Friday 27 September 2013

21st September- Chepstow

Overnight temperature low: 14.7c.
Conditions: Mild, overcast with mist formation into the morning hours.

Ran the actinic trap in a slightly different area of the garden with an additional sheet and enticed 63 moths of 22 species with 2 pending confirmation.
Moths recorded were:
Light Brown Apple Moth (9) Common Plume (3) Brimstone Moth (4)
Light Emerald (6) Silver Y, Snout, Pale Mottled Willow (2) Treble-bar, Common Marbled Carpet (7) Angle Shades, Square-spot Rustic,
Copper Underwing, Common Marble, Narrow-winged Grey (4)
Setaceous Hebrew Character (2) Large Yellow Underwing (10)
Lesser Yellow Underwing (4) Small Blood-vein, Green Carpet,
Lunar Underwing and Dark Sword-grass.
Pending: 1 unknown and possible Cherry Bark Tortrix.
 
There was a second recording of the immigrant Dark Sword-grass moth on site this year with a previous sighting on the 29th July.
The moth tends to be more frequently recorded between the months of July to October across the British Isles.
 
Dark Sword-grass (Agrotis ipsilon) 

 Pale Mottled Willow (Paradrina clavipalpis)

Lunar Underwing (Omphaloscelis lunosa) 

Lower Ochrwyth - 25 September

MV delivered 75 moths of 21 species. NFY were: Ypsolopha sequella; Grey Pine Carpet; Sallow; and, Black Rustic.
Also: Light Brown Apple Moth x7; Common Plume x2; Brimstone; Common Marbled Carpet; Red-green Carpet x4; Spruce Carpet x2; Straw Dot; Buff Footman Lesser Yellow Underwing x7; Copper Underwing; Canary-shouldered Thorn; Dusky Thorn; Silver Y; Set. Hebrew Character x4; Flame Shoulder; Pinion-streaked Snout x2; Snout x8;

Thursday 26 September 2013

Redhouse Barns, Goldcliff, 25th September

I ran the MV and recorded 63 moths of 27 species. NFY were 2 Black Rustic and a Green Brindled Crescent.
Black Rustic


Green Brindled Crescent
 
The catch also included a Canary-shouldered Thorn, a Rush Veneer, 2 Silver-Y's, a Spruce Carpet, a Marbled Beauty, 2 Angle Shades and 7 Beaded Chestnuts.



Canary-shouldered Thorn

Tuesday 24 September 2013

Uskmouth Reedbeds 23rd September


I ran the LED trap in the reedbeds and caught just 12 moths, but over half were my target species - Large Wainscot. I was very surprised to catch a Cypress Pug though! Silky Wainscot was also a surprise for this time of year, but they did emerge late because of the cold spring. The complete list was:

Large Wainscot 7
Bulrush wainscot 1
Silky Wainscot 1
Rosy Rustic 1
Cypress Pug 1
Small Square Spot 1


One of 7 Large Wainscots

The Cypress Pug

The Bulrush Wainscot





Monday 23 September 2013

Redhouse Barns, Goldcliff, 22nd  September
I recorded 68 moths of 28 species, including Merveille du Jour, Beaded Chestnut and Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing. Merveille du Jour was a first record for Newport Wetlands. The French name means "Marvel of the day" and it certainly was.

Merveille du Jour

Sunday 22 September 2013

Lower Ochrwyth - 21 September

A very humid night so ran the MV for a couple of hours and trapped 153 moths of 30 species.  A third of the catch was of Common Marbled Carpet.  There were also good numbers of Light Brown Apple Moth (x27), Lesser Yellow Underwing (x13), Brimstone (x10) and Spruce Carpet (x6). Also, Red-green Carpet (x3), Pink-barred Sallow, Copper Underwing,  Silver Y (x2), Diamond Back Moth, Canary-shouldered Thorn, Green Carpet, Light Emerald (x3) and Hypsopygia glaucinalis.

Pink-barred Sallow

Autumnal Rustic?

Saturday 7 September 2013

Return to Skenfrith - 5th September

The team (Kevin, Sheila and myself) returned to the Marches for probably the last visit of the season to "fill the gaps" of this particular Monmouthshire square SO42.  The catch amounted to 119 moths of 30 species,   which included 14 new species for the site.  Overall, the four visits to the site this year has resulted in 118 species - an improvement on the only previous record for this part of Monmouthshire, a Dark Dagger (larva) back in August 1972.

Spindle Ermine, Y. plumbella, Brimstone (36), Dusky Thorn, Snout, Yellow Shell, Mother of Pearl, Large YU (10), Lesser Broad-b YU, Copper Underwing (4), Burnished Brass, Common Wainscot (3), Heart & Dart (3), Set. Hebrew Character (5), Small Square Spot (4), Green Carpet, Fame Carpet (2), Common Marbled Carpet (3), Purple Bar, Straw Dot (5), Centre-barred Sallow (3), Angle Shades (2), Dingy Footman, Spectacle (3), Flame Shoulder (13), Feathered Gothic (6), Autumnal Rustic, Blood Vein, Grey Chi.
Flounced Rustic

Wednesday 4 September 2013

Thankyou Kevin for identifying the moth as a Pinion-streaked Snout, definitely new for us. We also caught a Cypress Carpet, another new moth for us, here it is.

Seaview Moths 3rd September

This moth turned up in our Robinson trap last night. On being boxed it promptly shed eggs and larvae which "looped". Both eggs and larvae appear on the photograph. We cannot identify the moth, can it be a V moth or is it a micro?


Sunday 1 September 2013

Lower Ochrwyth - last gasps of August

A selection of FFYs etc from the last week or so at Lower Ochrwyth.

23August: Skin Moth, Herald and Crambus lathoniellus
26 August: Parsnip Moth and Copper Underwing to sugar.
27 August: 50 species to MV - 198 moths.  Peach Blossom, Poplar Grey, Purple Bar, Black Arches, Spectacle, Coxcomb Prominent, Tawny-barred Angle, Clouded Border, Silver Y, Pebble Hook-tip, Dusky Thorn x3, Copper Underwing x2, Blood Vein, Ruby Tiger and Argyresthia goedartella.
31 August: (actinic) Current Pug, Agonopterix arenella