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 Quad of Trebles

Another good night in the garden produced a new one for there, as well as several year ticks. Some more clear yet warm conditions produced 50 moths of 29 species, the best variety for 3 weeks.
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Just the night before I saw my first ever Small Yellow Wave at Brockham, and last night I got the first for the garden! I have only had one Treble Brown Spot in the garden before, so four in the trap this morning was quite a surprise.

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27th June:

10 Heart and Dart

4 Treble Brown Spot NFY

3 Dark Arches

3 Willow Beauty

3 Riband Wave

2 Flame

2 Double Square-spot

2 Heart and Club

1 Small Seraphim

1 Small Yellow Wave NFG

1 Green Pug

1 Buff-tip

1 Fan-foot

1 Common Marbled Carpet

1 Clay NFY

1 Buff Arches NFY

1 Minor sp.

1 Straw Dot

1 Pale Mottled Willow NFY

1 Mottled Beauty

1 Dunbar NFY

1 Dusky Brocade

1 Common Lutestring NFY

1 Spectacle

1 Flame Shoulder

1 Buff Ermine

1 Beautiful Hook-tip

1 Brimstone

1 Brown Silver-line

Clay

Pale Mottled Willow

Common Lutestring

Straw Dot

Small Yellow Wave

Treble Brown Spot

Buff Arches

Brockham leaves me speachless

What an incredible night, I don't have any superlatives left. I went trapping at Brockham Quarry near Dorking last night with David Gardner, hoping to get some chalk specialists.

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I must admit I expected there to be a few moths, including lifers, at this honey-pot site on a warm night, but I was not prepared for the onslaught we experienced. To seasoned moth'ers, this was probably only an above-average night at best, but for me it was incredible, with 65 macros recorded by the end of the night.

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In the end, I managed to see seven new species, including some specialists such as Reddish Light Arches and Galium Carpet. Nice to get a visit from only my second Privet Hawk-moth too. Plenty of pretty micros were seen as well, such as Oncocera semirubella.

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By morning we got (* = lifer):

3 Brown Rustic

2 Common Carpet

6 Brimstone

5 Riband Wave

8 Mottled Beauty

10 Willow Beauty

3 Barred Yellow

3 Beautiful Hook-tip

2 Common Emerald

9 Light Emerald

4 Peach Blossom

1 Small Yellow Wave*

7 Coronet

2 Flame Shoulder

5 Common Marbled Carpet

5 Fern*

2 Marbled White Spot

4 Pretty Chalk Carpet

1 Mullein Wave

2 Large Yellow Underwing

1 Small Phoenix

1 Privet Hawk-moth

1 Clay

2 Buff Arches

3 Double Square-spot

2 Currant Pug (as well as a large amount of unidentified pugs!)

1 Setaceous Hebrew Character

1 Common Wainscot

2 Clouded Brindle*

1 Reddish Light Arches*

3 Treble Brown Spot

2 White Ermine

1 Lobster

2 Dark Arches

5 Heart and Dart

1 Swallow-tailed Moth

1 Middle-barred Minor

1 Light Feathered Rustic*

2 Green Carpet

4 Grey Arches

1 Lilac Beauty

1 Purple Clay

1 Uncertain

2 July Highflyer

1 Shears

1 Silver-ground Carpet

1 Barred Straw

1 Orange Footman

1 Treble Lines

1 Galium Carpet*

3 Peppered Moth

2 White-pinion Spotted

1 Short-cloaked Moth*

2 Mottled Rustic

3 Purple Bar

5 Common White Wave

2 Clouded Border

1 Clouded Silver

2 Scarce Footman

4 Common Wave

1 Heart and Club

1 Marbled Minor

1 Small Blood Vein

3 May Highflyer

1 Green Pug

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Small Yellow Wave

Short-cloaked Moth

Oncecera semirubella

Reddish Light Arches

Privet Hawk-moth

Peach Blossom
Mullein Wave
Lobster Moth
Light Feathered Rustic
July Highflyer
Galium Carpet
Fern
Common Emerald
Clouded Brindle