Westcott, Bucks

Catches have continued to reduce over this period and for the last three or four nights have been down to around 60 species each time (64 species last night, for example), with very few micros apart from Agriphila tristella and Acentria ephemerella.  However, new species for the year-list have continued to trickle in with the following being added:  

     (11th)  Apotomis turbidana, Agriphila geniculea, Plain Pug, Bordered Straw.

     (12th)  Acleris rhombana, Cypress Pug.

     (13th)  Clavigesta purdeyi, Latticed Heath, Rest Harrow.

     (14th)  Argyresthia spinosella.

     (15th)   - nil -

     (16th)  Tawny-barred Angle.

     (17th)   - nil -

     (18th)  Pinion-streaked Snout.

     (19th)  Pale Eggar.

     (20th)  Caloptilia cuculipennella.

     (21st)   Barred Sallow.

     (22nd)  Centre-barred Sallow.

Caloptilia cuculipennella, Westcott 20th August

Pale Eggar, Westcott 19th August

Barred Sallow, Westcott 21st August

Rest Harrow was the biggest surprise of this period (see here) and becomes the 457th macro species recorded in the garden.  Otherwise there was little of particular note, although Latticed Heath is a very infrequent visitor here so was nice to see again and Caloptilia cuculipennella was only recorded in the garden for the first time in 2021.  Interesting migrant activity was limited to the Bordered Straw (11th), although Nomophila noctuella/Rush Veneer (just about every night) and Dark Sword-grass (three on 13th, singletons on 15th, 18th, 20th & 21st and two on 22nd) continue to appear regularly.

      

In yet another sign of how the seasons are forever moving forwards, this period saw my first ever August sighting of Barred Sallow, the previous earliest being 3rd September (in 2018) and that is out of 326 records of 711 individuals.  The first of the autumnal Sallows to appear is usually Centre-barred, which I recorded at a couple of other sites on 18th and 20th August (that's about right for it to start, 17th August being my earliest date), but it didn't turn up in the garden until the night after Barred.  

Cochylis dubitana (or Neocochylis dubitana as we should now refer to it) appeared here back on 18th July, itself a noteworthy event because I've had only four or five previous records in the garden with the last one being in 2016.  However, during this current period it has put in further appearances on the 14th (five individuals), 15th (two) and 17th (one) which was very unexpected.  It is listed as "local" in the field guide but this is a species I rarely see anywhere in Bucks.

Neocochylis dubitana, Westcott 15th August

Quantity-wise, moths doing well at the moment still include Common Wainscot, but Flame Shoulder, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing & Straw Dot have started to tail off and have been replaced by Small Square-spot, Setaceous Hebrew Character & Vine's Rustic.  It is good to see Small Square-spot appearing in good numbers once again although that was expected because it seems to have a seven-year cycle of peaks and troughs here and is currently working its way up to another peak.     

Dave Wilton Westcott, Bucks