A Broader String to my Bow

The forecast of a nice cloudy night had me scrambling for the trap equipment yesterday evening.  It had probably been just a little too cool during the day for a 'big night', but my garden continued its incredible record of ticks from recent trappings.  Amongst 52 moths of 25 species was another new one to me, and another garden tick, as well as the usual list of year ticks.  The brand new one was a single Broad-barred White, a moth apparently of shingle beaches and waste ground in urban areas.  The garden tick was a Poplar Lutestring, but interestingly, I also got another Figure of 80 (I hate it when that happens, as it just devalues the first record!).  I also saw my first ever intermediate Peppered Moth between the normal and carbonaria forms.

31st May:
11 Common Marbled Carpet
5 Shuttle-shaped Dart
4 Peppered Moth
3 Flame Shoulder
3 Heart and Dart
3 Orange Footman
2 Light Brocade
2 Green Carpet
2 Vine's Rustic
2 Brimstone
1 Pale Tussock
1 Yellow-barred Brindle
1 Silver Y
1 Common Carpet
1 Clouded Silver NFY
1 Common White Wave NFY
1 Figure of 80
1 Small Phoenix NFY
1 Treble Lines
1 Common Pug
1 Spectacle NFY
1 Broad-barred White NFM
1 Garden Carpet
1 Poplar Lutestring NFG
1 Broken-barred Carpet NFY

Broad-barred White

Peppered Moth (intermediate)

Clouded Silver

Small Phoenix

Broken-barred Carpet

Poplar Lutestring

Spectacle

I have been seeing lots of these larval cases of Psyche casta about the place, but imagine my surprise when I found this one inside the lounge!:

Psyche casta

 

Year list gradually building

I've had a few more common species over the last night or two - plus my third ever seraphim, which is not supposed to be common but seems to be more so this year.

Seraphim

white ermine

small phoenix

pebble hook-tip

oak hook-tip

pebble prominent

Possible Monopis weaverella

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