05/08/19 & 06/08/19 - Another Double post to catch up!

Still well behind with my records, even further so with starting my new job as an Ecology Ranger! it's been a tough week with my litle boy in and out of A&E, so moths have been on hold recently.

I'll keep i brief... below are the two catches from the beginning of August and featured all of the expected species for this time of year, albeit featuring an extremely late year first Cabbage Moth on the 05th!
Best moth, a garden first Pediasia contaminella.

Garden species count for 2019 now upto 405.

Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 125w MV Robinson Trap

05/08/19

Macro Moths

Cabbage Moth 1 [NFY]
Svensson's Copper Underwing 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

Cochylis molliculana 2 [NFY]
Pediasia contaminella 1 [NFG]

Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 125w MV Robinson Trap

06/08/19

Macro Moths

Flounced Rustic 2 [NFY]

Micro Moths

Agriphila geniculea 3 [NFY]
Ypsolopha parenthesella 1 [NFY]

Agriphila geniculea

Cabbage Moth

Cochylis molliculana

Flounced Rustic

Flounced Rustic

Pediasia contaminella

Svensson's Copper Underwing

02/08/19 & 04/08/19 - Double post to catch up.

A double post to try and get caught up with my catch reports.

Luckily things have slowed down somewhat (Sadly as well, as lots of moths is great!), this allows me to input more data and compare species trends etc, something I don't have much time during peak moth season.


A very quiet night on the 02nd of August, with just a late arrival of a Nutmeg, a moth I usually only see in singletons in Spring, so unsual to see the second brood. The night was a little cooler and the daytime temperature only reached 21 degrees.


On Sunday the 4th it was a bit warmer during the day and upto 25c, but with showers on and off but increasingly muggy towards the evening.
4 new for years were recorded, and one was very overdue and a first for my garden, Argyresthia bonnetella a Hawthorn feeder. It was a shame that it had seen better days.

Garden species count for 2019 now upto 398.

Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 125w MV Robinson Trap

02/08/19

Macro Moths

Nutmeg 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

No new micros for the year


Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 125w MV Robinson Trap

04/08/19

Macro Moths

Barred Hook-tip 1 [NFY]
Buff Footman 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

Argyresthia bonnetella 1 [NFG]
Gelechia senticetella 1 [NFY]

Gelechia senticetella

Argyresthia bonnetella

Barred Hook-tip

Nutmeg

Buff Footman

Field Trip - Bramfield Park Woods - 01/08/19

Back to Bramfield on the 1st of August, and the other side of the road this time, the damper more grassy part with less mature trees.
The day had been very nice indeed and by the afternoon the conditions turned extremely muggy and perfect mothing weather. 
There was a brief shower driving to the site, and as always thought I would be in for a wet session, so rain guards were adorned and cables wrapped in shopping bags!
Luckily that was the only rain all night and it stayed cloudy until packing up time at 2am if a little breezy.
Highlights were, 6 species of Ypsolopha, headed by the rare Ypsolopha vittella, 5x Gypsy Moths (a new macro for me). And two species that have be baffled, and that will be gen det soon.

With close to 180 species, this goes down in history as my highest ever August catch, probably owing to the muggy conditions and being just on the cusp of the new month.

Here is the total list.

Macro Moths : 105 species
Micro Moths : 73 species

Total : 178 species

Catch Report - 01/08/19 - Bramfield Park Woods - Hertfordshire - 1x 125w MV Robinson Trap, 1x 250w MV Clear Robinson Trap, 1x Twin 15w Actinic/Synergetic Combo & 1x 160w Mercury Blended Robinson Trap - 4 traps in total

Macro Moths

Black Arches 
Brimstone Moth 
Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 
Buff Footman 
Cabbage Moth  
Canary-shouldered Thorn 
Clay  
Cloaked Minor 
Clouded Border 
Common Carpet 
Common Footman  
Common Rustic  
Copper Underwing 
Coxcomb Prominent 
Dark Arches 
Dingy Footman 
Dun-bar  
Dusky Thorn 
Ear Moth 
Elephant Hawk-moth 
Flame Shoulder 
Gypsy Moth 5 
Jersey Tiger 
July Highflyer 
Knot Grass 
Large Emerald 
Large Twin-spot Carpet 
Large Yellow Underwing 
Latticed Heath 
Least Carpet 
Least Yellow Underwing 
Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 
Lesser Swallow Prominent 
Lesser Yellow Underwing 
Maiden's Blush 
Nut-tree Tussock 
Oak Hook-tip 
Oak Nycteoline 
Olive  
Pale Prominent 
Pebble Hook-tip 
Pebble Prominent 
Peppered Moth 
Pine Hawk-moth 
Poplar Hawk-moth 
Red Twin-spot Carpet 
Riband Wave 
Rosy Footman 
Ruby Tiger 
Rustic  
Scalloped Hook-tip 
Scalloped Oak 
Scarce Footman 
Scorched Carpet 
Shaded Broad-bar 
Shuttle-shaped Dart 
Silver Y  
Single-dotted Wave 
Small Fan-footed Wave 
Small Phoenix  
Smoky Wainscot 
Snout 
Spectacle 
Square-spotted Clay 
Straw Underwing 
Swallow Prominent 
Tawny barred Angle  
Tree-lichen Beauty 
Uncertain 
White-spotted Pug 
Willow Beauty 
Yellow Shell  
Yellow-tail

Micro Moths

Acentria emphemerella
Acleris forsskaleana
Acleris laterana comariana
Acleris notana ferrugana
Acompsia cinerella
Acrobasis advenella
Acrobasis repandana
Aethes smeathmanniana
Agapeta hamana
Agonopterix alstromeriana
Agriphila straminella 
Agriphila tristella
Anacampsis blatteriella
Anacampsis populella
Apotomis betuletana
Apotomis turbidana
Argyresthia albistria
Argyresthia bonnetella
Argyresthia goedartella
Argyresthia pruniella
Argyresthia trifasciella
Aspilapteryx tringipennella
Athrips mouffetella
Bactra lancealana
Blastobasis adustella
Blastobasis lacticolella
Brachmia blandella
Bucculatrix ulmella
Caloptila alchimiella robustella
Cameraria ohridella
Carcina quercana
Caryocolum sp
Catoptria falsella
Catoptria pinella
Celypha lacunana
Celypha striana
Chrysoteuchia culmella
Clavigesta purdeyi
Cnephasia sp
Crassa unitella
Cydalimna perspectalis
Cydia fagiglandana
Cydia splendana
Dioryctria abietella
Ditula angustiorana
Elachista sp TBC pos poae
Emmelina monodactlya
Emmetia marginea
Endotricha flammealis
Ephestia sp
Epinotia brunnichana
Epinotia immundana
Epinotia nisella
Epinotia ramella
Epinotia uddmanniana
Eucosma cana
Eucosma hohenwartiana
Eucosma obumbratana
Eudemis profundana
Eudonia mercurella
Eudonia pallida
Eulamprotes atrella
Euspilapteryx auroguttella
Euzophera pinguis
Exoteleia dodecella
Gypsonoma dealbana
Hedya salicella 
Helycystogramma rufescens
Hypatimna rhomboidella
Hypsopygia costalis
Lathronympha strigana
Lyonetia clerkella
Metalampra italica
Mompha propinquella
Monochroa cytisella
Monopis weaverella
Oegoconia sp
Oncocera semirubella
Pandemis heparana
Paraswammerdamia albicapitella
Parornix sp
Phycita roborella
Phyllonorycter harisella
Phyllonorycter trifasciella
Piniphila bifasciana
Pleuroptyra ruralis
Plutella xylostella
Recurvaria leucatella
Rhopobota naevana
Roeslerstammia erxlebella
Scoparia ambigualis
Scrobipalpa costella
Spilonota ocellana
Stigmella sp
Udea prunalis
Yponomeuta cag sp
Yponomeuta evonymella
Yponomeuta rorrella 
Ypsolopha dentella 
Ypsolopha nemorella 
Ypsolopha parenthesella
Ypsolopha scabrella 
Ypsolopha ustella
Ypsolopha vittella
Zeiraphera isertana 

160w MBT Trap

125w MV Robinson Trap

250w Clear MV Robinson Trap

Canary-shouldered Thorn

Caryocolum sp

Epinotia nisella

Epinotia nisella

Epinotia immundana

Elachista sp pos poae TBC

Clavigesta purdeyi

Epinotia ramella

Euspilapteryx auroguttella

Gypsy Moth

Jersey Tiger

Oncocera semirubella

Scrobipalpa costella

Ypsolopha vittella

Square-spotted Clay

Gelechiidae sp TBC

Ypsolopha dentella

Ypsolopha ustella

Another garden first!

On he las day of July, the weather had been a little cooler with a fresher feel, no exceeding 22 degrees, luckily the night temperatures held up above 15c and the catch wasn't too bad at all.

Dark Spectacle was added to the garden list, a moth i've taken before at various chalk grassland sites around the County, a great addition and a few more popping up in the Couny for other people, signifies a possible boom year for this species.


Other species of note were, Tawny Speckled Pug (Last seen in 2015 and the 4th garden record, tatty mind).
Both Lychnis and Campion together (Never happened for me before on the same night). 


Mothing is a funny old game, in my last post it was the micro show, this night featured no new miros for the year!


Garden species count for 2019 now upto 393.

Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 250w Clear MV Robinson Trap

31/07/19

Macro Moths

Campion 1 [NFY]
Dark Spectacle 1 [NFY]
Lychnis 1 [NFY]
Tawny Speckled Pug 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

No new micros for the year

Campion & Lychnis

Campion

Dark Spectacle

Lychnis

Tawny Speckled Pug

Micro's keep the show going

Another great catch was had on the 29th of July with plenty of new species for the year potted up and tallied.
One moth in particular was the highlight, a probable Elachista (Formerly Cosmiotes) stabilella.
It looks good for it, and one i've taken before at my parents farm (which was dissected to confirm) specimen retained to double check.
It would make Macro and Micro species neck & neck in my garden with 360 species each.

A second Dewick's Plusia was also noted, compared to my previous example it is clearly a different moth which is great.

The year first (late) Pine Hawk-moth was sitting on our garden Pug ornament which gave me a chuckle... I said 'That's a large Pug!'

Of all of the new ones for the year, just one was a Macro. They seem in general to be having a tougher time this year, it's mainly micros in my garden as of late.
The theory is that the long dry Spring and early Summer has upset the natural balance of larger moths exiting subterranean pupae, whereas most micro moths rely on silken galleries within folded leaves, crevices in bark or leaf litter above ground.

Garden species count for 2019 now upto 386.

Catch Report - Back Garden - Stevenage - 250w Clear MV Robinson Trap

29/07/19

Macro Moths

Pine Hawk-moth 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

Agapeta zoegana 1 [NFY]
Agonopterix alstromeriana 1 [NFY]
Argyresthia pruniella 2 [NFY]
Cydia fagiglandana 1 [NFY]
Elachista stabilella 1 [NFG]
Pyrausta purpuralis 1 [NFY]
Zellaria hepariella 1 [NFY]

Zellaria hepariella

Pine Hawk-Pug Moth

Elachista stabilella

Dewick's Plusia

Argyresthia pruniella

Agapeta zoegana

Cydia fagiglandana

Pyrausta purpuralis

Agonopterix alstromeriana

Recent Colephora Gen Dets

I recently got back results from 3 Colephora species taken in my garden during July.

Coleophora binderella - Female - 05/07/19 (7th County record and only the 4th modern record (post 2000).

Coleophora saturatella - Male - 12/07/19 (3rd County record and only the 2nd modern record), the most interesting of the trio, the fact that it's asociated with Broom and there is none to my knowledge nearby, must have been blown in.

Coleophora glaucicolella - Female - 27/07/19 (Fairly Common).

This makes 11 confirmed Coleophora species so far from my garden, fairlly low, but I only started getting them checked last year by Graeme Smith.
Any likely contenders for different species will be retained in the future.

Thanks once again for Graeme's swift dissections.

link below for info

https://mothsurvey.org/

Coleophora binderella

Coleophora glaucicolella

Coleophora binderella