Micro No.1

I didn't have the time or patience to get a decent well-lit picture of this delightful little chap, but you get the gist from the image below.  Micropterix tunbergella is the first moth in the Bradley & Fletcher listing (and retains pole position for those who have adopted the more recent Agassiz list).  It came to light on the chalk grassland of Brush Hill above Princes Risborough, Bucks last night along with about 40 other species, of which Incurvaria masculella, Plutella xylostella, Blastobasis lacticolella, Pammene argyrana, Small Waved Umber, Yellow-barred Brindle, Scorched Carpet, Sallow Kitten, Poplar Kitten, Iron Prominent, Lobster Moth, Setaceous Hebrew Character & Miller were new to me for this year.  Also a welcome visitor was that "honorary moth", the smart brown lace-wing Drepanepteryx phalaenoides.

Micropterix tunbergella, Brush Hill 8th May

 

Pammene argyrana, Brush Hill 8th May

Lace-wing Drepanepteryx phalaenoides, Brush Hill 8th May

Dave Wilton
Westcott, Bucks