I had both a male and female Orange Swift in my garden moth trap this week, and took a quick photo of them together. The female is not only much larger, but also the dark form.
I tend to record my Copper Underwings as aggs, as I am not confident enough to distinguish between the 2 species. Below is an underside photo of one caught this week. Can one tell which species this is from this view, or do you need to be able to see more of the hindwing?
Finally, I thought the silvery moth below might be a possible candidate for Hoary Footman?
Steve Trigg, Cookham
Yo uwill note that the copper area stops in quite a distinct line. That makes it a Copper underwing. With Svensson's, there is some lingering of copper running upwards and the line, although present, looks more smudged.
ReplyDeleteThe footman is so worn it could be anything, but as I've just chopped 2 Hoary from your latest batch, it could be but would again need the chop.
Many thanks Peter. I don't think I have seen a Svensson's yet in my garden, but I will keep checking the underside of the hindwings.
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