Garden Moths 2012

Mothman

Yes that's a Turnip.

I'm putting trap on tonight. Was too windy last night. The trap would not have survived!

Half-cocked

New one for the garden last night: Green Pug

Mothman

A couple of mating pairs I've seen in my garden these past couple days.
Ghost Moth this evening
The male is the ghost.....:)


Six-spot Burnet on Monday evening


Staying with 6-spot Burnet
6 weeks ago I found about 15 larvae amongst Bird's foot Trefoil


the cocoons are usually quite obvious, both empty and occupied, but it took me a while to find even one. This one was quite low down.

littlebug

super pics MM.

Had my first Large Yellow Underwing of the year in the trap this morning. I'll be seeing a lot more of those I think.
Also 2x Heart and Dart, 2 x Clounded Bordered Brindle and a Middle Barred Minor.
Surprisingly low numbers again.

Yesterday my son saw a moth on the trampoline. He says it was brown and the same size as "normal" moths but skinnier. It had 4 or 5 white spots on each wing and didn't have a fluffy head:D Nothing in the book matches so I reckon we must have a super rarity
He also says he wants to be a moth-finder when he grows up. What's the salary like? :pac:

Can also add Garden Carpet and Garden Grass Veneer to that list. Must have been hiding on the bottom of the trap.

LostCovey

thebishop wrote: »

Id please. Not even sure if its a Moth. its 0.75MM nose to tail.

Did you really mean to say it was 3/4 of a millimetre???? That would make it the size of this full stop.

How do you measure that?

thebishop

LostCovey wrote: »

Did you really mean to say it was 3/4 of a millimetre???? That would make it the size of this full stop.

How do you measure that?

You measure it with one of these.http://www.caulfieldindustrial.com/mitutoyo-series-50019620-digimatic-absolute-caliper/p-124383pd.html

Half-cocked

Another bad night last night - rain and wind, 13.1 deg C. Five GMS species inc my first Large Yellow Underwing of the year. I'm getting much larger and more varied catches on non-GMS nights due to weather conditions, I don't think my GMS records will be very representative. I've had some species caught who's flight season is now over/ending but never trapped them on GMS nights.

Half-cocked

I had this one ID'd a s a Dark Arches - anyone think it might be something else

littlebug

I have the trap out tonight in lieu of Friday night. I just had to rescue a moth from a puddle beside the trap. I popped it into the trap to dry out... hopefully still there in the morning.
There's a nice (short) piece on moths in the Galway advertiser this week

littlebug

I had my first Poplar Hawkmoth of the year in the trap this morning

Also..

3 x White Ermine
2 x Buff Ermine
1 x Heart and Dart
1 x Map Winged Swift
1 x Ghost (female)
plus a couple of carpets that got away before I got a good look.

Ghost and Map Winged Swift both new to me.

Half-cocked

Decent catch last night, 2 new species for the season:

Poplar Hawkmoth


and a Snout

thebishop

I trapped on Sat night this week.Not alot of moths about.
Cinnabar x 1
Buff Ermine x 5
White Ermine x 1
Flame Shoulder x 1`
Light Brown Apple-moth x 1
Scalloped Hazel x 1
Clouded Border Brindle x 1
Uncertain x 1
Eudonia Angustea x 1

Half-cocked

That new Field Guide to the Micro Moths of Britain & Ireland finally arrived yesterday (mis-sent to Australia for some reason according to An Post). It looks great, illustrations are excellent and lots of info. I've already added a few species to my garden list! One thing I won't be doing is trying to pronounce any of the Latin names out loud;)

thebishop

Half-cocked wrote: »

That new Field Guide to the Micro Moths of Britain & Ireland finally arrived yesterday (mis-sent to Australia for some reason according to An Post). It looks great, illustrations are excellent and lots of info. I've already added a few species to my garden list! One thing I won't be doing is trying to pronounce any of the Latin names out loud;)

Still waiting here.My copy must have gone via China

Half-cocked

Caught a Setaceous Hebrew Character last night - didn't realize they were around this early.

swifts need our help!

Not in my garden but I was out doing a bat survey last night and saw two moths I didnt expect to find. Both were close to Belfast city centre.

First moth seen was a Six spot burnet and then another, and another and ... Then I spotted their cocoons in the grass with pupa skins poking out of them

The site is an old metal works that closed, was bought for multi millions for a multimillions development, flattened and the builder went bust. The only building on site is the building that was to be the building that housed the ideas - shopping, housing, relaxation ...

Budlejas have moved in with willow and many grasses that now look like a meadow.

After dark the bat survey started and in one section I started seeing moths flying by and they began to dance. It was a Ghost moth lek and something I have never seen before. It was brilliant. I know understand why the males are white. Soon females started arriving and were flying among the males. It looked like they were chosing random males.

littlebug

cool, wet and windy = no moths in the trap again .

Half-cocked

Got about 30 moths, all the usual suspects except 1 Beauty which escaped before I could decide if it was Willow or Mottled:mad:

Half-cocked

I've ID'd the 2 pics below as Dusky Brocades but stand open to correction:





and got this nicely marhed Dark Arches:



Got some Micros too, awful time trying to ID even with the new field guide. Think they are Scoparia ambigualis but possibly pyralella?

Mothman

Half-cocked wrote: »

I had this one ID'd a s a Dark Arches - anyone think it might be something else

It is Dark Arches

Half-cocked wrote: »

Caught a Setaceous Hebrew Character last night - didn't realize they were around this early.

They are double brooded.

Half-cocked wrote: »

Got about 30 moths, all the usual suspects except 1 Beauty which escaped before I could decide if it was Willow or Mottled:mad:

I'd mostly likely Mottled. Here Willow has a later flight season, but of course it could be different in your patch

Half-cocked wrote: »

I've ID'd the 2 pics below as Dusky Brocades but stand open to correction:

Top one is, but next one down is Dark Arches. Usually Dark arches is obviously larger than most moths in the trap. If this one was a Dusky Brocade size then it joins the many reports of small moths this year.

Got some Micros too, awful time trying to ID even with the new field guide. Think they are Scoparia ambigualis but possibly pyralella?

I do think it is S. ambigualis, but there probably is some overlap in appearance.

Half-cocked

Mothman wrote: »

Usually Dark arches is obviously larger than most moths in the trap. If this one was a Dusky Brocade size then it joins the many reports of small moths this year.

It was Dusky Brocade size. The other 2 Dark Arches caught the same night were much bigger, hence my confusion with the ID. Glad to hear I'm not the only one with stunted moths;)

littlebug

any id on this one?

[IMG][/img]

Also... is this a Clay?

[IMG][/img]

Mothman

littlebug wrote: »

any id on this one?

1002 Lozotaenia forsterana

Also... is this a Clay?

Map-winged Swift, form gallicus

littlebug

Mothman wrote: »

1002 Lozotaenia forsterana



Map-winged Swift, form gallicus

Thanks. I wouldn't have got either of those. I was looking in all the wrong places!

As well as those two I also had

Gold Spot x1
Miller x1
Heart and Dart x 5
Dusky Brocade x 1
Flame Shoulder x 1
Flame x1
agriphila straminella x 3 (I think)

plus quite a few escapees.

Half-cocked

Over 30 Heart & Dart last night, it starting again!!!

thebishop

Friday night was very windy down here. Moths scarce again.
Burnished-brass x 1.
Buff Ermine x 1.
Poplar Hawk moth x 1.
Peach Blossom x 1.
Flame Shoulder x 1.
Uncertain x 1.
Heart and Dart x 1.

thebishop

Quiet a few of these around Glengarriff today.


Silver Barred Moth by fionbharra, on Flickr

Half-cocked

28 species last night including some micros. Lots of season firsts plus a few brand new for the garden. Having some difficulties IDing a few:

I think this is a Small Mottled Willow?


and a Pale Mottled Willow?


and an oddly coloured Mottled Beauty?


All with Mottled in the name!

Other species caught were:

Common Pug 4
Heart & Dart 29
Poplar Hawkmoth 1
Scoparia ambigualis 9
Garden Carpet 3
Mottled Beauty 3
Dusky Brocade 4
Large Yellow Underwing 2
Common Marbled Carpet 4
Scalloped Hazel 3
Burnished Brass 1
Marbled Minor agg 3
Flame Shoulder 1
White Shouldered House Moth 1
Brown House Moth 1
Light Brown Apple Moth 1
Common Swift 1
Dark Arches 2
Bright Line Brown-eye 1
Scalloped Oak 1
Cinnibar 1
Lozotaenia forsterana 2
Barred Fruit-tree Tortrix 1
Lesser Yellow Underwing 1
Chrysoteuchia culmella 1

littlebug

A promising evening had turned to horrible rain by morning. Still had a few moths.

Cinnabar x1 (surprised me as I'd never seen them round here before)
Heart & Dart x3
White Ermine x 3
Buff Ermine x3
plus a few micros that I ignored due to wanting out of the rain!

Also the two below. I've the first tagged as Light Arches and the second? looks similar but different and darker but maybe just the angle and lighting?

Mothman

littlebug wrote: »

Thanks. I wouldn't have got either of those. I was looking in all the wrong places!

As well as those two I also had

Gold Spot x1
Miller x1
Heart and Dart x 5
Dusky Brocade x 1
Flame Shoulder x 1
Flame x1
agriphila straminella x 3 (I think)

plus quite a few escapees.

A bit early for straminella, so very likely to be Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella)

Half-cocked wrote: »

28 species last night including some micros. Lots of season firsts plus a few brand new for the garden. Having some difficulties IDing a few:

I think this is a Small Mottled Willow?


and a Pale Mottled Willow?


and an oddly coloured Mottled Beauty?
All with Mottled in the name!

I think you have the 3 IDs correct. The Small Mottled Willow is an immigrant from where the recent humid weather has come from.

littlebug wrote: »

Also the two below. I've the first tagged as Light Arches and the second? looks similar but different and darker but maybe just the angle and lighting?

The Light Arches pic is not great, but it looks like it and the other is a Shark!