Chocolate surprise

Last night I went on the first field trapping session of the year, which was at Hagthorne on the edge of the Ash Ranges. The temperature was ideal (so the mossies were out in force!), so we knew we were in for a busy night, and at close of play at around 1, we had had 49 macro species in four traps - not bad considering we are still in May. No lifers amongst these, but I did see the adults of Fox Moth and Pine Beauty for the first time, having only seen thier caterpillars before. We also got some notable scarcities, including a Small Chocolate-tip. Bizzarely, I have now seen two of these, but not yet encountered normal Chocolate-tip (except in a pot on a table at Dungeness visitor centre, which doesn't really count)!

24th May - Hagthorne, Ash Ranges:

21 Green Carpet

5 Sharp-angled Carpet

6 Brown Silver-line

2 Common White Wave

2 Poplar Lutestring

2 Oak Hook-tip

2 Sharp-angled Peacock

2 Mottled Pug

4 Brimstone

1 Narrow-winged Pug

9 Small Seraphim

3 Flame Shoulder

5 Fox Moth

2 Iron Prominent

2 Grey Pine Carpet

1 Ruby Tiger

3 Grey Birch (my 2nd, having seen my first just a few hours earlier, in my garden trap)

5 Pale Tussock

1 Small Chocolate-tip

1 Silver-ground Carpet

1 Least Black Arches

1 Common Swift

1 Spectacle sp. (see photos)

3 Pebble Hook-tip

1 Pine Hawk-moth

2 May Highflyer

3 Scalloped Hook-tip

2 Small Yellow Wave

1 Peacock

1 Tawny-barred Angle

1 Treble Lines

1 Pale Prominent

1 Lesser Swallow Prominent

1 Red-green Carpet

1 Common Carpet

1 Silver Y

2 Dingy Shell

1 Poplar Grey

1 Pine Beauty

1 Marbled Brown

1 White Ermine

2 Horse Chestnut

2 Peppered Moth

1 Common Lutestring

2 Great Prominent

3 Cinnabar

1 Pebble Prominent

1 Orange Footman

1 True Lover's Knot

Poplar Lutestring

Fox Moth

Small Chocolate-tip

Grey Birch

Pale Tussock

Least Black Arches

We debated whether this was a Dark Spectacle for ages, but we are still undecided.  Any opinions? (sorry for the unhelpful shot - the ground colour was sandy brown)

Sharp-angled Peacock

Small Yellow Wave

Dingy Shell

Pine Beauty

A Beautiful Range of moths

An impromptu trapping session on the edge of the Pirbright Ranges near West End last night gave me an early oppurtunity to run my new trap. In what was probably the best night of the year in terms of conditions, we ran four traps, and managed a string of quality moths, and great numbers too. The only thing missing was a lifer! Several species were my second ever sightings, but the best was probably several Ling Pugs. This is not a true lifer, as it is considered just a form of Wormwood Pug. We also got several Beautiful Yellow Underwings, which is my first proper sighting (I got a glimpse of one in a trap last year at Dawney's Hill, but it presumably escaped).

26th July, Pirbright Ranges:

Yellow Shell

Dunbar

Small Fan-footed Wave

Pine Hawk

Beautiful Yellow Underwing

Ling Pug

Flame Shoulder

Scarce Footman

True Lover's Knot

Single-dotted Wave

Narrow-winged Pug

Ruby Tiger

Least Yellow Underwing

Slender Brindle

Clouded Border

Rustic

Common Emerald

Common White Wave

Drinker

Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Common Carpet

Willow Beauty

Striped Wainscot

Sharp-angled Carpet

Scalloped Hook-tip

Uncertain

Plain Wave

Snout

Antler Moth

Black Arches

Smoky Wainscot

Riband Wave

Kent Black Arches

Light Emerald

Common Footman

Buff Footman

Cloaked Minor

Small Scallop

Large Yellow Underwing

Rosy Footman

Dark Arches

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Shuttle-shaped Dart

Common Rustic

July Highflyer

Peppered Moth

Mottled Beauty

Least Carpet

Lesser Cream Wave

Clay

Dotted Border Wave

Large Emerald

September Thorn

Maiden's Blush

Engrailed

Small Purple-barred

Iron Prominent

Double Kidney

Sharp-angled Peacock

Total: 59

My trap in action

Small Scallop

Small Purple-barred

Sharp-angled Peacock

Sharp-angled Carpet

Ling Pug

Least Carpet

Horse Chestnut (with Clouded Border)

Double Kidney

Beautiful Yellow Underwing (certainly lives up to its name!)

Antler Moth

Cold Wisley still produces Sharp sightings

On the 7th August, I went to Wisley Common, but the weather was as cold as it could possibly be, and we only got 18 macro species. Luckily, the site was good enough to still produce a couple of lifers. One of the first moths was a Dotted Clay, and one of the last was a Sharp-angled Peacock, and we also got a Common Peacock for comparison.

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Wisley Common, 7th August:

Double-striped Pug

Turnip

Dingy Footman

Single-dotted Wave

Dotted Clay*

True Lovers Knot

Ruby Tiger

Brimstone

Scarce Footman

Riband Wave

Common Rustic

Black Arches

Pale Prominent

Peacock

Ear Moth

Copper Underwing

Sharp-angled Peacock

Common Wave

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Peacock

Sharp-angled Peacock

Dotted Clay