These moth eggs appeared on the wall of the house overnight. I’ve no idea what kind of moth laid them, but it does not seem a great place for their caterpillars to hatch, as it’s quite a long crawl to the nearest greenery of any kind.
Update: A couple of weeks later the eggs have hatched and there are a cluster of tiny and very hairy caterpillars.
Very happy to catch one of these beauties in the moth trap last night. They fly from May-July, with willowherb and bedstraws being their larval plants. The Elephant Hawk Moth is not really that rare in southern England, but except for its caterpillars which look like an elephant’s trunk, it’s not something you will easily see without access to a moth trap.
#767 Elephant Hawk-moth (Deilephila elpenor)
The Buff Tip moth is one of my favourites, looking just like a snapped off birch twig, though it also frequents other species of deciduous tree. The Treble Lines moth is also one that I caught in June last year. It flies from May to July, its caterpillars eating plantain.
The two new species are the Marbled Minor, actually one of a trio of closely related species that feed on grasses, and the Rush Veneer, that also feeds on clover and grasses. The latter species is an immigrant from the continent that occurs in UK in large numbers sometimes, but usually later in the summer - this is quite an early record.
Four new moths the other night brought my species tally up to 750. I’ve now seen 158 moths, 103 of which were added since I bought my moth trap around a year ago. We’re still waiting for some warmer evenings, but it does look like the weather is finally changing for the better.
It wasn’t warm, but at least there was no rain and it wasn’t blowing a gale, so I was able to put out the moth trap for the first time in a few weeks. This year it seems you have to take your chances when they arrive. It was not a great haul of moths, but a couple of new species. Muslin moth (Diaphora mendica) is a May flier, there were four of these grey/brown males in the trap, but none of the white coloured females. The Puss Moth (Cerura vinula) also flies in one generation from May-July - I have found it’s impressive-looking caterpillars around the village, but not in the garden. Other trapped species were the Spectacle (Abrostola tripartita) caught in the moth trap, and a Cinnabar Moth (Tyria jacobaeae), caught in a nearby spider’s web.
Despite the cold night-time temperatures there were a few moths about last night, not many in numbers but a few species including a few new ones. Pale Tussock was the most striking, also this is a quite early record for a species normally out in May-June. The Knot Grass moth is also more common later in the season, while the others are more typically spring species.
As it was such a warm, still evening and I’d seen several butterflies during the daytime I had to put out the moth trap. As well as several Early Grey, Common Quaker and other moths I caught earlier in the month, I captured these two new species. The Early Thorn has two generations, the first in Feb-May and a second in July-Sept; it is found on blackthorn and hawthorn bushes. The Double-striped Pug also has two generations in Mar-May and Jul-Aug and is a common species with a variety of food-plants,
Having caught precisely nothing up until now in the moth trap, I was delighted with my haul this morning - I obviously chose the right night for it. Seven different species came to the light; all of them new for my garden list as they are all species that have one generation during the year, flying early in the year.
As it was a calm and dry night I was able to put out the moth trap for the first time in a while, and was happy to attract several moths, mostly around rather than in the trap. A couple of December Moths (Poecilocampa populi) and a Mottled Umber (Erannis defoliaria) were new ones for the garden, plus also there were a handful of Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata) and Light Brown Apple Moths (Epiphyas postvittana). In both the Winter Moth and the Mottled Umber the females are flightless, using pheromones to attract the winged males.
Okay, it’s not quite November, but moth trapping this week, after a small gap, we had some new autumnal species.
First of the new species is the November Moth itself (Epirrita dilutata agg.), actually one of 3 very similar & closely-related species flying at this time of year, the others being the Pale November and Autumnal Moths, which in most cases require dissection to definitively identify. These moths fly now, laying eggs in the leaf buds of various deciduous trees, which duly hatch the next summer. The Beaded Chestnut (Agrochola lychnidis) also flies a single generation at this time of the year. The larvae live in rough grass, with the adults attracted to Ivy blossom. The second generation of the Grey Pine Carpet (Thera obeliscata) is another September-October moth.
The other moths caught included Turnip Moth (Agrotis segetum), a Silver Y Moth (Autographa gamma) and a couple of Light Brown Apple Moths (Epiphyas postvittana). The latter species is an accidental introduction all the way from Australia, which since arriving in Cornwall in 1930’s has expanded its range to become a common species in much of UK.
Getting a moth trap has been a game-changer in terms of adding new species to my list this summer - also a lot of fun. I brought up my 700th species in some style with a bevy of beautiful moths this morning after a perfect warm & still September night.
There are some more moths from earlier in the week, pushing my garden list closer to 700 species. The Swallow-tailed Moth (Ourapteryx sambucaria) was a particularly beautiful one; also quite a late record for this species, which is commoner in July.
The Gold Triangle moth (Hypsopygia costalis) has two postures, this one with its wings splayed out and tail in the air and a more normal moth-like v-shape. It’s larvae live in dried vegetation, like hay stacks or my neighbour’s thatched roof. The other two moths are also typical for the season; the Pale Mottled Willow’s (Paradrina clavipalpis) larvae live in cereal grain, while those of the Rosy Rustic’s (Hydraecia micacea) live underground mostly in the roots of plants of the dock family.
This super-impressive Clifden Nonpareil or Blue Underwing moth was attracted to my moth trap last night. These moths were extinct in UK and only reported as migrants, but the last few years have been turning up more often and it appears may well have re-established themselves. The warmer climate may have contributed to their return. They typically fly in September, their larvae preferring aspen and poplar trees. With a wing-span of 75-95 mm it’s a pretty big moth, the blue underwing (just visible on this photo) is believed to play a role in surprising predators so it can get away. Once the “Holy Grail” for moth enthusiasts, they may be getting commoner, but this is still a rather special creature to find in my own garden!
#689 Clifden Nonpareil - Catocala fraxini
My sharp-eyed youngest son spotted this colourful caterpillar in the corkscrew willow tree. It is the caterpillar of the Grey Dagger moth (Acronicta psi, #611). I’ve caught adults in the moth trap, which are virtually indistinguishable from the rarer Dark Dagger moth, but the caterpillars of the two species are quite different. Grey Dagger caterpillars are found on a variety of deciduous trees, such as Oak, Birch, Hawthorn, Elm and seemingly Willow too.
#611 Grey Dagger (Acronicta psi) caterpillar
After a bit of a break during the holidays, it was good to get my moth trap back out and see what was about. Among the Large Yellow Underwings there were a few new species. This Black Rustic and a couple of prettily veined Lunar Underwings were my favourites. I nearly missed the Small Dusty Wave altogether as it is more or less perfectly camouflaged against egg box grey.
It’s taken me a few days to identify all the moths I caught on Friday night, with 15 new species added to the list. There were many moths in the trap and even more all around on the house wall and surrounding plants. Some of the highlights below. Without the moth trap you only see a fraction of what is out there.
For a change last night I was trapping in my Dad’s garden in Winchcombe. He’s always reminiscing about how many more insects there were back in the old days, and he’s for sure correct. Even so it was great to catch a pretty decent selection of moths, several that i didn’t yet catch at my place. I took some photos of a few of the more colourful ones and ones I didn’t recognise, including a Marbled Green (Nyctobrya muralis) which seems pretty unusual this far from the coast. A rather impressive Sexton Beetle had dropped into the trap; this is a carrion beetle that searches out dead small animals and raises its larvae in a burrow under the corpse.
Among a whole bunch of moths, which are going to take me a while to sort out, this amazing Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi). The main flying season is May-July, so this one is a little late, or maybe it’s from a second generation. This hawk-moth is one of the commonest in UK, but very spectacular.
Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi, #663)
Monday night was my best night’s trapping for quite some time, including five new species. The Brimstone Moth was not new, but the light drew in several of these and I didn’t get a photo the previous time I recorded them. Scalloped Oak, Single-dotted Wave, Shuttle-shaped Dart, Straw Underwing and Turnip Moth were all new, reflecting a shift in the season and new generations of these moths appearing. I caught several Shuttle-shape Darts, Straw Underwings and also Riband Waves, plus individuals of several other species.
Here’s a nice pair of “beautiful” micro moths. On the left a Marbled Beauty (Bryophila domestica, #652), caught last week in the moth trap. This species is camouflaged to hide up on a lichen covered wall;its caterpillars are lichenivores, feeding on lichens, usually on rocks. On the right a Beautiful Plume Moth (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla, #222) that appeared from some garden waste I was clearing out.
Passionate about nature, based in Gloucestershire UK; this site is about creating a wildlife friendly family garden and exploring the diversity of animal & plant species that share it with us.
As a nature lover and wildlife gardener I started wondering about the biodiversity in my backyard and just how many species from plants to insects to birds to mammals might live in or visit it.
Much of the wildlife in my small, village garden has been present right under my nose for years without my really appreciating it, so on the way I am learning a lot about different species and how to make a wildlife-friendly environment for them; also getting engaged more in conservation activities around Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and the Cotswolds.
My garden species tally started from zero on June 1st 2018, the target was 1000 species, which I eventually hit in June 2024. But there’s still plenty to see and learn about.
I'm very interested in your comments & advice: whether it's about the blog, some help with identification or just how to make my own little Eden better for wildlife. So please leave a comment or drop me a line if you feel like it!
Graham Tompsett
microedenproject@gmail.com
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