Bucks Update

After playing away from home last week down in Dorset, I've been back to home trapping and have a few more species to add to my garden list, although I can see my garden is still seriously lagging behind this year...

132. Argyresthia goedartella
133. Roeslerstammia erxlebella
134. Ypsolopha dentella (Honeysuckle Moth)
135. Ypsolopha scabrella
136. Carcena quercana
137. Athrips mouffetella
138. Oegoconia quadripuncta agg.
139. Blastobasis lacticolella
140. Chrysoclista linneella
141. Pandemis corylana (Chequered Fruit-tree Tortrix)
142. Acleris forsskaleana
143. Dichrorampha alpinana
144. Crambus lathoniellus
145. Catoptria pinella
146. Catoptria falsella
147. Phlyctaenia coronata
148. Tracycera suavella
149. Phycita roborella
150. Oak Hook-tip
151. Chinese Character
152. Small Emerald
153. Maiden's Blush
154. Clay Triple-lines
155. Small Fan-footed Wave
156. Common Carpet
157. Phoenix
158. Foxglove Pug
159. Currant Pug
160. Tawny-speckled Pug
161. Clouded Border
162. August Thorn
163. September Thorn
164. Elephant Hawk-moth
165. Sallow Kitten
166. Iron Prominent
167. Pebble Prominent
168. Coxcomb Prominent
169. Pale Prominent
170. Black Arches
171. Hoary Footman
172. Scarce Footman
173. Ruby Tiger
174. Shuttle Shaped Dart
175. Flame Shoulder
176. Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing
177. Bright-line Brown-eye
178. Broad-barred White
179. Brown-line Bright-eye
180. Smoky Wainscot
181. Coronet
182. Marbled Beauty
183. Mouse Moth
184. Dun-bar
185. Cloaked Minor
186. Common Rustic agg.
187. Rustic
188. Nut-tree Tussock

Nice to see some of the stuff I've seen elsewhere much earlier in the year finally making it over the fence :)

Another good month

 Still a trickle of new species arriving in the garden - meaning that July looks like being another good month.

I suppose the highlight recently has been a Grass Emerald which is quite a rarity in VC55 and had not been seen away from its regular haunts for 20 years until this one popped up on the night of the worst thunderstorms and heavy rain.  Much more common but new to the garden trap was a Latticed Heath. I see it day flying locally from time to time, but it had never visited the garden before. The 'small stuff' included Acleris holmiana (only my second),  Aspilapteryx tringipennella and Monochroa lucidella, whilst the Old Lady could certainly not be classed as 'small'.  Silky Wainscot, Small Rufous and White Plume were other very welcome recent visitors - all of which leaves my total on 357 (347 moths and 10 butterflies) 

grahamc (Leicestershire) 24th July 2014

St

Raining Moths

Despite downpours last night (18th July) the moth trap remained busy taking my total to a nice round 333 (325 moths and 8 butterflies). Some recent additions shown below are: Batrachedra praeangusta / Epinotia nisella form decorana / Evergestis limbata (2nd this year) / Oak Eggar (Lasiocampa quercus) (2nd this year) / Slender Brindle (Apamea scolopacina) / The Phoenix (Eulithis prunata)

Creeping up...

In spite of not being around for a few nights and not getting particularly good catches on the nights I have been here, my list has gained a reasonable number of new species over the last two weeks.

97. Leopard Moth (new for my garden all-time list)
98. Ypsolopha dentella (Honeysuckle Moth)
99. Plutella xylostella (Diamond-back Moth)
100. Oegoconia quadripuncta agg.
101. Pandemis heparana (Dark Fruit-tree Tortrix)
102. Clepsis consimilana
103. Cnephasia stephensiana (Grey Tortrix) agg.
104. Celypha striana
105. Epiblema uddmanniana (Bramble Shoot Moth)
106. Crambus pascuella
107. Crambus lathoniellus
108. Acentria ephemerella (Water Veneer)
109. Pleuroptya ruralis (Mother of Pearl)
110. Endotricha flammealis
111. Pterophorus pentadactyla (White Plume Moth)
112. Single-dotted Wave
113. Yellow Shell
114. Phoenix
115. Barred Straw
116. September Thorn
117. Scalloped Oak
118. Swallow-tailed Moth
119. Satin Beauty (new for my all-time garden list)
120. Small Elephant Hawk-moth
121. Lobster Moth
122. Yellow-tail
123. Black Arches
124. Lesser Yellow Underwing
125. True Lover's Knot
126. Bright-line Brown-eye
127. Sycamore (new for my all-time garden list)
128. Dark Arches
129. Light Arches
130. Nut-tree Tussock
131. Waved Black

A few more

Still managing to add a few more most nights - my total is 321 now.  The Lesser Treble-bar was a nice one to add.

grahamc (Leicestershire)

Busy Moth Traps

July has continued to be just as busy as June with over 50 species most days. Garden total 328. Some photos of my favourites

300 up!

June was a record month in my Leicestershire garden, and July has already produced some new species.  Some of the ones that I don't often see include Brown-line Bright-eye, Dingy Shears, Green Arches, Lunar Marbled Brown, Marbled White Spot, Parachronistis albiceps, Semioscopis steinkellneriana, Teleiodes luculella and  Pinion-streaked Snout - but the highlight of the year so far for me was Evergestis limbata only the second record for VC55 - and the first was from my garden too! My present total is 307 (301 moths and 6 butterflies)

Thanks Tristan - having fun!

Flaming June

With quite a lot of work on during the month, I've not had a chance to update on here throughout June, but have been able to keep up my own records - it's been a good month, with the total of individuals in the trap topping 200 on four occasions: the most prolific catch being on the 22nd, when 247 individuals of 70 species showed up.

Possibly the two most notable individuals of the month were both new to the garden: a Metalampra italica on the 21st, and a Toadflax Brocade on the 26th: both of them (the micro especially) quite recent additions to the British list, and expanding their range (and both recorded earlier than mine by Adam Hartley, who posts on this blog and is about a mile south of me). We've also had good catches of hawkmoths (Poplar by a long way the most common, but Elephant and Eyed also showing up quite often), and of course Heart and Dart, Uncertain and Celypha lacunana have been numerous. The pattern of species being rather earlier than in previous years (and in some cases, earlier than field guides would suggest) has continued, with for example our first Mother of Pearl (Pleuroptya ruralis) being found on the 27th, as opposed to 15th July last year.

Perhaps the most spectacular species of the month were our first Beautiful Golden Y on the 8th, and a Lilac Beauty on the 18th, though in some ways it's invidious to pick out a 'favourite'. Anyway - it's been pleasantly busy, and we hope for more from July: June leaves us with a total of 270 all told: 259 moths and eleven butterflies.

Metalampra italica, 21/6/14

Beautiful Golden Y, 8/6/14

Lilac Beauty, 18/6/14

Toadflax Brocade, 26/6/14

Bucks Again

After a week away in Wales, where the garden totals there in just seven nights exceeded my home garden total for the year so far, I am back to my Buckinghamshire garden and have managed to add a few new species since the last report.

84. Dwarf Cream Wave
85. Flame
86. Short-cloaked Moth
87. Buff Footman
88. Heart & Club
89. Common Footman
90. Clouded Silver
91. Least Carpet
92. Small Blood Vein
93. Barred Red
94. July Highflier
95. Double Square-spot
96. Engrailed

 Barred Red

July Highflier