More than I bargained for!

Like others, I've been taking advantage of the very unseasonal weather to pop the moth trap out in the garden. To be honest, I didn't expect to be as successful as I have been, with a total of 15 species recorded (and god knows how many individuals!) over the past 3 days, bringing the 2012 garden moth list to 20... a figure that wasn't reached until 22nd March last year. Perhaps a sign of things to come?
Here's the list so far:

Dark Chestnut
Chestnut
March Moth
Common Quaker
Small Quaker
Clouded Drab
Small Brindled Beauty
Pale Brindled Beauty
Winter Moth
Spring Usher
Tachystola acroxantha
Epiphyas postvittana
Carpatolechia decorella
Ypsolopha ustella
Tortricodes alternella
Amblyptilia acanthadactyla
Emmelina monodactyla
Agonopterix heracliana
Mompha subbistrigella
Acleris cristana

Small Quaker, 1 of 3...

Small Quaker w/ big brother, the Common Quaker...

Spring Usher...

March Moth...

Small Brindled Beauty, the most numerous moth in the trap at present...

Pale Brindled Beauty, a belated garden first...

A gang of 'Beauties'...

Clouded Drab...

Dark Chestnut, a first for the garden...

Carpatolechia decorella...

Mompha subbistrigella...

Ysolopha ustella...

Emmelina monodactyla...

Not exactly a moth, but the thin crescent of the moon was looking nice on Friday night...

Happy mothing!

Nice to get some moths!

I trapped a couple of nights ago, and got nothing. Last night was not as warm, but I decided to trap anyway. Amazingly, I got 10 moths (+ a few micros)! Presumably, this is because it took a few nights of warmer temps to persuade moths to hatch out, or leave thier hibernation places. Nothing new for the garden, but some nice species.

.

24th Feb:

3 Chestnut

2 Spring Usher

2 Common Quaker

1 Dotted Border

1 Satellite

1 March Moth

.

Sorry about the ugly black rectangles, but I am using my new laptop, and I haven't got quite used to the photo editing software yet!

.

Spring Usher

Satellite

March Moth

Dotted Border

Common Quaker

And a few more....

.
Having only started mothing last August, I still have the joy and expectation of finding a moth in my trap that I've not come across before, and this morning did not disappoint.

Amongst the Pale Brindled Beauty, Small Brindled Beauty, Spring Usher and Chestnuts I found a beautiful Dotted Chestnut.  A new find does give such a thrill!

Spring Ushered?

If only, but it was a great start to my garden trapping year in the garden. This will be the first year I attempt to use the MV trap regularly in the garden, that's until the neighbours complain!

.

Never having trapped in the winter before, I was hoping of at least a garden tick of Winter Moth. None of those amazingly, but I did get that garden tick in the form of a Spring Usher, but despite getting an early Common Quaker as well, I wouldn't regard it as a sign of spring just yet!

.

9th January:

2 Chestnut

1 Common Quaker

1 Spring Usher NFG

1 Pale Brindled Beauty

.

Spring Usher

.

Pale Brindled Beauty

New Year, New Moths

Common Quaker...

Spring Usher...

Ypsolopha ustella...

So far here in NE Surrey, I've managed 3 species in the garden this year. All have been caught in the recent 'mild' spell that we have been experiencing in the last week, which has probably enticed this Common Quaker to take to the wing earlier than usual. Ypsolopha ustella and Spring Usher are both new species for the garden, and it will be interesting to see what else I can catch, as this will be the first time I've trapped in winter/early spring before.

I'm planning on building a funnel-type moth trap to replace my Skinner trap this coming weekend, which with any luck will perform better, and retain more moths. The more moths the better!