Chippenham Fen - Field Trip - 29/10/22

I did a last minute trapping effort to my local nature reserve last night.

The conditions were extremely favourable to hopefully tap into the migrant air-flow that we have been experiencing for over a week now, the wind was gusty but never over-powering and there were flat calm moments.

The temperature was truly unseasonal, as I pulled up a few hours late, and after dark at 8pm, with 18 degrees on the car dash, surely something interesting would turn up?

 

Well something did! And some!

I setup 2 traps, my new 62w trap, which is a combination of a vertical u-tube and a 22w circuline fashioned around the outside of the funnel.

I christened it well and truly, with a rare migrant Pyralid sitting on the top of it, a cracking Etiella zinckenella, the second for Cambridgeshire!

Migrants were clearly evident to both traps, with plenty of Plutella xylostella, seven Vestals! and a probable migrant being an unexpected and late Tuta absoluta, this is not on the county list as far as i'm aware. There have been a few coastal records this week which bolsters the probability of it being blown in.

I've retained it incase it needs double checking, but I am fairly confident it is this species (having taken the 1st for Hertfordshire in 2019).

Other notables included my first ever Oak Rustic, such a stunning (rather small) Noctuid, an absolutely mint Scarce Bordered Straw, two species of late-flying Elachista, a late Dingy Footman & Eudonia pallida.

And yet another migrant, a lovely Small Mottled Willow.

Although numbers were fairly low (apart from 40+ Large Wainscot) it was one of those red-letter sessions that I will not forget in a hurry.

 

29/10/22 - Chippenham Fen - East Cambridgeshire - 250w Clear Mercury Robinson Trap and 62w Actinic Trap

Macro Moths

Barred Sallow 1
Beaded Chestnut 1
Black Rustic 1
Brick 1
Chestnut  1
Copper Underwing sp 1
December Moth 3
Dingy Footman 1
Feathered Thorn 5
Green-brindled Crescent 3
Large Wainscot 40+
Merveille du Jour 2
Mottled Umber 1
November Moth sp 20+
Oak Rustic 1
Pine Carpet 2
Pink-barred Sallow 2
Red-green Carpet 8
Sallow 1
Scarce Bordered Straw 1
Small Mottled Willow 1

Small Wainscot 1
Spruce Carpet
Turnip Moth 1
Vestal 7
Vine's Rustic 1
White-point 2
Willow Beauty 1

Micro Moths

Acleris emargana 1
Acleris rhombana 2
Acleris sparsana 3
Agonopterix heracliana sp 1

Bedellia somnulentella 1
Cydalima perspectalis 1

Elachista freyerella 1

Elachista stabilella 1
Epiphyas postvittana 2
Etiella zinckenella 1
Eudonia pallida 1
Nomophila noctuella 2
Plutella xylostella 25
Scrobipalpa ocellatella 2
Scrobipalpa costella 2
Tuta absoluta 1

Etiella zinckenella

Eudonia pallida

Oak Rustic

Scarce Bordered Straw

Small Mottled Willow

Small Wainscot

Tuta absoluta

Vestals!