27th Sept 2011...Prophecy

Overnight min temp...10.9 deg, calm
In yesterdays blog I said that I was struggling with Sallow and Pink-barred Sallow.
This statement turned out to be a prophecy as both species duly obliged last night.
I'm not superstitious, but just in case.....I am struggling with Merveille du Jour and also a large win on the National Lottery and Premium bonds !
Last nights tally :-
12 x Lesser yellow Underwing
12 x Lunar Underwing
9 x Large Yellow Underwing
7 x Black Rustic
6 x Willow Beauty
6 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
1 x Sallow....year first

SALLOW

1 x Garden Carpet
7 x Pale Mottled Willow
2 x Beaded Chestnut
3 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
1 x Pink-barred Sallow....year first

PINK-BARRED SALLOW

2 x Copper Underwing . . .both extremely worn
2 x Square-spot Rustic
1 x Blair's Shoulder-knot
1 x Angle Shades
1 x Mallow

MALLOW

2011 garden:-
409 spercies...237 macro, 172 micro

25/26th Sept 2011...garden traps

Min overnight temp...11 deg, humid, light southerly breeze
The last two nights have produced 3 "new for year moths"...BEADED CHESTNUT, MALLOW and RED-GREEN CARPET. Plenty of Large Ranunculus (4), Black Rustics (4), and Lunar Underwings (9), plus the usual fare, but I'm still struggling with Sallow and Pink-barred Sallow.



RED-GREEN CARPET

407 garden species for 2011
235 macro, 172 micro

24th Sept 2011....At last !

Overnight min temp...10.6 deg, calm
Very few moths in the traps up until midnight, so the majority are flying in the early hours before dawn.
A garden first Frosted Orange was a relief, it seemed that I was the only one who hadn't caught one !

FROSTED ORANGE

6 x Large Yellow Underwing
8 x Lesser Yellow Underwing
8 x Lunar Underwing
8 x Willow Beauty
2 x Black Rustic
5 x Square-spot Rustic
5 x Pale Mottled Willow
5 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
2 x Blair's Shoulder-knot
1 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
1 x Frosted Orange *garden first
1 x Light Emerald
1 x Hofmannophila pseudospretella
2 x Eudonia angustea
1 x Acleris variegana
3 x Epiphyas postvittana
1 x Emmelina monodactyla
1 x Cacoecimorpha pronubana
1 x Stigmella sp

404 species...232 macro, 172 micro

22nd Sept...Pair of Shades

Min overnight temp...8.1 deg. slight breeze
Nothing new but nice catch.
The pair of shades refers to the two Angle Shades caught last night.
A Rosy Rustic, Large Ranunculus, a rather worn Centre-barred Sallow, Grey Pine Carpet, two Black Rustics, Light Emerald and Orange Swift were the pick of the crop, plus the usual.
A Common Marbled Carpet that was different to the reddish/brown panelled variety that I normally get, had me going for a moment.
A second Rusty Dot Pearl, Udea ferrugalis was recorded.



Common Marbled Carpet



Grey Pine Carpet

19/20th Sept 2011

Overnight min temps: 19th = 13.6 deg, windy
                                     20th = 12.3 deg, all night rain
Conditions were bad on 19th with gusting winds to 25mph but it was warm and a nice variety appeared although nothing new.
Last night, 20th, it rained all night so no traps were set, just the illuminated shed wall (1 x 15 watt actinic tube plus a 15 watt blacklight tube in the shed window).

19th Sept...Agonopterix alstromeriana

19th Sept....Three Large Ranunculus

19th Sept.....Orange Sallow

19th...two traps :- 
12 x Large Y U'wing
18 x Lesser Y U'wing
16 x P.M.Willow
4 x Willow Beauty
3 x Sq-spot Rustic
4 x Vine's Rustic
2 x Flounced Rustic
1 x Brimstone Moth
1 x Silver Y
3 x Set. Heb. Character
6 x Sh-sh Dart
2 x Garden Carpet
1 x Orange Sallow
3 x Large Ranunculus
1 x Black Rustic
2 x Common Wainscot
1 x Angle Shades
1 x Agonopterix alstromeriana
3 x Agriphila geniculea
2 x Eudonia angustea
1 x Carcina quercana
3 x Epiphyas postvittana
1 x Unidentified Depressaria species

20th Sept...Shed wall lights
Species only, no counts.
Large Yellow Underwing
Lesser Yellow Underwing
Willow Beauty (7 on view at one time)
Vine's Rustic
Pale Mottled Willow
Large Ranunculus
Black Rustic
Lunar Underwing
Turnip Moth
Flounced Rustic
Shuttle-shaped Dart
Acleris variegana



Acleris variegana

Epiphyas postvittana
Agriphila geniculea
Endrosis sarcitrella
Eudonia angustea
Depressaria daucella..To be confirmed ...... D. badiella - gen det DVM

Depressaria badiella

18th Sept 2011...Garden traps

Overnight min temp: 9 deg, calm, partly cloudy.
Last nights catch :-
7 x Large Yellow Underwing
4 x Lesser Yellow Underwing
6 x Lunar Underwing
1 x Common Wainscot
3 x Black Rustic
2 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
3 x Flounced Rustic
1 x Brindled Green *year first



BRINDLED GREEN

1 x Orange Swift
1 x Brimstone Moth
1 x Small Dusty Wave
4 x Vine's Rustic
4 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
2 x Turnip Moth
6 x Pale Mottled Willow
1 x Udea ferrugalis *garden first

RUSTY DOT PEARL...Udea ferrugalis

2 x Epiphyas postvittana
3 x Eudonia angustea
1 x Emmelina monodactyla
1 x Endrosis sarcitrella
Garden 2011:-
403 species...231 macro, 172 micro

17th Sept 2011....400 mark passed

Min overnight temp:- a chilly 5.8 deg.
Windy with thundery heavy showers early, then easing with clear skies and plummeting temperatures.
I left my traps to the mercy of the elements and headed for Captain Trappings domicile to eat vast amounts of Indian cuisine and to quaff red wine.
The result was soaking wet traps and an I don't care attitude.
Checked the soggy egg boxes this morning and was a little surprised to find my 400th species for the garden, 2011, a Barred Sallow.
An added bonus was a year first Blair's Shoulder-knot.



BARRED SALLOW

BLAIR'S SHOULDER-KNOT

Others include Treble-bar and two Large Ranunculus accompanied by the usual Underwings, SSDarts, S.H. Characters. Square-spot and Vine's Rustics.
Very little on the micro front with just 3 x  A. geniculea


TREBLE-BAR

2011 garden tally:-
401 species.....230 macro, 171 micro


16th Sept 2011...399 species and waiting !

Overnight min temp: 11.8, Bright waning moon, windy
A disappointing night, given that it was warm and reasonably calm early evening.
I had high hopes of notching my 400th garden species for the year but I've had to put that on hold.
Just to rub it in, Captain Trappings ticked a Sallow and a Frosted Orange last night to catch up on my macro tally of 228 !
Frosted Orange is a species that has so far eluded capture in my garden but is reasonably common so it's high on my target species list.
Last nights haul:-
12 x Large Yellow Underwing ( 1 Fox Underwing )
8 x Lesser Yellow Underwing
2 x Small Dusty Wave
4 x Willow Beauty
14 x Pale Mottled Willow
1 x Brimstone Moth
1 x Copper Underwing
8 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
6 x Flounced Rustic
2 x Double-striped Pug
1 x Mouse Moth
1 x Black Rustic
1 x Common Wainscot
8 x Shuttle-shaped Dart

A fresh batch of Shuttle-shaped Darts are appearing in the traps

1 x Riband Wave
7 x Lunar Underwing
2 x Square-spot Rustic
3 x Vine's Rustic
2 x Orange Swift
1 x Large Ranunculus
3 x Agriphila geniculea
2 x Eudonia angustea
2 x Epiphyas postvittana
1 x Cacoecimorpha pronubana
1 x Endrosis sarcitrella

The second Large Ranunculus this year.

Garden species 2011
399 sp...... 229 macro, 171 micro

2 x  autumn Target Moths....Frosted Orange, not yet recorded at The Dells,
Merveille du Jour, I had 2 in 2009 but none in 2010...stunner !

15th Sept 2011...What makes a moth a RARE moth ?

Overnight min temp: 10.4 deg, calm, bright waning moon.
On the 3rd August this year, I caught a small non-descript micro, a little brown job, which I identified as 1397a Diplopseustis perieresalis.
This particular species was a national rarity and according to UK Moths, only two had been recorded previously.
Self doubt crept in, so I sent pics to our micro recorder and some of you bloggers out there for confirmation.
To a man you all agreed and the moth was submitted by our county micro recorder, David Manning, to the foremost authority, John Langmaid who duly confirmed it to be the 4th British record.
Given that this little fella is so rare, it would seem a long shot to record it again in my small patch of England that is attached to my house, but last night along came another.
Easterly winds had been blowing during the day which may be the reason it turned up but the fact remains it is here in numbers much higher than its status suggests.
It just goes to show how underwatched our micro moths are compared to the macros and I wonder how many of these have been ignored or overlooked.
So unless any more of this species has been recorded since August 3rd, here is Britains 5th DIPLOPSEUSTIS PERIERESALIS 1397a

Also rans:-
A garden year first Latticed Heath

Others:-
10 x Flounced Rustic
8 x Large Yellow Underwing
6 x Lesser Yellow Underwing
1 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
1 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
1 x Garden Carpet
5 x Willow Beauty
6 x Square-spot Rustic
1 x Light Emerald
4 x Lunar Underwing
7 x Pale Mottled Willow
1 x Latticed Heath
2 x Silver Y
5 x Vine's Rustic
2 x Turnip Moth

1 x Epiphyas postvittana
3 x Emmelina monodactyla
3 x Eudonia angustea
1 x Diplopseustis perieresalis
4 x Agriphila geniculea
1 x Depressaria type, to be ID'd

15th Sept 2011... Brrrrr !

Min overnight temp 6.6 deg, calm, clear, bright moon.
A bit on the nippy side last night and low counts for traps.
Plenty of Flounced Rustics around but Large Yellow Underwings are on the decline now.
A year first Lunar Underwing added one more to the year list.

LUNAR UNDERWING

Almost there, just two to go for the 400 target with plenty of autumn species to come .
2011 garden tally:-
398 species....227 macro, 171 micro
I am thinking of waving the white flag on the wine bet as I am about 25 species behind Capt. Trappings and struggling to keep up let alone make any ground.
Maybe some intense leaf mining might help a little but I don't have the range of indiginous trees & shrubs as C.T. who wisely planted a 30mt native hedgerow a few years back and has accrued a big tally of micro moths this year.
(But not yet (:0))

11th Sept 2011...Blowwy

Min overnight temp: 14.3 deg, breezy, then strong winds with showers.
Bright moon during clear spells.
Best of the mediocre catch was a year first Large Ranunculus.
Two Angle Shades and the usual brown moths

                                          LARGE RANUNCULUS

             

ANGLE SHADES

397 species for the garden this year....226 macro, 171 micro

10th Sept 2011... Garden Traps

Min overnight temp : 12.3 deg, windy, rain
Switched off the traps early and threw over the tarps but not before another year first was added.
                                           OAK HOOK-TIP

That's 396 species so far for 2011 after almost nightly intense trapping.
Had the same effort gone into it last year, when conditions during the summer months were generally much much better, I would be looking at 450 species.
2 x traps last night, Twin 20watt Blacklight fluorescent and Dual 15 watt Blacklight fluorescent/ 2 x 11 watt actinic PL's.
30+ Large Y. U,
6 x Lesser Y. U.
2 x B-b Y. U.
4 x Set. Heb. Character
1 x Light Emerald
1 x Rosy Rustic.......... pictured below

3 x Centre-barred Sallow (Where are the all the Sallows?)
2 x Copper Underwing
18 x Vine's Rustic
16 x Flounced Rustic
1 x Oak Hook-tip
7 x Pale Mottled Willow
4 x Turnip Moth
1 x Brimstone Moth
1 x Green Carpet
1 x Spectacle................Pictured below, camoflaged on rock

8 x Willow Beauty
2 x Garden Carpet
6 x Square-spot Rustic
2 x Nutmeg
2 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
1 x Flame-shoulder

TRAP ALERT !!!

"Korky" the cat. 6 months old.
Seen exiting the trap after searching for her favourite snack. Large Yellow Underwings.
This was a birthday present from my daughter Nikki back in June, she told me it was a 9 weeks old tom -cat.
I registered it as "Korky" with a local vet and when I took it to the surgery for its cat flu jabs, I asked the vet at what age should I bring him in to be neutered.
The vet gave me a quizzical look and said, "You can't, but you can bring HER in for spaying".
Embarrasing or what ! I didn't think of checking first.
Named after a male cat in the Dandy or Beano comic, (can't remember which, Dandy I think) dating back to the 1930's, she remains "Korky"

HOME GUARD :-

 Cheap, crude but effective rain guard until I fix a hinged perspex sheet on a wall/shed. Impractical unless you are present when rain begins to fall !

Checking Wikipedia, I find that Korky appeared in the first edition of The Dandy on 4th Dec 1937

I think it's time to get me coat and sign out !

9th Sept 2011...Another down, 5 to go

Overnight min temp 15deg, calmish.
Warm night, little wind =  new for year moth.

                                          GREY PINE CARPET
224 macro, 171 micro
just 5 more to join the 400 club !

8th Sept 2011.....Garden Traps

Min overnight temp: 12.3 deg, Breezy
Not a lot been happening for a few nights with the cold and wet but managed to add a year-first Chinese Character last night.

CHINESE CHARACTER.

32 x Large Yellow Underwing
16 x Vine's Rustic
12 x Flounced Rustic
11 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
7 x Lesser Yellow Underwing
3 x Brimstone Moth
2 x Snout
4 x Willow Beauty
4 x Orange Swift
2 x Yellow Shell
6 x Turnip Moth
2 x Small Dusty Wave
7 x Pale Mottled Willow
9 x Square-spot Rustic
1 x Straw Underwing
2 x Copper Underwing
3 x Centre-barred Sallow
1 x Angle Shades
1 x Marbled Beauty
3 x Light Emerald
1 x Chinese Character
1 x Green Carpet
3 x Common Wainscot
1 x Flame Shoulder
1 x Garden Carpet
3 x Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing
Garden Tally 2011:-
394 species,...... 223 macro, 171 micro

4th Sep 2011... 6 of the best

Overnight min temp: 8.9 deg, cold breeze, with an unexpected shower. Or should I say, the forecast was for clear skies in the whole of Bedfordshire !
An Orange Sallow completed the set of six Xanthia family sallows, and joins Sallow, Barred Sallow, Pink-barred Sallow, Dusky-lemon Sallow and Pale-lemon Sallow on the garden list.
Add on the closely related Centre-barred Sallow to the list and it is quite an impressive garden tally.
The unrelated Bordered Sallow and Dusky Sallow are also on the list.



ORANGE SALLOW

If there are any doubts that summer is over, the appearance of Black Rustic 
should have you clicking on the Amazon dot com Christmas catalogue for ideas ! This is my earliest record for the garden.


BLACK RUSTIC

Now for the all important wine bet.....
Macros:
It couldn't be much closer, I have 222 garden macros for the year and The Captain has 223, unless he added some last night.
Micros: This is where I am copping a spanking, Captain Trappings is sitting on a healthy 195 species whereas I am languishing on 171.
SO, trailing by 25 species is not a good position to be in
 
                              

 

3rd Sep 2011...1p

Overnight min temp: 13.5 deg, calm
My second Hummingbird Hawkmoth of the year was seen in the front garden at 18.30 hours.
Thanks to sharp-eyed Captain Trappings who spotted it as he was leaving.
After that great start to the evenings mothing, nothing new turned up but still a nice selection was recorded.
A Cream-bordered Green Pea was unexpected.
Best of the rest, Centre-barred Sallow, Angle Shades, Snout, Cabbage Moth, Silver Y, Vapourer, also another 50 plus, maybe more, L.Y.U's.
That makes well over 150 for the last two nights !


CREAM-BORDERED GREEN PEA




VAPOURER





SILVER Y

       

2nd Sep 2011... Garden traps latest

Overnight min temp: 13.2 deg, calm, clear sky.
The warmest night since 12th Aug locally.
Ran two traps last night, 96 Large Yellow Underwings were counted which came close to last years record of 99.
Dusky Thorn was a garden first and Large Wainscot and Centre-barred Sallow were year firsts. Correction: Dusky Thorn is a year first.

DUSKY THORN



CENTRE-BARRED SALLOW



LARGE WAINSCOT