A Fine Figure of Beauty

Still an absence of cloud in the sky at the moment (looks like that will be rectified in the next few days), but the warm temps continue to bring my fantastic new trap into its own.  Last night, I got the most species in the trap this year (30), which included another new moth to me, and yet another garden tick in addition.  Poplar feeders are quite a scarcity in my garden, so it was nice to get my first ever Figure of 80, alongside my first Pine Beauty for the garden, just a few days after seeing my first adult at Hagthorne. 

28th May:
6 Shuttle-shaped Dart
5 Common Marbled Carpet
5 Brimstone
3 Buff-tip
2 Scalloped Hazel
2 Orange Footman
2 Poplar Grey
2 Common Carpet NFY
1 Lobster Moth NFY
1 Treble Lines NFY
1 Pine Beauty NFG
1 Peppered Moth
1 Pale Prominent NFY
1 Grey Pine Carpet
1 Silver-ground Carpet
1 White Point NFY
1 Red Twin-spot Carpet
1 Pebble Hook-tip
1 Marbled White-spot NFY
1 Flame Shoulder
1 Small Seraphim
1 Vine's Rustic NFY
1 Common Pug
1 Figure of 80 NFM
1 Pebble Prominent
1 Red-green Carpet
1 White-pinion Spotted
1 Green Carpet
1 Angle Shades
1 Silver Y

Common Carpet

 Pebble Hook-tip

Figure of 80 (the mark which gives the moth its name is upside down)

Silver Y

Vine's Rustic

White Point

Pale Prominent

Treble Lines

Lobster Moth

Pine Beauty

Marbled White-spot

I'm sure some of you guys are trapping (Billy, Angela, and Ken!), lets hear how you're doing!

I'm Back!

Apologise for the lack of posting, I came back from holiday about a week ago but have been catching up on things since, and as a result have only managed two trapping sessions this August, on the 15th and 16th.

Year ticks have been relatively slow and steady, with 6 all together over the two day period, bring my garden year list up to 170.

Highlights over the two trapping sessions have included...

Cypress Pug- Year tick, and the 2nd garden record...

Tree-lichen Beauty- My 4th garden record this year was caught on the 16th. This immigrant has, up until recently, been an extremely rare occurance in Britain, but this year seems a particularly good year for the species...

Vine's Rustic- 1st record for the garden caught on the 15th...

Gold Spot- Another 1st for the garden, caught on the 15th, and one of the more stunning moths to pass through the garden...

Cheers,

Bill D

Mega numbers make up for Minor pain

In seemingly unpromising conditions, and circumstances, I got my best catch this year in terms of number of individuals (94), but oddly, a rather low species count of 26 (this was not down to Large Yellow Underwing as it would usually be - I got only one!).
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Amongst these were one new for the garden, and two other year ticks. The new garden species was an unsurprising one really, two Cloaked Minor. I also got another Scallop Shell, which I was happy to get a decent shot of this time. Some pretty micros present too. The difficult circumstances mentioned before were that 6-7 wasps were present in/around the trap, and whilst checking the light first thing this morning, one suddenly lunged at me and stung me on the chest (they ate one of my Buff Ermines too)! It was worth it in the end though.
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28th July:
19 Dunbar
12 Riband Wave
10 Common Rustic sp.
7 Flame
7 Dark Arches
6 Shuttle-shaped Dart
4 Double Square-spot
4 Rustic
3 Uncertain
2 Lesser Swallow Prominent NFY
2 Svensson's Copper Underwing
2 July Highflyer
2 Cloaked Minor NFG
2 Copper Underwing
2 Buff Ermine
1 Oak Hook-tip
1 Scallop Shell
1 Yellow-barred Brindle
1 Scalloped Oak
1 Poplar Hawk-moth
1 Rosy Minor
1 Large Yellow Underwing
1 Vine's Rustic NFY
1 Small Fan-footed Wave
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Cochylis atricapitana

Oegoconia quadripuncta/deauratella

Pyrausta aurata

Common Rustic sp. (this was very bold in the flesh, more like a Dot Moth)

Vine's Rustic (not 100% certain)

Lesser Swallow Prominents

Scallop Shell

Cloaked Minor