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Sunday, 26 October 2014

Nice records from Chorleywood

The 125wt trap run nightly by Richard Ellis in his garden at Chorleywood (just inside VC24 Bucks) has yet again come up trumps with some interesting moths and they are illustrated below.  The Four-spotted Footman was caught on 15th October.  There are about half a dozen previous records for Bucks, including a couple since the millennium (Turville Heath in September 2006 and Loosley Row in October 2013).  However, the smart Red Sword-grass caught two nights ago on 24th October hasn't been seen in Bucks for 42 years!  The last known record was from 19th March 1972 when one was caught in the Rothamsted Insect Survey trap then being run in Howe Park Wood, Milton Keynes.  Prior to that there are three undated sightings mentioned in Sir Eric Ansorge's book (Buckingham and Naphill without further details and Eton in 1960). 

Four-spotted Footman, Chorleywood 15th October

Red Sword-grass, Chorleywood 24th October
  
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3 comments:

  1. Andrew King26 October 2014 at 11:41

    There is some discussion about the Red Swordgrass on hertsmothgroup@yahoogroups.com:
    A group you have to join, like this one.
    Andy King.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dave Wilton26 October 2014 at 12:17

    Thanks Andy. Just in case anyone thinks this means the record itself is being questioned (!), that is not the case - it is simply a discussion about how topography might affect migrants. Much the same as Steve Nash's comments two weeks ago about Fernham at the western end of VC22 Berkshire (http://upperthamesmoths.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/fernham-to-make-return.html), Chorleywood seems to be on a migration highway.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Andrew King26 October 2014 at 18:04

    No, indeed, absolutely not questioning the record!! Perhaps I should rephrase it:
    I did mean a debate on moth migration.
    Andy.

    ReplyDelete

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