A migrant at last

In rather mediocre conditions I was quite pleased with the results from the garden last night.  Hiding behind all the crane-flies and Lunar Underwings in the actinic trap was a smart Scarce Bordered Straw, while potted up at 10pm feeding on ivy blossom about five metres away (and totally ignoring the light) was a fresh female Buttoned Snout, neither of which was on my list of species to be expected this year.  Scarce Bordered Straw is the first real sign here of all the migration which has been going on over the past week or two, while I'm sure Buttoned Snout has been resident for years on the hop growing in our garden but the adult has only been recorded here twice before, once in the trap in May 2006 and then again in June 2018 when one came to the light of the kitchen window.

Scarce Bordered Straw, Westcott 25th September

Buttoned Snout, Westcott 25th September

The total catch last night amounted to 329 moths of 34 species.  The macros comprised Mallow, Spruce Carpet, Red-green Carpet, Common Marbled Carpet, Willow Beauty, Light Emerald, Straw Dot, Buttoned Snout, Beautiful Hook-tip, Silver Y, Scarce Bordered Straw, Pale Mottled Willow, Vine's Rustic, Angle Shades, Frosted Orange, Rosy Rustic, Barred Sallow, Pink-barred Sallow, Sallow, Beaded Chestnut, Lunar Underwing (109), Deep-brown Dart, Black Rustic (51), Common Wainscot, White-point, Turnip, Shuttle-shaped Dart, Large Yellow Underwing (26), Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Lesser Yellow Underwing, Square-spot Rustic & Setaceous Hebrew Character (46).  The only micros were singletons of Lyonetia clerkella & Eudonia angustea, the former being an example of its dark form which I rarely see here.

Lyonetia clerkella, Westcott 25th September

The previous night's catch in similar damp and breezy conditions was roughly the same in quantity (35 species) although there were more micro-moths, including Elachista canapennella, Aproaerema anthyllidella, Acleris emargana, Acleris variegana, Epiphyas postvittana, Eudonia pallida & Hypsopygia costalis, while additional macros comprised Cypress Pug, Brimstone Moth, Dusky Thorn, Snout & Burnished Brass, so there are still plenty of moths out there for the upcoming National Moth Nights (Thursday through Saturday).

Dave Wilton
Westcott, Bucks