Welcome

Hello and welcome to my moth Blog. I now reside in a small village in East Cambridgeshire called Fordham. My Blog's aim is to promote and encourage others to participate in the wonderful hobby that is Moth-trapping.
Moth records are vital for building a picture of our ecosystem around us, as they really are the bottom of the food chain. They are an excellent early indicator of how healthy a habitat is. I openly encourage people to share their findings via social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
So why do we do it? well for some people it is to get an insight into the world of Moths, for others it is to build a list of species much like 'Twitching' in the Bird world. The reason I do it....you just never know what you might find when you open up that trap! I hope to show what different species inhabit Cambridgeshire and neighbouring counties.
On this Blog you will find up-to-date records and pictures.
I run a trap regularly in my garden and also enjoy doing field trips to various localities over several different counties.
Please also check out the links in the sidebar to the right for other people's Blogs and informative Websites.
Thanks for looking and happy Mothing!

KEY

NFY = New Species For The Year
NFG = New Species For The Garden
NEW! = New Species For My Records

Any Species highlighted in RED signifies a totally new species for my records.

If you have any questions or enquiries then please feel free to email me
Contact Email : bensale@rocketmail.com

My Latest Notables and Rarities

Friday 29 April 2022

Chippenham Fen - Field Trip - 23/04/22

Another early season effort at my local haunt, and I was really up against it with the wind and cooling temperatures, but you just never know what might turn up... even on the seemingly rubbish nights.
 
The wind abated and became lighter but gusted every few minutes, it was also from the east and not ideal.

I set 3 traps up and waited, only 1 trap (the least exposed one hidden behind a fallen tree) did well, but the other two were pretty dire.
 
Still, 20 species was more than I expected, most were netted around the secluded trap.

The best moth of the night was actually in the car headlights on the way out of the reserve! a rather nice Semioscopsis steinkelleriana, and one I don't see regularly.

Two Phyllonorycter were retained for dissection.


23/04/22 - Chippenham Fen - East Cambridgeshire - 3 traps, 125w Mercury Robinson Trap, 250w Clear Mercury Robinson Trap and Actinic Trap


Macro Moths

Brimstone Moth 1
Brindled Pug 1
Double-striped Pug 4
Hebrew Character 1
Lunar Marbled Brown 1
Nut-tree Tussock 12
Oak-tree Pug 5
Pebble Hook-tip 1
Pebble Prominent 1
Purple Thorn 2
Red Twin-spot Carpet 4
Water Carpet 1
Yellow-barred Brindle 1

Micro Moths
 
Cameraria ohridella 15
Dyseriocrania subpurpurella 1
Epinotia immundana 1
Parornix sp 2
Phyllonorycter sp 2
Semioscopis steinkellneriana 1
Tinea trinotella 1 

125w MV Robinson Trap in shelter

Phyllonorycter sp

Phyllonorycter sp

Red Twin-spot Carpet

Semioscopis steinkellneriana


 

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