That's half the year gone

With half the year now behind us, a tot-up of species now on the garden list for 2020 shows that it stands at just over 400 which compares well with last year (419 achieved by 30th June 2019, but that includes dissections which this year's count does not as yet).  Numbers of individual moths may indicate something else - something to look at in the winter - but at least the species count is keeping up well.  Here are the last week's additions:  

(24th)  Plutella xylostella, Ethmia dodecea, Limnaecia phragmitella, Athrips mouffetella, Notocelia roborana,
            Patania ruralis, Calamotropha paludella, Catoptria pinella, Drinker, Scalloped Oak, Brown-tail,
            Cloaked Minor, Olive, Dun-bar, Double Dart.
(25th)  Crassa unitella, Batia lunaris, Aproaerema larseniella, Enarmonia formosana, Grapholita janthinana,
            Leopard Moth, Buff Arches, Small Fan-footed Wave, Lobster Moth, Old Lady, Lesser-spotted Pinion.
(26th)  Carcina quercana, Bryotropha senectella, Grapholita funebrana, Peach Blossom.
(27th)  Recurvaria leucatella, Lobesia abscisana, Four-dotted Footman.
(28th)  - nil -
(29th)  Argyresthia pruniella, Waved Black, Broad-barred White.
(30th)  Cameraria ohridella, Apotomis betuletana, Pammene regiana, Ostrinia nubilalis, Nomophila noctuella,
            Hoary Footman, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing.

Ethmia dodecea, Westcott 24th June

Waved Black, Westcott 29th June

Lesser-spotted Pinion, Westcott 25th June

Ethmia dodecea (24th) was making its fourth appearance here after one in 2015 and two more in 2017.  One or two of the other micros above are awaiting dissection to confirm, of which by far the most interesting will be the Aproaerema (formerly Syncopacma) species on the 25th because whichever it turns out to be will be new for the garden.  A.larseniella seems the most likely.

On the 30th I also recorded mines of Stigmella plagicolella on blackthorn, Bucculatrix thoracella on lime, Bucculatrix bechsteinella on hawthorn, Parornix devoniella on hazel and Phyllonorycter corylifoliella on hawthorn which were all new for the garden year-list.

Vacated mine of Bucculatrix bechsteinella, Westcott 30th June

Dave Wilton
Westcott, Bucks