End of the Moth Season

 That's another year garden moth trapping over with the Robinson being retired into the shed. This is my 16th year trapping here. I've still got records to add to my MapMate database but I think all new species are in. 

Several new species arrived this year, something that always surprises me how new moths keep being added after all this time.

Caloptilia honoratella 1 , a First for Northumberland. Always good to get a county first.

Plutella porrectella 2, nice, unexpected too.

Coleophora alcyonipennella Clover Case-bearer 2 only 3 previous county records.

Palpita vitrealis 2 a great year for these in the county. Only 17 records.

Agriphila latistria 1 Only 14 records of this crambid.

Odontosia carmelita Scarce Prominent 1 One of my most wanted moths, a fine fresh one too.

Heliothis peltigera Bordered Straw 1 Everyone was catching these bar me, so was pleased with a nice fresh one. 

Dryobotodes eremita Brindled Green 1, less than 100 ever in the county all further south.

Mythimna vitellina Delicate 2 Only 25 records for the county.

Migrants, but not birds...

 This autumn has been one of the worst I can remember for bird migration. 

We have had nothing much in the way of easterlies and no seawatching since August. This is largely due to the omnipresent southerly or south westerly winds since the last Bank Holiday. To give this some context, my last Manx or Sooty Shearwater was way back on 18th August. No shearwaters in September! Couldnt imagine it, but there it goes. 

I thought that with our hols being a bit earlier this year I would be home for the Yellow browed Warbler arrivals so have had the garden staked out every single day. Nothing. Not only no Yellow brows, but not a Redstart or Pied Fly and no thrushes either. I am hoping there is time yet, but I fear the high pressure stationed for weeks over the Scandinavian area might have allowed the migrants to move straight continental south so even if the wind does swing East there might not be much left for us to get.  

Time will tell.

So back to the post. These southerlies, have given us some nice weather at least, and off that, a few interesting moths too. Without fear of repeating myself, Northumberland is not good for migrant lepidoptera and North Northumberland VC68 is worst of all, so please don't compare these with catches in the south because it will seem trivial. Captions below...

Delicate - First for the garden and only the 25th County. 

Pearly Underwing -my 5th here.

Bordered Straw - my most wanted as everyone else seems to have had one, but this is my first. A stunner.

Dark Swordgrass -After some barren years, this year has seen an upsurge here with 11 so far. My last were 2 in 2021.

Palpita vitrealis. Well pleased to see one in Suffolk last year, so 2 in my garden this year is mindblowing! Only 17 county records.

Scarce Bordered Straw - only 5 prev records here since 2010 but 3 this year is the best showing so far.

Holiday Moths

 Well that's our two weeks holiday in Suffolk over and we are back to work.

We spent the fortnight, as usual, in Westleton, a village only a mile or so from RSPB Minsmere, a place we have visited twelve times since 2002, staying in eight different houses! Its probably enough to say that we like it there.

From a wildlife perspective, I never seem to do very well with the birding, but for insects and other taxa, there is plenty to keep my interest up over multiple visits. Who knows, one day I might even jam in on a good bird !

For this post I just want to get the mothing out of the way. Over two weeks I trapped on 6 nights, missing others due to overnight wind or showers.

There were 9 new species for me, most interestingly were a good few migrants.

Best of all was this Diasemiopsis ramburialis, the Vagrant China Mark. This is a vagrant with only 8 previous Suffolk records.

I think this Pediasia contaminella is new for me? Not found at home.

This Carnation Tortrix Cacoecimorpha pronubana was nice even showing its orange hindwing.

One of my most wanted migrants, Palpita vitrealis came on the final night trapping. What a stunner, smaller than imagined.

This Mallow was quite distinctive when compared to the Shaded Broad Bar which is common at home.

Above, this Hoary Footman was tricky to separate from Scarce Footman but both were caught.

Scarce Footman with the bright darker yellow full length costa.

Feathered Brindle was a nice surprise and off my radar, only the one caught.

Geography sorts out this Deep Brown Dart from our own Northern Deep Brown Dart. Caught a few of these. Back home NDBD is barely annual in small numbers.

Apart from those new to me species, there was also some I am pleased to get on my visits to Suffolk - 

Convolvulus Hawk-moth, three taken on the first two nights, none thereafter. These two in the trap together.

I have only seen one Delicate before, but caught them every time trapping here up to 5 a night,

Scarce Bordered Straw visited 3 times, both pale and dark forms seen.

Neocochylis molliculana Ive had on a previous visit.

As above, Webb's Wainscot has graced the holiday trap before.

So, its always good to take the moth trap on holiday, there is always going to be something of interest in there...

Migrant Moths

 Northumberland and VC68 in particular (North Northumberland) aren't exactly renowned for migrant lepidoptera. We get a few but nothing like what can occur in the south . Apart from Silver Ys and Diamond backs most other things cause a raised eyebrow at least.

Last autumn was quite good in my garden for migrants with a few good arrivals, in particular Scarce Bordered Straw, Hummingbird Hawkmoths and Beet Moth. Now that we are three parts through August we are starting to see a few more migrants arriving here, so hopes are high that it might become another good season.

Last night a nice arrival came with 25 Silver Y and single Vestal, only my second in 14 years, Rusty dot Pearl, Rush Veneer and Diamond back. Earlier in the month my first Great Brocade for 5 years was a surprise too. Here's to more of the same, but there is one mystery.  Where have the Dark Swordgrass gone? We used to get them most autumns with good years like 2011 when I had 13 over the year. Its almost 2 years since the last in my garden...

Diamond backed Moth

Rush Veneer

Rusty Dot Pearl

Silver Y

Vestal

Great Brocade

 

  

Rare moths...

 As I am writing about something as trivial as moths, an ill old lady has the eyes of the world trained on her health up in Scotland. Will this be the end of an era? Time will tell...

It feels like I shouldn't be doing this at the minute but without any disrespect, the world turns.

Back to garden insects.

The other day I posted some pics of a lovely Convolvulous Hawk-moth I'd found on the road verge. Well, almost daily since then, rare and scarce migrant moths have been found in my moth trap. Its a novelty here as we are a long way north for moth migration.

Here they are - 

4th Sept

I've been looking for Beet Moth (Scrobipalpa ocellatella) this week without luck until this morning. I saw Tom and Ian both had first and second Northumberland records respectively so I was pleased to come in bronze position when I saw the target on the second tray from the trap.

This is where things go belly up... I got a pot and was about to pot the moth when I noticed another, larger micro near it. A pyralid.

My hesitation cost dearly as the Beet Moth flew off and away up the drive! Bugger.

Now, getting back to the cause of my distraction, the pyralid was duly potted. I knew I had not seen this species before so was keen to get on with identifying.

Imagine the shock when I find the moth in the Manley Guide and double check it on various moth sites etc and see it is very unexpected indeed. This time a gold medal winner, a first for Northumberland and a 'very local' species nationally.

Here it is -

1. Ancylosis oblitella Saltmarsh Knot-horn

Ancylosis oblitella

Knowing the invasive Beet Moths were out there, the trap was deployed again the next night. Sure enough, my 2nd and 3rd Beet Moths were secured this time. Firsts for vc68, 5th and 6th for Northumberland.

2. Beet Moth (Scrobipalpa ocellatella)

Beet Moth (Scrobipalpa ocellatella)

Accompanied by a few Rush Veneers as support.

Then as if to top it off on 6th the first moth I saw in the trap was this belter, a dark form of Box Tree Moth, another first for vc68 ( are you keeping up, 3 vc firsts in 3 nights!) but around the 16th for Northumberland as a whole ( vc67 and 68). It was accompanied by another 2 Beet Moths, my 4th and 5th.

3. Box Tree Moth

Box Tree Moth

Finally, last night I left the magic light on again. No tales of Oleanders or Beautiful Marbleds but another good migrant, a Scarce Bordered Straw, only my 3rd  ever and again with a Beet Moth. My 6th. 

4. Scarce Bordered Straw

Scarce Bordered Straw

So what a good mothing week its been, maybe my best. I wonder if there is anything else to catch out there?

Migrant Moths

 

Vestal was new for the garden moth trap on 23rd October, a rare migrant.

Behe-moth..

Last night was warm and muggy with some drizzle and overcast skies. Ideal for a big moth catch. I didnt realise just how big though til this morning when I did the count. I had 1197 moths of only 48 species in one trap! A record count for me here.

Pity about it though was that it wasnt a pretty sight. The whole Robinson was choc-a-bloc with Large Yellow Underwings, a minimum count revealing 868 of the blighters!

However, a wade through them did produce some tasty records -

Great Brocade, only my second after one on 24th July 2011. A scarce migrant.

Archer's Dart. Annual here but only in odd ones each year. What a belter!

Butterbur. My 7th in 6 years, once believed to be almost uncatchable at light...