A change in weather yields a new moth

Wednesday (and as per a previous post) I was scheduled to go out but in brief my wife wasn't very well and the weather was a little iffy after a huge thunderstorm on Tuesday night with some localised downpours.

Conditions seemed better on Wednesday but the expected temperature of 28 degrees never materialised and we topped out at 22 degrees here, which is still relatively respectful.

The trap was set-up with the rain cover firmly on expecting more rain, which did come at some point in the night.

By the morning, the catch was quite pleasing with a new Tortrix moth for me and always a sweetner adding it to the garden list, Adoxophyes orana the Summer Fruit Tortrix and making it the 1st County record for Hertfordshire!

Other nice moths included a year first Tree-lichen Beauty, a moth that is increasing its range across the Country and the last 3 years it has been recorded from my garden.

Chinese Character was also very welcome and I have had just one record in 2013 and 2015 so far, so as you can see it is a bi-yearly singleton species and very consistent. 

Mompha propinquella returned after a 4 year absence, a pretty unusual little moth that is very photogenic.

Also I’m pretty sure I have both Acleris laterana and comariana, the latter a rare moth in Herts having caught the second County record many years ago on the farm, laterana would be a year first and comariana would be a garden first. Both will need dissecting to be 100% the photos look convincing. 

Epiblema costipunctana was back after its debut year last year, a thistle feeder and a most welcome second garden record.

And finally Zelleria hepariella was a new species of Micro Moth for the garden having recently recorded one at Scales Part in North-east Herts, not a common moth for me I must add. 

As I finish typing, Saturday has been a complete wash-out and last night's catch was completely sodden...more on that soon.

Catch Report - 19/07/17 - Back Garden - Stevenage - 1x 125w MV Robinson Trap

 

Macro Moths

1x Chinese Character [NFY]

1x Tree-lichen Beauty [NFY]

1x Bright-line Brown-eye

3x Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

1x Buff Footman

2x Common Footman

11x Common Rustic

1x Common Wainscot

1x Dark Arches

1x Dingy Footman

2x Dot Moth

2x Dun-bar 

2x Elephant Hawk-moth

1x Grey Dagger

1x Haworth's Pug

1x Heart & Dart

1x July Highflyer

2x Least Carpet

2x Maple Pug

1x Mottled Beauty

1x Mottled Rustic

2x Nut-tree Tussock

1x Poplar Hawk-moth

1x Purple Thorn 

1x Red Twin-spot Carpet

14x Riband Wave

1x Rustic 

3x Scarce Footman

1x Scalloped Oak

2x Silver-Y

1x Smoky Wainscot

1x V-Pug

6x Uncertain

1x Yellow-tail

Micro Moths

1x Adoxophyes orana [NEW!]

1x Zelleria hepariella [NFG]

2x Acleris laterana/comariana [NFY] 

1x Agriphila tristella [NFY]

1x Eucosma conterminana [NFY]

1x Eucosma hohenwartiana [NFY] 

1x Mompha propinquella [NFY]

4x Pammene regiana

1x Prays fraxinella

1x Acleris forsskaleana  

1x Acrobasis advenella

2x Acrobasis suavella

10x Agriphila straminella

11x Blastobasis adustella

2x Chrysoteuchia culmella

1x Coleophora sp

2x Cameraria ohridella

1x Cnephasia sp

3x Cydia spledana 

7x Endotricha flammealis

18x Eudonia lacustrata

3x Eudonia mercurella

1x Euzophera pinguis

2x Oegoconia sp

1x Pammene aurita

2x Pandemis heparana

9x Pleuroptya ruralis 

2x Plutella xylostella

6x Spilonota ocellana

9x Yponomeuta evonymella

 

Adoxophyes orana

Agriphila tristella

Chinese Character

Epiblema costipunctana

Eucosma conterminana

Acleris laterana & comariana?

Mompha propinquella

Tree-lichen Beauty

Zelleria hepariella