Frantic Garden Moths

Chaos, is all I can say about going through the trap today (which took all afternoon).  The hottest day of the year proceeded the night, so I should have expected a difficult time come the rumage.  I didn't have enough pots for everything!  I smashed my previous record in the garden of 42 macro species, with a total of 54.  Then there were the 55 micro species in addition!  No garden ticks among the macros but there were the second records of Broad-barred White and Vapourer, alongside just 10 year ticks.  Micro highlights included Blastodacna hellerella and the scarce Caloptilia cuculipennella.  Its interesting to note all the pine and heath species in the list, perhaps suggesting that the direction of the wind/air flow during the night was from Marley Common (including 13 True Lover's Knot - only had about 5 in total before!)

25th July:
Macros:
15 Riband Wave
13 True Lover's Knot
8 Uncertain
8 Large Yellow Underwing
6 Dunbar
6 Small Fan-footed Wave
5 Small Rivulet NFY
4 Snout
4 Buff Ermine
4 Willow Beauty
4 Rosy Footman
3 Rustic
3 Dot Moth
3 Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing
3 Dark Arches
2 Clouded Border
2 Scarce Footman
2 Minor sp.
2 Peppered Moth
2 Herald NFY
2 September Thorn
2 Brimstone
2 Common White Wave
2 Fan-foot
2 Buff Arches
2 Clay
2 Iron Prominent
1 Poplar Hawk-moth
1 Swallow-tailed Moth
1 Early Thorn
1 Vapourer NFY
1 Silver Y
1 Rosy Minor NFY
1 Common Wave
1 Miller
1 Red Twin-spot Carpet
1 Dagger sp.
1 Tawny-barred Angle
1 Broad-barred White
1 Common Footman
1 Burnished Brass
1 Small Fan-foot NFY
1 Horse Chestnut NFY
1 Pine Hawk-moth NFY
1 Garden Carpet
1 Heart and Dart
1 Smoky Wainscot NFY
1 Green Pug
1 Bright-line Brown-eye
1 July Highflyer
1 Scalloped Oak
1 Double-square-spot
1 Purple Clay NFY
1 Scalloped Hook-tip NFY

Micros:
39 Chrysoteuchia culmella
24 Dipleurina lacustrata
24 Agriphila straminella
13 Phycita roborella
10 Cydia splendana
7 Eudonia mercurella
5 Clepsis consimilana
5 Mother of Pearl
5 Coleophora sp.
4 Bryotropha terrella
4 Dark Fruit-tree Tortrix
3 Carcina quercana
3 Bud Moth
3 Variegated Golden Tortrix
3 Crambus pascuella
3 Catoptria pinella
3 Bryotropha affinis*
2 Cnephasia sp.
2 Cydia fagiglandana
2 Barred Fruit-tree Tortrix
2 Ash Bud Moth
2 Bird-cherry Ermine
2 Acleris forsskaleana
2 Hawthorn Moth
2 Codling Moth
2 Dioryctria abietella
2 Hypsopygia glaucinalis
2 Light Brown Apple Moth
2 Caloptilia elongella
1 Plum Tortrix
1 Crassa unitella
1 Rhyaconia pinicolana
1 Bee Moth
1 Blastodacna hellerella*
1 Caloptilia cuculipennella*
1 Garden Rose Tortrix*
1 Scoparia ambigualis
1 Borkhausenia fuscescens*
1 Zeiraphera isertana
1 Holly Tortrix
1 Diamond-back Moth
1 Bramble Shoot Moth
1 Agriphila inquinitella
1 Argyresthia bonnetella
1 Endotrichia flammealis
1 Red-barred Tortrix
1 Cherry Bark Moth
1 Emmelina monodactyla
1 Argyresthia brockeela
1 Pammene fasciana
1 Celypha striana
1 Brown China-mark
1 Common White Plume
1 Acrobasis rependana
1 Eucosma hohenwartiana
1 Blastobasis adustella
1 Neofriseria singula 

A ridiculous 349 moths in total!

Vapourer

Herald

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Horse Chestnut

Small Rivulet

Scalloped Hook-tip

Blastodacna hellerella

Caloptilia cuculipennella

Garden Rose Tortrix

Rhyaconia pinicolana

Caloptilia elongella

Eucosma hohenwartiana

Neofriseria singula

A full moon, which is more than can be said for the trap

It was a warm day yesterday, so I thought it might be worth putting the trap out. Despite several new for the years, it wasn't really, with the lowest numbers for some time, due to a total lack of cloud, and a full moon.

July 14th:
3 Willow Beauty
3 Scalloped Oak
3 Dunbar
2 Uncertain
2 July Highflyer
2 Double Square-spot
1 Copper Underwing NFY
1 Common White Wave
1 Dot Moth
1 Rustic
1 Yellow Shell NFY
1 Early Thorn NFY
1 Clay NFY
1 Scalloped Hook-tip NFY
1 Buff Arches
1 Nut-tree Tussock
1 Yellow-tail NFY
1 Smoky Wainscot NFY

Yellow-tail

Scalloped Hook-tip

Clay

Copper Underwing

Early Thorn

Cloaked in drizzle, but we Hook quality!

I went to Thursley Common last night for a mothing event with David Gardner. Bill was able to come, although it was a shame he had to leave early. Particularly as we had a great time, with only average conditions. In drizzly, cold weather, we got small numbers, but high quality from this top-notch site. I got three lifers, and a possible fourth. When the very first macro we saw was a Silver Hook, I knew we were going to do well! I managed to net this wet heathland specialist before dusk. During the night itself, we were also graced by the presence of a Cloaked Carpet, and a female Grass Wave amongst others. You can't beat mothing with a serenade of Nightjar churring (I got some great views too, as a male endeavoured to catch the moths before me)!

Thursley Common, 24th June (in order of appearance):

Silver Hook*

Treble Brown-spot

Double-striped Pug

Snout

Lilac Beauty

Grey Pine Carpet

Pine Hawk

True Lover's Knot

Marbled White Spot

Cloaked Carpet*

Heart and Club

Tawny-barred Angle

Mottled Beauty

Green Carpet

Middle-barred Minor

Brown Rustic

Smoky Wainscot

Beautiful Hook-tip

Lobster

Scalloped Hook-tip

Striped Wainscot

Barred Red

Riband Wave

Marbled Brown

Grass Wave*

Dunbar

Yellow Shell

Willow Beauty

Small Fan-footed Wave

Double Square-spot

Large Yellow Underwing

Small Seraphim

Possible Square Spot (it was much smaller than nearby Mottled Beauty)

(Forgotten the name of this micro!)

Beautiful Hook-tip

Striped Wainscot

Lilac Beauty and Barred Red

Scalloped Hook-tip

Grass Wave

Cloaked Carpet

Silver Hook

I've Hooked myself a Scalloped

Conditions were right on the edge last night, which means I wondered whether it was really worth running the trap, with many clear spells. Numbers therefore were not as good as recently, but better than expected. But I think it was worth it, as I got an unexpected garden tick.

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Amongst 59 moths of 31 species was a surprise Scalloped Hook-tip, although no other highlights to speak of.

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26th July:

10 Riband Wave

6 Common Rustic sp.

3 Dunbar

3 Dark Arches

2 Mottled Rustic

2 Pebble Hook-tip

2 Svennson's Copper Underwing

2 July Highflyer

2 Red Twin-spot Carpet

2 Large Yellow Underwing

2 Mottled Beauty

2 Rustic

2 Uncertain

2 Double Square-spot

1 Willow Beauty

1 Shuttle-shaped Dart

1 Flame

1 Small Phoenix

1 Beautiful Hook-tip

1 Copper Underwing

1 Common Footman

1 Common Wave

1 Scalloped Oak

1 Slender Brindle

1 Single-dotted Wave

1 Ear Moth

1 Rosy Footman

1 Silver Y

1 Scalloped Hook-tip NFG

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Endotricha flammealis (Correct me if I'm wrong)

Small Phoenix

Red Twin-spot Carpet

Scalloped Hook-tip

Luckily, rain the Least of our worries at Albury

I turned up at Albury Heath yesterday evening expecting to either get turned away, or get rained on and have the session abandonded. But, despite fairly cold conditions, we went ahead, and somehow, we got no rain. Even though I had to leave early, I still saw three or four new species. In all, 42 macros were seen up to 0:00.

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The first lifer was unexpected Least Carpet, not in a traditional location. Then a geometrid turned up, which happened to be a Birch Mocha, surprisingly my first one of those, despite having seen the rarer Mocha before. Finally, right at the end of my visit, a long-overdue tick of Scalloped Hook-tip arrived. Reviewing my photos this morning, I just wonder whether the second Birch Mocha which appeared, is actually a False Mocha (it looks more yellow). I'm currently in correspondence with David Gardner who was there, and he will get back to me with his thoughts (its a shame the photo is poor!).

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16th July. Albury Heath:

Marbled White Spot

Lobster Moth

Least Carpet*

Birch Mocha*

Common Footman

Scarce Footman

Buff Footman

Rosy Footman

True Lover's Knot

Brimstone

Buff Arches

Pebble Hook-tip

Yellow-tail

Dunbar

Riband Wave

Mottled Beauty

Common Emerald

Knot Grass

V-Pug

Large Twin-spot Carpet

Double Square-spot

Ruby Tiger

Buff Ermine

Small Fan-footed Wave

Large Yellow Underwing

Flame

Beautiful Hook-tip

Common Rustic sp.

July Highflyer

Flame Shoulder

Scalloped Oak

Spruce Carpet

Heart and Dart

Tawny-barred Angle

Peppered Moth

Orange Footman

Green Pug

Scalloped Hook-tip*

Small Rivulet

Engrailed

Uncertain

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Scalloped Hook-tip

Large Twin-spot Carpet

True Lover's Knot

Small Rivulet

Least Carpet

False Mocha?

Birch Mocha