Species added to the garden year-list over the last couple of nights have comprised Agonopterix alstromeriana (10th), Grey Shoulder-knot (10th) & Dark Chestnut (11th), while a likely Mompha jurassicella was found indoors on the 10th. Last night's catch by the garden actinic light was actually a record-breaker here for February, comprising 32 moths: Agonopterix heracliana (2), March Moth (1), Pale Brindled Beauty (21), Spring Usher (4), Early Moth (3) & Dark Chestnut (1), while a likely Satellite put in a very brief appearance at 6.30am this morning as I was shutting off the light but escaped before it could be confirmed.
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| Mompha species, Westcott 10th February |
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| Grey Shoulder-knot, Westcott 10th February |
The Mompha will be checked but is likely to be jurassicella, although I do get bradleyi here too on occasions and those two species can be very hard to tell apart visually.
Dave Wilton Westcott, Bucks
Hello Dave. Results certainly vary from one site to another: for me in Newton Longville, last night's mild and mainly cloudy weather only produced six Pale Brindled Beauty and a single Dotted Border (all males of course: I didn't search any trunks).
ReplyDeleteI also found a Mompha sp. indoors, but it was subbistrigella: I am yet to find other members of the genus.
We're lucky here in that the ditches around adjacent fields are full of various willow-herbs so over-wintering Mompha species are quite common, sometimes inside the house but more often in the garden shed (which reminds me...).
DeleteThe 11th was a good night for me too here at Stowe, with 29 moths of eight species, including Small Brindled Beauty NFY. The 29 included 17 Pale Brindled Beauty, which was more of this species in one night than I recorded in total last year. With a total of 27 trapped so far this year, I wonder whether they are having a good year generally?
ReplyDeletePale Brindled Beauty is certainly having an excellent year in the garden here. The average over the past 20 years is 18 per annum and the best year to date was 2019 when 65 appeared. I need only another half dozen to surpass that total in 2023, which should happen easily and quite probably tonight!
DeleteStoke Goldington. Whilst I had 6 Pale Brindled Beauty on 11th, I was particularly pleased with 10 Spring Usher, then 17 on 12th - all picked off the white sheet in the morning (Actinic).
ReplyDelete