Only two moths came to the light yesterday; probably one of last times my moth trap will be out this year. A lone Satellite (Eupsilia transversa) in the trap and a Sprawler (Asteroscopus sphinx) - a new species for me - on the wall nearby. The Sprawler is a late-flying moth, on the wing from October to December, but peaking around now. It’s a woodland species whose caterpillars rears up its spiny head when threatened, giving the moth its name.
Well, it turns out that my neighbour’s not very attractive (IMO) non-native Thuja hedge is good for these two non-native Mediterranean moths! Blair's Shoulder-knot (Lithophane leautieri, #763) was first observed in UK in 1951 and is now established over most of lowland UK. It flies in one generation Sept-Nov; this being the first one I’ve recorded. Cypress Carpet (Thera cupressata) arrived in 1984 and so far its main range in UK only extends as far North as Birmingham. If has two generations, one in May-June and another in August-September.
A couple of caddisflies in the moth trap at the weekend. On the left Limnephilus lunatus is the most frequently caught large caddisfly, named after the crescent moon-shaped pale mark at the tip of its wing. Smaller and less marked, Limnephilus auricula (#968) is a new species for the list. It frequents water edges that dry out in summer, the adults laying eggs in the autumn and the larvae overwintering.
A bit drab, but Ashy Button (Acleris sparsana) was another new species for the garden trapped this weekend. Not a big surprise to record this as it likes Beech trees, of which there is a large one nearby in next-door’s garden. Another micro in the trap, actually a few times lately, was Garden Rose Tortrix (Acleris variegana) - another species which didn’t need to travel far from its plant host.
There are less moths, but this weekend some new species and a bit more variety. White-point was a new one for the garden. Flying in the Autumn, it’s an immigrant from the continent caught mainly in the South-East of England, that may have started establishing a resident population - not a bad catch for Gloucestershire. Superficially similar the Satellite has a different shaped while spot on its wings. This moth can be caught throughout the Autumn & Winter, from September until April. Deep-brown Dart and Black Rustic are both autumn species, typical for this period.
This caddisfly, Stenophylax permistus, was also in the moth trap. Brown speckled with pale patches on the wings, this species has two generations in spring and autumn. Its habitats are seasonal ditches and watercourses, and it is a species that comes to light quite often.
Cypress Pug is a new species for my garden; seemingly not that common in Gloucestershire. It is a non-native moth, first found in UK in Cornwall in 1959, which has since spread across southern England and up to the Midlands. It lives on (also non-native) Cypress trees.
Other nice moths today included this Canary-shouldered Thorn - very fluffy, several Centre-barred Sallows and another Old Lady moth.
I caught a couple of these in the moth trap at the weekend. Old Lady moths don’t often come to light, but were probably attracted by rotting figs and grapes courtesy of my neighbours’ fruit trees, and found the moth trap a comfortable place to hide up for the day. These are quite big moths, around 6 cm wingspan, that fly for one generation in July-August.
#960 Old Lady (Mormo maura)
I posted some of the “macro” moths earlier - here are some of the smaller moths, including a few new species.
Caught a really great selection of beautiful moths during the week, when we got our first dry and wind-free night for a while. There are a lots of different species flying at the moment, so here’s a selection of the 40 different species caught.(Second post with some micros to follow).
It seems unfair to have christened this the “Plain” Golden Y, just because it has a prettier close relative in the Beautiful Golden Y. A first for my moth trap, with its pinkish colouration and golden spots I think it’s quite a fine-looking moth, even if this one is a bit worn. Flying in June-August, its caterpillars eat nettles.
#953 Plain Golden Y (Autographa jota)
I managed to unpack the moth trap before the rain started this morning and picked up a couple of new moths. The V-Pug is a fairly common species, with two generations in spring and then summer. It gets its name from the black “v”s on the wings. Dusky Pearl is a one-generation June/July micro with a preference for blackthorns
Less moths this weekend, probably as there was a bit of a breeze, but there were a couple of smart new June/July flying species, as well as the Privet Hawk-moth posted previously.
The first of these, is a Varied Coronet (Hadena compta, #947). This is a relatively new species to the UK, unknown here until the 1940’s since when it has expanded its range across Southern England, but it is still not very common in Gloucestershire. Its caterpillars eat the seeds of Sweet William and Bladder Campion flowers.
The second new species is the Short-cloaked Moth (Nola cucullatella,948), which is a more frequently trapped species. Its larval food-plants include blackthorn, hawthorn and apple.
Chinese Character (Cilix glaucata) and Marbled Orchard Tortrix (Hedya nubiferana) are both species which hide in plain sight during the day looking a bit like a bird dropping, to hopefully avoid being eaten.
This weekend’s spectacular hawkmoth is this very fine Privet Hawkmoth. The UK’s largest resident hawkmoth, it flies in June/July. It’s caterpillars feed on Privet, Lilac, Holly or Ash.
#872 Privet Hawkmoth (Sphinx ligustri)
Especially in the summer moths, there are often a lot of small insects in the light trap along with the moths. Sadly these are mostly quite short-lived insects and are often dead or dying when you check the trap in the morning.
Water Veneer moths live only a couple of days. In June/July the winged males gather in large swarms to mate and are drawn to light. Females come in winged and flightless forms. These moths are aquatic, the males and flightless females mate at thew water’s surface, while the larvae live in slow-moving water where they feed on pond weed. the moths do fly quite far from water, so despite being quite far from any large pond or river I still caught 35 individuals at the weekend. The waterboatmen and long-horned caddisflies are also aquatic species that venture quite far from water and are attracted to light. The two caddisflies are both long-horned, which has a morph with patterned wings and a rarer one with plain ones.
The leaf-hoppers, close relatives of grasshoppers, are from closer afield in the nearby trees. There are a lot of similar looking leaf-hopper species and I was unable to find a good match in order to identify them. As well as these there were a few aphids and midges found their way into the trap.
Four new moths in and around the trap on Sunday morning out of a total of 40 species, showing that there’s still plenty of new ones to catch - especially at this time of the year. All of these fly in a single generation in the summer.
Maiden’s Blush is a species favouring Oak woodlands, while Small Emerald is quite restricted in range on the chalk/limestone areas of southern England where its larval food-plant is Traveller’s Joy (Clematis vitalba). Blue-bordered Carpet and Common Groundling are fairly common and widespread in England, food-plants are Hawthorn & Blackthorn.
A lot of moths today, 95 individuals of 35 species, including lots of waves, pugs, grass moths and other micros to sort out (which took me a while). Amongst it all, three new species taking my garden count to 936.
Dark Arches is one of the commonest moths in the moth trap during the summer, but its light-coloured relative is less common and its believed less attracted to light. As such, this Light Arches moth, with its very fine mohawk, was a new garden species (#930). Both are grassland species, their caterpillars living on grass stems and roots.
Blood-vein (Timandra comae, #929) was a new species for the list; a pretty moth with a red line and pink border to the wing, its larval food-plants are docks & sorrel. Buff-tip (Phalera bucephala) is a regular summertime looking like a snapped-off birch twig. Narrow-winged Grey (Eudonia angustea) is normally an autumn flier, but a few, like this one, emerge earlier. Small Magpie moth (Anania hortulata) is a common moth in June/July too, especially around nettles.
Not much flying last night too, as the nights remain cold. This Pale Tussock was the most interesting catch; a very fine moth with very freaky looking caterpillars later in the year.
#740 Pale Tussock (Calliteara pudibunda)
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 is 1000 species - let's see where it goes.
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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