21st Aug 2014 .. Some variety at last, plus a macro ID query

Something different to the usual brown stuff at last.

12 deg minimum and overcast with humidity and the overnight low of 12 deg was at sunrise.

Still plenty of brown stuff with a sharp increase of Large Yellow Underwing.

At their peak I average about 80 of these moth cockroaches a night with high counts topping the 100 mark.

Turnip Moth numbers are rising and there are still traps-ful of Straw Underwing and Vine's Rustic.

Shuttle-shaped Dart and Setaceous Hebrew Character have peaked and are in decline.

Common Rustics have all but finished.

20th Aug

Toadflax Brocade ...

 ... is one of my garden "stock" moths.

I have recorded this RDB species since 2009 and there has been a steady increase in numbers for both the May/June and July/August generations.

Not just in my garden as in 2009, but in other areas of the county and beyond which is good news for this attractive species. 

The food plant remains a mystery as I have only seen one Common Toadflax plant (Linaria vulgaris)in the area and that is a half a mile from my garden and no Pale Toadflax (Linaria repens).

After looking in the surrounding gardens, only a couple have a small patch of Snapdragons (  Antirrhinum ) which I know the larva will feed on after observing two larva that emerged from eggs that were laid in a pot.

So for 2 years I have planted  Snapdragon patches but to date have found no larva.

The family of plants which includes Linaria and antirrhinum is huge, so perhaps another foodplant will come to light, excuse the unintended pun.

From the 5th May ( everything was early this spring) I have recorded 14 in May and 5  to mid June.

The second generation appeared on 16th July with 6 in July and 3 to date in August.

Another of my "stock" moths is Small Ranunculus.

Again I had the monopoly on this species 5 years ago in these parts but I'm happy to say, not any more...

21st Aug

Small Ranunculus

Some more of last nights catch :-

Nephopterix angustella

Old Lady

Orange Sallow

Bulrush Wainscot, female

Cochylis hybridella

Unidentified ... ? a worn Dingy Shears ??

And a welcome night visitor ...

6th Aug 2014 .. The worst year tick

Every August I look forward to noshing sweet juicy Victoria plums from my garden tree.
This year however that particular pleasure has been denied.
And why ?
The answer is Grapholita funebrana and the easiest time of year to identify this moth is right now as the plums ripen.
The Plum Fruit Moth has been particularly busy this year and just about all of the plums are affected.
It's a year tick for the garden moth list but one I would rather do without ...

If I ever lose interest in garden moth trapping/recording it will be in August.
Both traps are full of brown moths and little else usually.
Common Rustics abound, Straw Underwings are peaking, Shuttle-shaped Darts are very numrous and Large Yellow Underwings are bombing the traps, creating havoc and agitating the catch.
Not only that, the traps contain quite a few sleepy morning wasps that have used the traps as a midnight feast facility, not to mention the occasional hornet which strike fear into the bravest of souls.
There were some additions to the year list despite all of the above ...

Flounced Rustic was new for the year on 5th Aug

Bulrush Wainscot, last night, not seen for a year or two ...

Udea ferrugalis, the Rusty Dot Pearl, a regular migrant

Others of interest...
Small Dusty Wave has re-appeared with 2 found last night.
Angle Shades, part 2. I'm expecting a lot more of these in the coming 3 months. Very common in my garden.
Cydia splendana x 15 has had a boom year, whereas Cydia pomonella is thin on the ground this year with just a single last night and rarely seen in multiples unlike previous years.
Water Veneer corpses litter the bottom of the traps lately with c 100 this morning, here's a live one in the glow of the 11watt PL Synergenic lamp ..

19th Aug 2011...Quiet spell

Overnight min temp....11.3 deg, Breezy
45 species caught, very much the same as the previous week.
Wax Moth (Galleria mellonella) was my second record this year and the same goes for Bulrush Wainscot.



GALLERIA MELLONELLA, Wax Moth




BULRUSH WAINSCOT



5th Aug 2011...Garden latest

Overnight temp: 13 deg. calm
43 macro and 25 micro species were recorded last night.
Shuttle-shaped Dart numbers have hopefully peaked as only 80 were in the 2 traps !
A Bulrush Wainscot and a Flounced Rustic were new for the year.
A very worn Toadflax Brocade was number 11 this season and another Least Yellow Underwing along with Spectacle, Straw Dot, Nutmeg, Bordered Pug, Swallow Prominent and Pebble Hook-tip the best of the rest.
A flying visit (excuse the pun) from joint County macro recorder, Andy Banthorpe, produced a new micro species for the garden.
Head down and bum up in a small patch of Yarrow he unearthed a mine and cocoon of Bucculactrix cristatella thanks Andy !



BUCCULACTRIX CRISTATELLA cocoon on Yarrow.....Photo: Melissa Banthorpe, joint county macro recorder

 I did contact Captain Trappings to inform him of the new species (and to gloat a little) but he checked out a patch of Yarrow growing in his garden and found Jack queen king, mine, larva and cocoon all on one plant.
After finding leaf mines of Lyonetia clerkella on my Apple, Birch, Crab Apple, Bird Cherry and Plum trees, I eventually found the adult on the patio window and Cochylis Hybridella was also a new find.

BULRUSH WAINSCOT f. fraterna 

FLOUNCED RUSTIC



LYONETIA CLERKELLA




COCHYLIS HYBRIDELLA

2011 garden species:-
376,.......214 macro, 162 micro
STOP PRESS......
Another micro to add after ID from David Manning...county micro recorder.
It's one I should have tracked down myself as it is quite distinctive.

ORTHOTELLA SPARGANELLA 470

377 species.......214 macro, 163 micro

24th Aug..........A Turnip for the books !

A garden first (or previously overlooked) for this DARK SWORD-GRASS which was at first written off as a TURNIP MOTH
..............................................
...............................................
DARK SWORD-GRASS

2nd BULRUSH WAINSCOT for the year

a first for year............. ROSY RUSTIC

one of 4 FLOUNCED RUSTICS in last nights trap

15th Aug.... New arrivals

Still on the cool side but dry and clear. On the wall near the Skinner was a "first" for The Dells garden, a BULRUSH WAINSCOT

a garden "year first" for this ORANGE SWIFT....... This was a very common record last year, so many more to come.

A common micro but the first one recorded in The Dells....

ACLERIS VARIEGANA or Garden Rose Tortrix in the vernacular

There may be additions after I check the trap in the morning before work. Hopefully more new arrivals. My target for the year was a modest 120 species of macro moth but the total at present is 170. My new target is 220 which I think is possible.............so, 50 more to go !