Saturday 13th July - Mothballing

Still in a period of relative birding doldrums, the insects are becoming more prominent. It was late in Spring when two of the Selsey regulars, Paul Bowley and Justin Atkinson,  suggested they would be interested in seeing what Moths I had in the garden, as my big-tree-inland habitat was likely to produce some different species to their more usual coastal location.

They arrived on Friday evening and after a brief assessment set up 3 moth traps. The largest trap  being a mercury-vapour trap, that sat in the middle of the lawn and lit up a large part of Southern England. I was intrigued as to what might attracted to the traps (other than passing aircraft) as I had no inclination to ever guess what variety might be lurking in the corners of the garden.

Justin went back to Selsey to return in the morning and Paul stayed, it was dark just before 10pm and Jupiter with 4 of its moons visible was a highlight in the moonlit sky and a Tawny Owl calling in the background. We had a look at the traps but there seemed to be nothing happening, so went to bed just hoping that their efforts would be rewarded in the morning.

It was 4.30am when Paul and I had a coffee in the garden, it had been a very mild night and there seemed to  be plenty of activity in the traps, we covered them and waited for Justin to arrive a little later, the local Blackbirds and Robins had already spied the activity and were busily working round the edges of the traps picking off all sorts of bugs that had dropped by the side of the traps during the night.

Justin arrived around 8am and over the next 3-4 hours the slow process of identifying and recording everything that had been caught took place.

For me the Hawkmoths were the most fascinating, we had 4 Species of these, Elephant Hawkmoth, Small Elephant Hawkmoth, Privet Hawkmoth and Poplar Hawkmoth.

In total, 77 Moth species were recorded and 350 moths in total. Justin had 5 or 6 new species and Paul had 16, so it was deemed a successful night and certainly for me, fascinating and enjoyable, knowing that if the same exercise was repeated on a different night then it would have different results.

I kept an eye out for birds as we processed the moths, Bullfinch, Nuthatch, Grey Heron, Sparrowhawk, Siskin, a Grey Wagtail and Marsh Tit being the more interesting haul of the otherwise common species. It wasn't until an hour or so after the guys left that a very dark-phase Honey Buzzard flew over the house then started its display flight - amazing to watch, also 4 Hobbies were hawking to the South over the trees.

Paul (l) and Justin (r) 'processing' the moths.

Elephant Hawk Moth, Poplar Hawk Moth, Privet Hawk Moth

Not a stick ! - A Buff-tip

Black Arches Moth

Full list below gratefully received from Justin

Scalloped oak – 7

Black arches – 5

Buff tip – 5

Buff ermine – 3

Common footman – 11

Chrysoteuchia culmella – 73 – pauls right, a few of these may have been agriphila straminella

Dark arches – 12

Scorched wing – 1

Common emerald – 1

Sharp angled carpet – 1

Shuttle shaped dart – 1

Small china mark – 2

Crassa unitella – 2

Dot moth – 2

Yellow tail moth – 1

Endotricha flammealis – 1

Flame – 9

Riband wave – 12

Elephant hawkmoth – 21

Flame shoulder – 2

Poplar hawkmoth – 4

Coronet – 7

Eana incanana – 2

Grey/dark dagger agg – 1

Heart and dart – 14

Crambus pascuella – 5

Uncertain – 57 – I struggle to tell, uncertains, vines rustics and rustics apart, I think the vast majority were uncertains though

Shoulder striped wainscot – 6

Willow beauty – 2

Treble brown spot – 2

Mottled rustic – 2

Common wainscot – 7

Common plume – 1

Slender brindle – 1

Small elephant hawkmoth – 2

Double square spot – 5

Bright line brown eye – 1

Pug sp – 3

Scarce footman – 2

Agapeta hamana – 1

Privet hawkmoth – 2

Large yellow underwing – 2

Single dotted wave – 4

Udea prunalis – 2

Common quaker – 1 – very unlikely to be this species as too late in the year, suspect it was a rustic

Rustic – 7

Broad bordered yellow underwing – 1

Common rustic agg – 1

Codling moth – 1 – the other one of these was the species below

Cydia splendana – 1

Mother of pearl – 1

Four spotted footman – 2 - immigrant

Iron prominent – 1

Nut tree tussock – 1

Eucosma cana – 1

Beautiful hooktip – 1

Clouded border – 1

Rosy footman – 3

Lesser broad bordered yellow underwing –

Small magpie – 1

Pebble prominent – 1

Clouded silver – 1

Sycamore – 1

European corn borer – 1 – apparently this is now breeding in sussex, along the coast, so could be from there or could still be an immigrant

Synaphe punctalis – 1 - much more common on the coast, but has been recorded occasionally inland

Small fan footed wave – 1

Agriphila tristella – 1

Red-barred tortrix – 1

Pseudargyrotoza conwagana - -1

Eudonia delunella – 2

Eudonia mercurella – 2

Phycita roborella – 1

Grey arches – 1

Foxglove pug – 1

Hedya salicella – 1

Dun-bar – 1

Round winged muslin – 1