Breaking records

Breaking records, and not just temperature records, moth records as well! With some extremely high overnight temperatures from mid last week, the heat continued to build each day.

It was to be the biggest garden catch on Tuesday night here in my garden, although sleep depravation was kicking in a bit, what with working out in this heat during the day and then struggling to sleep.

The list was more like a field trip by the morning.

I decided to do a full count of species, not quite stretching to a full count of individuals though.. I did have to work the next day!

A grand total of 165 species was noted, a garden record smashing the previous best of 122.  

Obscure Wainscot was new for the garden, expected eventually I suppose and moth no.940. Sadly it was a bit of a ratty ole' specimen. 

An interesting Epiblema species was retained, which looks good for cnicicolana, which will be dissected in due course.

I've also had word back from Peter Hall, whom has looked at the dissection preparation from Graeme Smith back in 2021, when I took a similar looking moth at nearby Chippenham Fen.

He has confirmed that it was indeed Epiblema cnicicolana, and a new moth for Eastern/South Eastern England, result!

 

Some great macro moth species were recorded on the night including, Rosy Footman, the always beautiful Scarce Silver-lines and a worn Four-dotted Footman (2nd garden record and last seen in 2022).  

 

Micros were made up of mainly 50+ Yponomeuta and 30+ of various grass moths. Chilo phragmitella, Grapholita lobarzewskii and a tiny Sorhagenia species were the pick of a very good bunch. 

 

Moth garden list for 2026 stands at 503 species 

 

23/06/26 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

 

Macro Moths - 85 species
 

Blue-bordered Carpet 2 [NFY]
Four-dotted Footman 1 [NFY]
Kent Black Arches 1 [NFY]
Obscure Wainscot 1 [NFG]
Rosy Footman 2 [NFY]
Rustic 3 [NFY]
Scarce Silver-lines 1 [NFY]
Barred Straw 
Barred Yellow 
Brimstone Moth 
Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 
Broad-barred White 
Brown-tail 
Brown-line Bright-eye 
Buff Ermine 
Buff-tip 
Burnished Brass 
Chinese Character 
Cinnabar 
Clancy's Rustic 
Clay
Clouded Border 
Clouded Silver 
Common Carpet 
Common Emerald 
Common Footman 
Common Pug
Common Wainscot 
Coronet 
Cypress Carpet 
Engrailed 
Dark Arches 
Dark Umber 
Double-striped Pug 
Dun-bar
Dwarf Cream Wave 
Elephant Hawk-moth 
Flame
Foxglove Pug 
Garden Carpet 
Ghost Moth 
Green Pug 
Grey Dagger 
Heart & Club 
Heart & Dart 
Hummingbird Hawk-moth (Daytime on verbena)
L-album Wainscot 
Large Nutmeg
Large Yellow Underwing 
Latticed Heath 
Least Carpet 
Lesser Yellow Underwing 
Leopard Moth 
Light Arches 
Lime-speck Pug 
Marbled Clover 
Marbled Minor 
Mottled Rustic 
Nutmeg 
Pale Mottled Willow 
Peppered Moth 
Poplar Grey 
Poplar Hawk-moth 
Privet Hawk-moth 
Riband Wave 
Scalloped Oak 
Scarce Footman 
Scarlet Tiger 
Scorched Carpet 
Setaceous Hebrew Character 
Shuttle-shaped Dart 
Small Blood-vein 
Small Dusty Wave 
Small Elephant Hawk-moth 
Small Fan-footed Wave 
Small Mottled Willow 
Smoky Wainscot 
Southern Wainscot 
Swallow-tailed Moth 
Sycamore 
Tawny Marbled Minor 
Uncertain 
Varied Coronet 
Willow Beauty 
Yellow Shell 

Micro Moths - 80 species

Archips rosana 1 [NFY]
Argyresthia pruniella 1 [NFY]
Aspila lobarzewskii 1 [NFY]
Blastobasis adustella 1 [NFY]
Chilo phragmitella 1 [NFY]
Coleophora betulella 1 [NFY]
Dichomeris alacella 1 [NFY]
Grapholita lobarzewskii 1 [NFY]
Epiblema sp 1 (TBC)
Nematopogon metaxella 1 [NFY]
Pammene fasciana 1 [NFY]
Recurvaria leucatella 1 [NFY]
Sorhagenia sp 2 [NFY]
Teleiodes vulgella 1 [NFY]
Achroia grisella 1
Acleris schalleriana 
Acrobasis advenella 
Aethes beatricella 
Agapeta hamana 
Agonopterix alstromeriana 
Anania hortulata 
Anarsia innoxiella 
Ancylis achatana 
Aphomia sociella 
Archips podana 
Archips xylosteana
Argyresthia albistria  
Aspila janthinana 
Blastobasis lacticolella 
Bryotropha terrella 
Carpatolechia fugivitella 
Celypha lacunana 
Celypha striana 
Chrysoteuchia culmella 
Clepsis consimilana 
Cnephasia sp
Coleophora alcyonipennella frischella 
Crambus pascuella 
Crambus perlella 
Crambus lathoniellus 
Crassa unitella 
Cydia fagiglandana 
Cydia pomonella 
Ditula angustiorana 
Elophila nymphaeata 
Endotricha flammealis
Endothenia gentianeana marginana 
Ephestia sp 
Epinotia abbreviana 
Epiphyas postvittana 
Ethmia dodecea 
Eucosma cana 
Eucosma conterminana
Eucosma metzneriana 
Eudonia lacustrata
Evergestis limbata 
Gypsonoma dealbana
Hofmannophila pseudospretella 
Homoeosoma nebulella 
Homoeosoma sinuella 
Hypsopygia costalis 
Lozotaeniodes formosana 
Mompha subbistrigella 
Monopis crocicapitella 
Neocochylis dubitana 
Neocochylis hybridella 
Oegoconia sp 
Pandemis cerasana 
Paraswammerdamia nebulella 
Pexicopia malvella
Phycita roborella 
Piniphila bifasciana 
Plutella xylostela
Scythropia crataegella 
Sitochroa verticalis 
Spilonota ocellana 
Tinea trinotella 
Vitula biviella 
Yponomeuta evonynella 
Yponomeuta cag mal pad

 

Sorhagenia sp

Argyresthia pruniella

Blastobasis adustella

Chilo phragmitella

Coleophora betulella

Dichomeris alacella

Epiblema sp

Rosy Footman

Scarce Silver-lines

Dusky Clearwing(s)

They're back! And what an entrance. I have never had more than one Dusky Clearwing in a day (peak was 11 specimens on 11 different days between late June and mid August in 2022) last year I only caught a couple. To get 4 today is incredible. Fordham, East Cambs to TAB lure.

 

 

wAARRm

Extremely warm these past few days, with humidity through the roof even during the day, which is unusual for so early on in the summer.

 

Monday night was the start of the proper heatwave here, with highs just touching the 30's, but it was the night time temperatures that were the most surprising.

With clear skies, generally the nights go a little cool, but this isn't the case currently as there is such a warm air mass pulsing up from southern Europe, that it is only dropping to around 20 degrees which is rather insane for this country, a tropical night they call it here.

 

Rising at 3am the temperature was still 20.6c, probably warmest night of the year so far (but that could be broken this week yet).

 

The moths, bugs, beetles and flies were everywhere! It was actually quite hard to get near the trap, especially with the May bugs crashing around everywhere, the odd Cockchafer still hanging on here, though being rapidly replaced with 10's of Summer Chafers.

 

Moths were quickly potted up and popped in the fridge to cool down and photograph later that day.

 

I didn't do a full count due to time constraints, but from what I saw there were at least 70 species in and around the trap.

 

Best moths included Anarsia spartiella & Myelois circumvoluta (Both 2nd garden records) 

 

And also some quality macro moths such as several Brown-line Bright-eye and the uncommon Double Lobed. 

 

Once again, just the new ones were listed. 

 

 

Moth garden list for 2026 stands at 483 species 

 

22/06/26 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

 

Macro Moths
 

Brown-line Bright-eye 4 [NFY]

Double Lobed 1 [NFY]

Micro Moths

Acrobasis suavella 1 [NFY]
Anarsia spartiella 1 [NFY]
Eucosma metzneriana 1 [NFY]
Eucosma obumbratana 1 [NFY]
Eudemis profundana 1 [NFY]
Galleria mellonella 1 [NFY]
Lobesia abscisana 1 [NFY]
Myelois circumvoluta 1 [NFY]
Patania ruralis 1 [NFY]

 

Anarsia spartiella

Brown-line Bright-eye

Double Lobed

Eucosma metzneriana

Eucosma obumbratana

Eudemis profundana

Galleria mellonella

Heart & Club

Lobesia abscisana

 

Chippenham Fen - Field Trip - 19th June

I made a trip with good village friend Leslie Gardiner, whom joined me for a session down our local fen.

The day had been very warm with highs nudging 30 degrees, and it was set to be a warm and humid night despite clear skies.

Before setting up, our attention was drawn to the tree-tops, where the sky was filled with moths, I had never seen anything quite like it before.

Leslie handed me his long handled net and I managed to finally net one after many misses. I thought they were maybe Cinnabar, Leslie thought Scarlet tiger, and he wasn't wrong, then o no... were we in for a repeat of last year? where I recorded around 2500 over 5 lights.

 

The answer was yes, though not as plague-like as last year.

 

There were probably still several hundred per trap come packing up time, so it made it really difficult sorting and sifting. 

 

A great haul of moths with 238 species counted over 4 hours of trapping.

 

Moth of the night was yet another Monopis fenestratella, the third I've taken this year (2 here and 1 at home). It must be breeding locally, a seriously rare moth nationally.

 

Other unusual moths wowed, like the odd looking Orthotelia sparganella and the extremely wacky Stathmopoda pedella.

 

But I couldn't forget about one certain cracking little moth, an absolute belting Monopis obviella which was very vivid in colouration.

 

The site continues to support an incredible diversity of lepidoptera. 

 

19/06/26 - Chippenham Fen - East Cambridgeshire - 1x 125w Clear MV Trap, 1x 250w Clear Robinson Trap, 1x 40w/22w Bucket Trap & 1x 160w MBT Trap

Macro Moths

Barred Straw 
Barred Yellow 
Beautiful Hook-tip 
Blackneck 
Blue-bordered Carpet 
Bordered Beauty 
Bordered White 
Brimstone Moth
Brown Rustic 
Brown Scallop 
Brown-tail 
Buff Arches
Buff Ermine 
Buff-tip 
Clouded Border 
Clouded Brindle 
Clouded Silver 
Common Carpet 
Common Emerald 
Common Footman 
Common Pug 
Common Swift
Common Wainscot 
Common Wave 
Common White Wave
Coronet
Cream-bordered Green Pea 
Dark Arches 
Delicate 
Dotted Fan-foot 
Double Square-spot 
Double-striped Pug 
Drinker 
Dun-bar 
Dwarf Cream Wave 
Elephant Hawk-moth 
Engrailed
Eyed Hawk-moth 
Fan-foot 
Fern
Figure of Eighty
Flame Shoulder 
Flame Wainscot 
Four-dotted Footman 
Ghost Moth 
Goat Moth 
Green Carpet 
Green Pug
Green Silver-lines 
Grey Pug 
Haworth's Pug
Heart & Club 
Heart & Dart
Iron Prominent 
Kent Black Arches 
Large Twin-spot Carpet 
Large Yellow Underwing 
Latticed Heath 
Least Carpet 
Leopard Moth 
Light Arches 
Light Emerald 
Lime Hawk-moth 
Lunar Yellow Underwing 
Marbled Clover 
Marbled Minor 
Marbled White-spot 
Mere Wainscot 
Middle-barred Minor 
Miller 
Mottled Beauty
Mottled Rustic 
Pale Oak Beauty
Pale Prominent 
Peppered Moth 
Pine Hawk-moth 
Pinion-streaked Snout 
Poplar Grey 
Poplar Hawk-moth 
Pretty Chalk Carpet 
Reed Leopard 
Riband Wave 
Rosy Footman 
Ruby Tiger 
Sallow Kitten 
Scarce Footman 
Scarlet Tiger 
Setaceous Hebrew Character 
Shaded Broad-bar 
Short-cloaked Moth 
Silky Wainscot 
Silver Barred 
Silver Y 
Single-dotted Wave 
Slender Brindle 
Small Dotted Buff 
Small Dusty Wave 
Small Elephant Hawk-moth 
Small Fan-footed Wave 
Small Seraphim 
Smoky Wainscot 
Snout
Southern Wainscot 
Straw Dot 
Striped Wainscot 
Swallow-tailed Moth 
Tawny Marbled Minor 
Treble Brown Spot
Uncertain 
V Pug 
White Ermine 
Willow Beauty 
Yellow Shell 
Yellow-tail 

Micro Moths

Achroia grisella
Acentria emphemerella 
Acleris forskalleana 
Acrobasis repandana 
Adaina microdactyla 
Aethes tesserana 
Agapeta hamana 
Agapeta zoegana 
Agonopterix alstromeriana 
Aleimma loeflingiana 
Anacampsis blattariella/populella
Anania hortulata 
Anania perlucidalis 
Ancylis achatana 
Aphomia sociella 
Apotomis betuletana 
Archips podana 
Archips rosana
Archips xylosteana 
Argyresthia albistria 
Aspila janthinana 
Batia lunaris 
Batrachedra praeangusta
Blastobasis lacticolella
Blastodacna hellerella 
Brachmia blandella 
Brachmia inornatella 
Bucculatrix albedinella
Bucculatrix cidarella 
Caloptilia semifascia 
Caloptilia stigmatella 
Carpatolechia fugivitella 
Cataclysta lemnata
Celypha lacunana 
Celypha striana 
Chilo phragmitella 
Chrysoteuchia culmella 
Clepsis consimilana 
Coleophora alcyonipennella/frischella
Cosmopterix lienigiella
Cosmopterix scribaiella
Crambus lathoniellus 
Crambus pascuella 
Crambus perlella 
Crassa unitella 
Cydalima perspectalis 
Cydia fagiglandana 
Cydia nigricana 
Ditula angustiorana 
Elachista atricomella 
Emmelina monodactyla 
Endothenia ericetana 
Ephestia sp 
Epiblema foenella 
Epinotia abbreviana 
Epinotia bilunana 
Epinotia signatana 
Epinotia tenerana 
Ethmia dodecea 
Ethmia quadrilella 
Eucosma cana 
Eucosma conterminana 
Eucosma hohenwartiana 
Eudonia lacustrata 
Eudonia pallida 
Euzophera pinguis 
Evergestis limbata 
Glyphipterix thrasonella 
Gypsonoma dealbana 
Gypsonoma sociana 
Hedya nubiferana 
Hedya pruniana 
Hedya salicella 
Hofmannophila pseudospretella 
Homoeosoma sinuella
Hypsopygia costalis 
Lobesia abscisana 
Metzneriana lappella
Mompha epilobiella 
Mompha ochraceella 
Mompha subbistrigella 
Monopis obiviella

Monopis fenestratella 
Neocochylis hybridella 
Neocochylis molliculana 
Nephopterix angustella
Niditinea fuscella Strioella 
Notocelia trimaculana 
Notocelia uddmanniana 
Nubilalis Ostrinia 
Nymphula nitidulata
Nymphula nitidulata
Pammene fasciana 
Pandemis cerasana 
Pandemis heparana 
Parapoynx stratiotata 
Paraswammerdamia albicapitella 
Parornix sp
Pexicopia malvella
Phycitodes binaevella 
Phyllonorycter klemannella
Piniphila bifasciana 
Plutella xylostella 
Prays fraxinella 
Pseudargyrotoza conwagana 
Ptherochroa inopiana 
Ptherophorus pentadactyla 
Pyrausta despicata 
Rhopobota naevana 
Scoparia basistrigalis 
Scoparia pyralella 
Scoparia subfusca 
Scrobipalpa ocellatella 
Scythropia crataegella 
Sorhagenia sp
Spilonota ocellana 
Syncopacma sp
Teloides luculella 
Teloides vulgella 
Tinea trinotella 
Tortrix viridana 
Vitula biviella 
Yponomeuta cag/mal/pad

 

Valerian Pug

Aethes tesserana

Double Lobed

Elachista gleichenella

Evergestis extimalis

Monopis fenestratella

Monopis obviella

Nascia cilialis

Orthotelia sparganella

Rhyacionia pinicolana

Stathmopoda pedella

 

Heatwave incoming

The heat started to build once more over the weekend, with highs of around 28 degrees, and getting close to the heatwave threshold for the east (Which I believe is 29 degrees or above).

A great selection of moths were observed on Saturday night including two new for garden species.

The first was Dusky Brocade, a moth I take occasionally locally at the fen and probably expected eventually. A common moth many years ago but has seen a rapid decline in recent times.  

The other was a smaller moth in the Tortrix family, Aethes cnicana, a moth of wasteland and grassland, the larvae feeding from thistles, so should be common?

In total, around 60 species were seen, maybe more. Of that amount, 15 were new!

It's quite remarkable that we aren't even in July yet and I'm nearly at 500 species for the year. 675 is the yearly best which was set last year, could it be beaten? we'll see. 

Other lovely moths included a stunning Large Emerald, two of the similar Pug species (Currant & Wormwood, nice to see the comparison between the two).

A few migrants were seen, including a really poorly Rush Veneer which was the first seen this year, backed up by several Plutella xylostella, 1 Rusty-dot Pearl and 1 Small Mottled Willow.

Things are going from hot to ridiculously hot now, where we will see the June temperature record not just broken, but smashed.

 

Moth garden list for 2026 stands at 472 species 

 

20/06/26 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

 

Macro Moths
 

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 1 [NFY]

Currant Pug 1 [NFY]

Dusky Brocade 1 [NFG]

Large Emerald 1 [NFY]

Marbled White Spot 1 [NFY]

Wormwood Pug 1 [NFY]


Micro Moths

Acleris variegana 1 [NFY]

Aethes cnicana 1 [NFG] 

Caloptilia cuculipennella 1 [NFY]

Caloptilia rufipennella 1 [NFY]

Metzneria lappella 2 [NFY]

Nomophila noctuella 1 [NFY] 

Phycitodes binaevella 1 [NFY]

Phyllonorycter comparella 1 [NFY]

Rhopobota naevana 1 [NFY]

Scoparia basistrigalis 1 [NFY] 

 

Dusky Brocade

Large Emerald

Phyllonorycter comparella

Wormwood Pug

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Caloptilia cuculipennella

Caloptilia rufipennella

Caloptilia semifascia

 

 

 

The never-ending warmth

Another good catch on Friday night here in the east.

I set the trap up at 9pm, switched on then made tracks to my local nature reserve for some mobile mothing.

Upon returning back home at 2am, I decided to go through my garden trap and shut it down and go to bed, it was already starting to get light in the east at this point! 

Numbers were quite impressive for certain species, but actual species weren't as high as expected given the 19 degrees.

Maybe it is too hot? As there weren't many Noctuids to be found, micros were the main theme, they seem to tolerate these extreme conditions more than the bigger moths I find.

 

Moth of the night was a nice Yarrow Pug, not one of common Pug species here.

 

Still extremely humid overnight even when we have clear skies!

 

There are many weather models now hinting that Tuesday to Thursday here could be between 35 and 38 degrees!!

 

Moth garden list for 2026 stands at 456 species 

 

19/06/26 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

 

Macro Moths
 

Common White Wave 1 [NFY]

Double Square-spot 1 [NFY]

Yarrow Pug 1 [NFY]


Micro Moths

Acrobasis advenella 1 [NFY]

Dichrorampha alpinana/flavidorsana 1 [NFY]

Gypsonoma sociana 1 [NFY]

Hypsopygia glaucinalis 1 [NFY]

Phycita roborella 1 [NFY]

Acrobasis advenella

Common White Wave

Dichrorampha alpinana flavidorsana

Double Square-spot

Hypsopygia glaucinalis

Phycita roborella

Yarrow Pug

So warm, so humid

Well what a heatwave we are experiencing currently.

After those warm two weeks at the end of May, it wasn't long before we were back into even higher temperatures here in the east.

Friday was another warm day in excess of 31 degrees here, and with nighttime lows of 18.3c the trap was pretty busy with species and numbers, with over 20 Leopard Moths once more, and 40+ Common Footman.

The micros have really excelled here, with huge variety.

 

During the daytime several Red-belted and Currant Clearwings came to different lures, I haven't gone all out with lures this year, favouring trying unusual lures rather than the standard clearwing ones.

I've still got TAB and SAL out though, for Dusky and Sallow Clearwing.

 

Back to the overnight catch and wowzers, it was pretty mental.

 

I'll list the highlights briefly below.

 

Small Marbled - A garden first and one I've not seen for 15 years! Back in 2011 I took the 2nd & 3rd Hertfordshire county records. How I managed to find it I do not know. I went through my trap at 3:30, back to bed at 4am and then up again at 6:30, sweeping the dead flies from the patio I saw a tiny pale moth and blow me down, a little Small Marbled!

 

Coleophora albidella/anatipennella - Another garden first species, one of two that I could narrow it down to, a beautiful white Coleophora species that actually behaved itself and was quite photogenic.

 

Nemapogon ruricolella - An uncommon visitor here, usually to the Clearwing lures, but this alighted at my actinic trap. A fairly distinct moth, separated from variatella by it's ochreous ground colour and buff head (white in variatella) it is also a little bigger than the similar cloacella. 

 

Coleophora violacea - After a spate of this species to pheremone lures in 2022, I saw none until Thursday night when out of the blue, I netted one. A distinct dark green species with black antennae that feature white tips. 

 

A fantastic time to be recording moths, but It's blooming tiring! 

 

Moth garden list for 2026 stands at 448 species 

 

18/06/26 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

 

Macro Moths

Brown-tail 1 [NFY]
Dun-bar 1 [NFY]
Scalloped Oak 1 [NFY]
Small Marbled 1 [NFG]
Currant Clearwing 2 (To TIP lure)
Red-belted Clearwing 4 (1 to SAL & 3 to LOR lure)

Micro Moths

Acleris forsskaleana 1 [NFY]
Acrobasis repandana 1 [NFY]
Catoptria pinella 1 [NFY]
Coleophora albidella/anatipennella 1 [NFY]
Coleophora vestianella 1 [NFY]
Coleophora violacea 1 [NFY] (netted)
Cydia nigricana 2 [NFY] (netted)
Ectoedemia hannoverella/turbidella 1 [NFY]
Lozotaeniodes formosana 2 [NFY]
Nemapogon ruricolella 1 [NFY]
Oegoconia sp 2 [NFY]
Paraswammerdamia nebulella 1 [NFY]
Tinea columbariella 2 [NFY]
Zeiraphera isertana 1 [NFY]

 

Acleris forsskaleana

Acrobasis repandana

Brown-tail

Coleophora albidella/anatipennella

Coleophora vestianella

Dun-bar

Ectoedemia hannoverella/turbidella

Lozotaeniodes formosana

Nemapogon ruricolella

Small Marbled

Zeiraphera isertana