More day-flyers

I had another try with some of the clearwing lures in the garden today.  The Hornet Moth lure was out first thing and produced nothing as usual (I've never had any success at all with this one).  The MYO and VES lures went out at 11am and by 12.30pm I'd had five Red-belted Clearwings to MYO so that one was exchanged for TIP.  Nothing at all had come to VES or TIP by 6pm so I'll try again in a week or so.

Red-belted Clearwing, Westcott 31st May

This afternoon I took the opportunity to have a look at the Forester Moth colony at Charndon, Bucks.  I was expecting large numbers and indeed wasn't disappointed, with 95 recorded over two kilometre squares of private wild-flower meadows.  There will have been many more present as I kept mainly to the bridleway which crosses the site and I couldn't hope to cover every field.  They were reluctant to fly in the heat and, with no Ragged Robin available and Knapweed not yet in flower, they were sitting around mostly on their other favourites, Red Clover and the purplish Tufted Vetch that was in flower here and there.  There was actually a dearth of nectar sources so, unusually, any flowering plant was worth looking at and I also found them on White Clover, Bird's-foot Trefoil, Buttercup and Ox-eye Daisy.

Forester & Glyphipterix simpliciella, Charndon 31st May

If anyone in south Bucks is looking for somewhere to visit then a check on the Chalfont Heights Forester colony would be really appreciated (TQ 0090 & TQ 0190).  It would also be very interesting to know if it is having a bumper year in our other two counties as well.  I know that one has already been seen at BBOWT's Meadow Farm site (VC23) and I shall try to get to Gavray Drive Meadows on the edge of Bicester.  There are one or two sites in Berkshire too.

Dave Wilton
Westcott, Bucks