Knot Grass, Least Black Arches, Lime Hawk moth, Pale Oak Beauty, Pale Tussock, Pebble Prominent, Red Twin-spot Carpet, Rustic Shoulder-knot & White Ermine.
16th
May 2004
This report just in from David Redhead: Not such a good night for moth
trapping last night with 17 species and 30 moths in my trap - perhaps the May
Bugs, all 29 of them, frightened them away. But still 6 new species for me this
year and 5 new to the UTB 2004 list:
Chocolate Tip (5), Treble Lines (4),
Green Carpet (3), Flame Shoulder (2), Pale Prominent (2), Poplar Hawkmoth (2), Shuttle-shaped Dart (2), Clouded
Border, Light Brocade, Pebble Prominent, Poplar
Kitten, Red Twin-spot Carpet, Rustic
Shoulder-knot, Scalloped Hazel, Seraphim, Small Phoenix &
Yellow-barred Brindle.
David also called in at Westwell Gorse, BBOWT's most westerly reserve,
today where there were several Burnet Companions and Latticed Heath and a Common Heath.
Records from Keith Mitchell’s Skinner Trap in his garden on 14th
May:
Swallow Prominent (2); The Spectacle (2); Hebrew Character (3); Muslin (2); Lime Hawk Moth; Chinese Character (2); Brimstone; Flame Shoulder; Brindled Pug; Pale Prominent
On a
walk through Cadmore End this morning Paul Bowyer and Mick & Wendy Campbell
saw 5 Burnet Companion, Cinnabar, Mother Shipton and Small
Yellow Underwing all on grassy chalk downland bordering a wood.
15th
May 2004
David Fuller reports a Least Black Arches in his porch this evening, 15th May.
A pristine Cinnabar moth was seen at Aston Upthorpe today by a group of UTB members while there on a butterfly field trip.
Records from Peter Hall’s moth trap in Ballinger on
10/05/04 - 19 species, 2 of which are new for this year, despite being bombarded
by May Bugs:
Alucita hexadactyla (Twenty-plume); Brimstone Moth; Brindled Pug;
Chinese Character; Clouded Drab; Hebrew Character; Lesser Swallow Prominent; Lobster; Lunar Marbled Brown; Muslin; Nut-tree
Tussock; Pale tussock; Pebble
Prominent; Peppered; Scalloped Hazel; Scalloped Hook-tip; Seraphim; Swallow
Prominent; Waved Umber
14th
May 2004
David Redhead sent in this update to his last moth trap: “Martin
Townsend has identified the micros in my last moth trap reported to
you (see 12th May). The 3 definites are all additions to the UTB 2004
list:”
Plutella
porrectella several; Incurvaria masculella 1 female; Epinotia immundana 2;
+ 1 other, probably Scrobipalpa sp.
At Hewins Wood Drain today Mick Campbell saw a Latticed Heath and 2 Burnet Companions,
all in very fresh condition.
13th
May 2004
“Just
a couple of recent sightings from Aylesbury - 2 Emmelina monodactlya on
11th, also a Chocolate tip - a new one for me here.” Dave Maunder.
12th
May 2004
“Last night was a better night for moths,” says David Redhead, “as shown by the 21 species
(including six new to UTB 2004 list taking it into 3 figures) and 40 moths
found in my overnight moth trap.”
Seraphim (6), Brimstone Moth (4), Nut-tree Tussock (3), Spruce Carpet
(3), White-spotted Pug (3), Flame Shoulder (2), Muslin Moth (2), Red
Twin-spot Carpet (2), Chocolate Tip, Flame Carpet, Green Carpet,
Hebrew Character, Light Brocade, Lime Hawkmoth, Oak-tree Pug, Pebble
Prominent, Peppered Moth, Small Phoenix, V Pug & Waved Umber.
Here’s the promised moth report from Keith
Mitchell: I ran moth
traps in my garden on 6th and 8th May - only two days apart, but different
species. The Scarce Prominent is a rarity in the North Bucks area,
and may even constitute the first record for Milton Keynes?
6th
May - 6 Hebrew Character; 1
Chocolate Tip; 1 Scarce Prominent (photo below); 1 Purple Thorn; 1 Garden
Carpet; 1 Clouded Drab
and on 8th May - 2 Hebrew
Character; 7 Swallow Prominent; 1 Pebble Prominent; 1 Brimstone.
As promised, here is my shot of Swallow Prominent and Lesser Swallow Prominent together (see report on 10th May) for comparison. Unfortunately I couldn't get them both to sit nicely together on the log - hence the screwdriver! Alastair Driver.
11th
May 2004
Between 10 and 12 o’clock last night, Mick
Campbell ran a moth trap in his Holmer Green garden. He recorded 9 species, one
of them new to the UTB count:
Brimstone (4), Nut-tree Tussock, Pale Prominent, Waved
Umber, Garden Carpet, Red Twin-spot Carpet, Scalloped
Hazel, Pine Beauty and Clouded Drab. Also 6 Cockchafers,
one of which managed to find it’s way into the house and emerged this evening
from inside the printer!
10th
May 2004
Moth trap results from David Redhead’s garden in Oxon last night - not great numbers as it rained
overnight here but three new species for me this year, two of which are new to
the UTB 2004 list:
Yellow-barred
Brindle (1), Chocolate
Tip (5), Pebble Prominent (4), Brindled Beauty (1), Pale Prominent (1), Poplar Hawk moth (1) – (see photo),
Scalloped Hook-tip (1), Small Phoenix (1), Swallow Prominent (1) & White-pinion Spotted (1). 10 species, 17 moths.
Alastair Driver managed to catch a few in the trap in his garden in
Sonning last night despite the showers.
New for the year for me were Red Twin-spot Carpet, Flame Shoulder, Swallow Prominent, Grey Pine Carpet and Lesser Swallow Prominent. The latter was a first for my parish list and I've attempted to take pictures of it alongside the Swallow Prominent for comparison. I'll e-mail them through in due course if they're any good.
9th
May 2004
Just received from David Redhead - This pair of Muslin moths were found mating on our doorstep by Wendy on the afternoon of Tuesday 4th May. Sorry about late reporting but I think they are a new species for the 2004 list. Running a moth trap tonight so may have some more new ones for you tomorrow.
“I wish I still had my old m.v. trap from years ago!” writes Dave
Maunder from Aylesbury. A couple of moths found at his house lights last
week: Streamer on the 5th and a Garden
Carpet on the 7th.
Another of Peter Hall’s regular moth lists from
Ballinger on 03/05/04:
Alucita hexadactyla (Twenty-plume); Angle Shades; Brindled Pug;
Chestnut; Common Quaker; Depressaria
pastinacella (Parsnip); Least Black Arches; Nut-tree Tussock; Pebble
Prominent; Twin-spotted Quaker; Water Carpet
8th
May 2004
Another new moth attracted to David Fuller’s low energy bulbs in
his porch:
Yellow-barred
Brindle new for my
garden 8th May this moth has olive green colour, so must be mint as I
understand they soon fade to yellow.
Photos of Scarce Tissue added to this page today – see below, 3rd May.
4th
May 2004
Keith Mitchell’s regular contributions from Stoke Goldington
continue with the following recent records of moths attracted to his low energy
fluorescent front door lights:
Keith also adds: I've
finally got my Skinner Trap together, first night 2nd May:
13 Hebrew Character; 2 Waved Umber; 2 Brimstone; 2 Chestnut;
1 Chinese Character; 1 Early Grey; 2 Common Quaker; 1
Small Quaker; 2 Clouded Drab; 2 Streamer
3rd
May 2004
Welcome
to Alastair Driver, who is new to the website. Alistair is a keen
conservationist and has sent in the following report:
I run a Robinson trap in
my garden at Sonning and at Ali's Pond LNR in Sonning, which I manage in my
spare time. I set the trap at Ali's Pond last night, 2nd May, and
although I only caught 16 moths, these included 12 species of which 5 were
firsts for the year: Brimstone Moth,
Least Black Arches, Nut-tree Tussock, Red-green Carpet and Scarce Tissue.
In addition, the Red-green Carpet was a first for the parish and the Scarce
Tissue was a first for the LNR site. I've caught this in my garden a
few times in recent years and with the two last night it seems like we have a
reasonable meta-population in Sonning. (I note that this wasn't on your UTBC
list for last year, so I thought this may be of particular interest).
News in
from David Fuller today: I have had both Pale Prominent and a *Plume
Moth sp. (pending confirmation of id) on my front door in Maidenhead for
three days now. Last night a perfect specimen Brimstone moth occurred and this morning a Scorched Wing, all attracted by a new porch
plus 2 new energy saving bulbs - it is certainly pulling in the moths.
[*The Plume moth has been confirmed as Emmelina monodactyla – 05/05/04.]
Yesterday, 2nd May, Jan Haseler was in
Whitchurch-on-Thames and was able to make a positive id on 3 daytime flying
moths: Burnet Companion; Pyrausta
Nigrata; Pyrausta Purpuralis.
I had struggled with Pyrausta Nigrata at The Holies the
previous week, but was helped to an identification by two knowledgeable
friends. Yesterday the 2 Pyraustas were flying together and perched quite
cooperatively, which was very helpful to me for sorting them out.
Peter Hall recorded 25 species in his Ballinger garden
on 26/04/04, adding 7 new species to the 2004 count:
Barred Hook-tip; Brindled Beauty; Brindled Pug;
Clouded Drab; Common Quaker; Double-striped Pug; Early Grey; Early Thorn;
Frosted Green; Hebrew Character; Least Black
Arches; Lesser Swallow Prominent; Lunar Marbled Brown; Nut-tree
Tussock; Pine Beauty; Purple Thorn;
Red-green Carpet; Scalloped Hook-tip; Small
Quaker; Streamer; Water Carpet; Waved Umber
and the following micros: Agonopterix
arenella; Alucita hexadactyla (Twenty-plume); Emmelina monodactyla
1st
May 2004
Otmoor Caterpillar
Crawl & Moth Trap – 29th April.
Thanks to David Redhead and Martin Townsend
for a very successful and enjoyable evening, despite the cold and very damp conditions.
The following species report was received from David:
The results of the moth trap which ran overnight were much
as expected - 8 Hebrew Characters & 3 Powdered Quakers.
The caterpillar
species count was as follows - Brown Hairstreak, Meadow Brown, Broad-bordered
Yellow Underwing, Lesser Yellow Underwing, Mottled Umber, Winter Moth, Drinker,
Six-Striped or Square Spot Rustic, Green Pug, a Geometrid, a second
Geometrid possibly Mottled Beauty.
Photos below are of the Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing & Meadow
Brown, by David Redhead (click for larger image):
Another species was added when an adult Speckled Wood was
found roosting in the grass.
30th
April 2004
Click here to see a
selection of photographs from the Common Wood, Penn, moth trap held on
24th April. Thanks to Stan Armstrong for providing the photos.
Keith Mitchell writes that
things have been slow on the moth front at home with nothing at the lights
apart from a single Angle Shades on 27/04/04. “I’m awaiting delivery of
a MV Bulb and choke which hopefully should liven things up a bit!”
28th
April 2004
An email just received from Andrew Kershaw adds
another species to this year’s total and the first reported Hawk Moth of the
season:
17 clouded drab; 11 hebrew character; early grey; emmelina monodactyla 4; common quaker; small
quaker; mullein; swallow prominent lime hawk
moth.
David Redhead has been running a series of moth traps in his garden
this month and has sent the following reports, adding 12 new species to the
annual count:
Ran another moth trap in my garden last night, 26th
April, with a similar number of species of macro-moths to
the previous night but several differences in actual species. I think the
four highlighted are new to the UTB all-comers 2004 list:
16 species
: Swallow Prominent (7), Clouded Drab (4), Common Quaker (2), Small Phoenix (1), Brindled Pug (1), Oak-tree Pug (1), V Pug (1), Seraphim (1), Yellow-barred Brindle (1), Pebble
Prominent (1), Pale Prominent (1), Lunar Marbled Brown (1), Chocolate Tip (1),
Hebrew Character (1), Early Grey (1), Nut-tree Tussock (1).
Last night, 25th April, I ran my fourth moth trap
of the month in my garden and achieved the highest number of
species to date. The 15 species were:
Clouded Drab
(8), Pebble Prominent (5), Common Quaker
(4), Hebrew Character (4), Pale Prominent
(3), Powdered Quaker (3),
Double-striped Pug (1), Streamer (1), Seraphim
(1), Swallow Prominent (1), Chocolate Tip (1), Setaceous
Hebrew Character (1), Oak Nycteolline (1), Spectacle
(1) & Herald (1). All fairly common stuff although the Streamer
was new to me and the Setaceous Hebrew Character is early - usually not out
until May.
24th
April 2004
On Friday 23rd April, a moth trap evening
was held in Common Wood, Penn. A large group of 15-20 people came along,
including local residents and members of WWG and UTB. Daytime temperatures had
been very warm and this continued into a mild evening. Three traps were run and
the following moths species were recorded, the beautiful and numerous Purple
Thorns attracting much attention. Our thanks to Pat Morris of the Wycombe
Wildlife Group and David Harris for organising this very successful event:
Agonopterix alstromeriana; Brindled Pug;
Chestnut; Clouded Drab; Common Quaker; Diurnia fagella; Double-striped pug;
Early Thorn; Early Tooth Striped; Engrailed;
Eriocrania subpurpurella; Frosted Green; Hebrew
Character; Lunar Marbled Brown; Nut
Tree Tussock; Purple Thorn; Red Chestnut; Scarce
Prominent; Semioscopis steinkelleriana; Twin Spotted Quaker; Water Carpet
[Also a possible Mottled Pug – subject to confirmation once the
photographs have been checked.] [Update - the Mottled Pug turned out to be a Brindled Pug – 28/4]
22nd
April 2004
Andrew
Kershaw says he’s still only recording small moth numbers, but a
much more interesting mix now. These are from his Longwick garden on 21/4, adding 3 new species to this year’s count:
5 Hebrew character; 4 clouded drab; 1 nut tree tussock; 1 purple thorn; 1 mullein;
1 argyrotaenia ljungiana;
1 pyrausta purpuralis.
17th
April 2004
Here are some more records of moths attracted to Keith Mitchell’s
door light in the last two weeks:
Blossom Underwing 1 on 12th - a rare moth in the Milton Keynes area (3 previous records) – see photo below
Streamer 1 on 9th. Other moths:
Common Quaker, Double-striped Pug, Early Grey, Early Thorn, Hebrew
Character, Shoulder Stripe, Small Quaker, Emmelina monodactyla.
14th
April 2004
David White ran a black MV Skinner trap for
three hours last night, 12th April. Seven species in total
and apart from the usual suspects had three additions to the yearly list viz. Pale Mottled Willow, Oak Nycteoline and Nut-tree Tussock.
David
Redhead ran a moth trap in his garden overnight on 11th April - 18 Hebrew Character, 14 Common Quaker, 6
Clouded Drab, 1 each of Brindled Beauty,
Early Thorn, Herald, Twin-spotted Quaker, Double-striped Pug, Pale Mottled
Willow and Small Quaker = 10 species, 46 moths.
These moths recorded in
Longwick on 9th April, by Andrew Kershaw:
clouded drab 11; hebrew character 10; common quaker 6; small
quaker; angle shades; early grey 2;
shoulder stripe; red green carpet;
march moth 2; also by day 13/4 pyrausta
purpuralis
An early sighting of Pyrausta
Aurata which flew up out of the marjoram in Wendy Campbell’s garden
in Holmer Green today, 9th April.
11th
April 2004
Latest records from Peter Hall’s Ballinger garden from
8th April:
March Moth; Early Thorn; Oak Beauty; Engrailed; White-marked;
Small Quaker; Common Quaker; Clouded Drab; Twin-spotted Quaker; Hebrew Character;
Chestnut; Diurnia fagella
6th
April 2004
Peter Hall recorded the following 12 moth species in
his garden in Ballinger on 16th March:
March
Moth (Alsophila aescularia); Shoulder Stripe (Anticlea badiata); Oak Beauty (Biston
strataria); Dotted Border (Agriopis marginaria); Engrailed (Ectropis
bistortata); Small Quaker (Orthosia cruda); Common Quaker (Orthosia cerasi);
Clouded Drab (Orthosia incerta); Twin-spotted Quaker (Orthosia munda); Hebrew
Character (Orthosia gothica); Chestnut (Conistra vaccinii); Agonopterix
heracliana
5th
April 2004
Keith Mitchell reports two new moths for the year from his Stoke
Goldington garden:
Brindled Pug on 29th March and Twenty-plume on 31st March.
1st
April 2004
Longwick 31/3 – Andrew Kershaw reports things are
starting to look up:
6 march moth, 5 common quaker, 2 early thorn, 2 oak beauty, double striped pug, shoulder stripe, emmelina
monodactyla 12, diurnea fagella, twin spotted quaker, 6 hebrew character, 12
clouded drab, small quaker, 3 dotted border, herald,
early grey, chestnut, ypsolopha mucronella.
31st
March 2004
At Whitecross Green Wood today in the warm
sunshine my wife and I saw three Orange Underwings. These were positive
sightings as they all settled down on the grass and we were able to get within
a couple of feet of them. Tony Croft.
30th
March 2004
Mick Campbell reported
seeing an Orange Underwing in Penn Woods, Bucks, today.
Another collection of moths recorded in Keith
Mitchell’s Stoke Goldington garden between 18th
– 28th March:
Clouded Drab; Common Quaker; Small Quaker; Dotted Border; Early Grey (at 1deg
C on 24th!); Early Thorn; Grey Shoulder-knot; Hebrew Character; Emmelina
monodactyla.
23rd
March 2004
Tony Croft sent the following sighting in today:
While on a working party at Whitecross Green Wood on Sunday 21st an
orangey coloured moth was seen flying strongly. Becky Woodell thought it could
be an Orange Underwing. No positive identification was possible but I
thought you might be interested.
20th
March 2004
Here are a couple more records from Keith Mitchell’s Stoke
Goldington garden:
Hebrew
Character (1 on
17th); Common Quaker (1 on 17th); Small Quaker (1 on 17th); Twin-spotted
Quaker (1 on 18th).
19th
March 2004
The recent milder weather has seen a few more moths attracted to
the light at Keith Mitchell’s front door (Stoke Goldington):
March Moth - 1 on 11th; Dotted Border - 1 on 16th; Common Quaker - 4 on 16th; Clouded Drab - 2 on 16th
18th
March 2004
Paul Bowyer ran his first moth trap of the year
last night, 17th March, in his garden in Flackwell Heath.
He caught 3 Common Quaker moths.
Keith Mitchell sent the following: A few more records from the front door light at my home in Stoke
Goldington:
Dotted Border - 2 on 22nd Feb; Early
Moth - 1 on 19th Feb; March Moth
- 1 on 15th Feb, 2 on 4th March;
Shoulder-stripe - 1 on 4th March
16th
March 2004
Mick & Wendy Campbell tried a short moth
trap this evening, although the sky was rather clear, and recorded 2 species:
Common Quaker; Twin-Spotted Quaker.
6th
March 2004
Mark Calway
was taking advantage of the mild spell and trapping in Shinfield,
Berkshire last night. He recorded 8 species, 32 moths:
Diurnea flagella; Agonopterix
heracliana; Tortricodes alternella; Alsophila aescularia (March Moth);
Apocheima hispidaria (Small Brindled Beauty); Biston strataria (Oak Beauty);
Agriopis marginaria (Dotted Border); Orthosia cruda (Small Quaker)
I was
particularly pleased with the Small Brindled Beauty. I have been looking out
for it at this Shinfield site ever since I found a tatty dead specimen in a
spider's web in 2001. The distribution is described as local.
15th
February 2004
These records from
Keith Mitchell’s garden in Stoke Goldington (attracted to light):
Pale Brindled Beauty (on 4th and 11th Feb); Early Moth (1 on 11th
Feb); March Moth (1 on 12th-14th Feb);
Dotted Border (1 on 14th Feb).
13th
February 2004
Thanks to Mark Calway for the following summary list of moth species recorded in Berkshire so far this year (1st January 2004 to 12th February 2004). The figures are over 160 individuals of 19 species. The Berkshire Moth Group had its second meeting of the year last night, hence the curious period i.e. ending part way through a month:
Epiphyas postvittana (Light Brown Apple Moth),
Tortricodes alternella, Acleris cristana, Acleris ferrugana/notana, Alsophila
aescularia (March Moth), Operophtera brumata (Winter Moth); Apocheima pilosaria
(Pale Brindled Beauty); Biston strataria (Oak Beauty); Agriopis leucophaearia
(Spring Usher); Agriopis marginaria (Dotted Border); Erannis defoliaria
(Mottled Umber); Ectropis bistortata (Engrailed); Theria primaria (Early Moth);
Orthosia cerasi (Common Quaker); Orthosia gothica (Hebrew Character);
Lithophane ornitopus lactipennis (Grey Shoulder-knot); Eupsilia transversa
(Satellite); Conistra vaccinii (Chestnut); Conistra ligula (Dark Chestnut)
31st January 2004
Keith Mitchell sent in these January records from
his garden in Stoke Goldington, Bucks:
Winter Moth (1 on 4th and 10th),
Pale Brindled Beauty (1 on 11th and 22nd), Early
Moth (2 on 22nd)
28th
January 2004
Andrew Kershaw recorded the following two species
at his home in Longwick, Bucks:
20/1 - White shouldered house moth and 21/1 - Grey shoulder knot
26th
January 2004
The first moth records for the year received today from Peter Hall
in Ballinger:
Mottled Umber - 4/1/04 and Plodia interpunctella -
10/1/04
