Westcott, Bucks

Half of the year has gone but we do still have half left to go!  Here is another report from Westcott and rather a lengthy one this time I'm afraid.  The second half of June saw a significant improvement in overall numbers and the species count is definitely back on track.  At the end of the month 421 species had been recorded in the garden but this total will increase once the data from dissections has been inserted into the list.  Known new moths for the garden year-list since the last report have included the following (a handful of the micros here have also been retained for checking):

     (16th) Tischeria ekebladella, Scythropia crataegella, Archips crataegana, Barred Straw, Brown Scallop, Blotched Emerald, Clouded Brindle, Cream-bordered Green Pea

     (17th)  Archips xylosteana, Hedya salicella, Eucosma obumbratana, Notocelia roborana, Delplanqueia inscriptella, Dioryctria abietella, Phycita roborella, Schoenobius gigantella, Lackey, Blue-bordered Carpet, Lilac Beauty, Swallow-tailed Moth, Common Emerald, Dingy Shears

     (18th)  Grapholita funebrana, Drinker

     (19th)  Bucculatrix albedinella, Teleiodes vulgella, Pterophorus pentadactyla, Epinotia abbreviana, Small Ranunculus, Short-cloaked Moth

     (20th)  Brachmia blandella, Bryotropha terrella, Monochroa lutulentella, Mompha ochraceella, Acleris kochiella, Large Emerald, Small Emerald, Scarlet Tiger, Scarce Footman, Hoary Footman

     (21st)  Blastodacna hellerella, Enarmonia formosana, Udea ferrugalis

     (22nd)  Tinea semifulvella, Argyresthia goedartella, Acleris forsskaleana, Agapeta zoegana, Rhyacionia pinicolana, Endotricha flammealis, Lappet, Waved Black, Lunar-spotted Pinion

     (23rd)  Crassa unitella, Carcina quercana, Rhopobota naevana, Pammene regiana, Ostrinia nubilalis/European Corn-borer, Vapourer, Fan-foot, Silky Wainscot, Clay, Lesser Yellow Underwing

     (24th)  Psychoides verhuella (daytime), Limnaecia phragmitella, Parachronistis albiceps, Lozotaeniodes formosana, Lobesia abscisana, Scoparia basistrigalis, Calamotropha paludella, Single-dotted Wave, Broad-barred White

     (25th)  Oegoconia sp., Phtheochroa inopiana, Grapholita janthinana, Lesser Cream Wave, Yellow-tail, Delicate, Common Rustic agg.

     (26th)  Monopis laevigella, Euzophera pinguis, Phycitodes binaevella, Anania crocealis, Humming-bird Hawk-moth (daytime), Sycamore

     (27th)  Pandemis heparana, Eudonia mercurella, Buff Arches, Small Fan-footed Wave, Small Scallop, Small Blood-vein

     (28th)  Yponomeuta evonymella, Argyresthia albistria, Endothenia ustulana, Gypsonoma sociana, Grapholita lobarzewskii, Patania ruralis, Cydalima perspectalis/Box-tree Moth, Plain Golden Y, Bird's Wing, Minor Shoulder-knot, Kent Black Arches

     (29th) Triaxomasia caprimulgella (daytime to LUN lure), Agriphila straminella, Nymphula nitidulata/ Beautiful China-mark, Scalloped Oak, Reddish Light Arches, Dun-bar, Cabbage Moth, True Lover's Knot 

     (30th)  Eudemis profundana, Pammene aurita, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 

Cream-bordered Green Pea, Westcott 16th June

Hoary Footman, Westcott 20th June

Lappet, Westcott 22nd June

Silky Wainscot f. bipunctata, Westcott 23rd June

Psychoides verhuella, Westcott 24th June

Delicate, Westcott 25th June

Bird's Wing, Westcott 28th June

True Lover's Knot, Westcott 29th June

There were some really nice moths over this period, some of them illustrated above.  The Cream-bordered Cream Pea (16th), easy to lose amongst this year's notable invasion of Tortrix viridana, stood out as being something slightly different and is only the second to have been recorded here after one in 2018.  The year's first examples of Scarce and Hoary Footman (20th) each had their hind-wings checked and I've not yet seen another candidate for Hoary despite ever-increasing numbers of Scarce and Common Footman appearing now.  Lappet (22nd) is still an annual and very welcome visitor but the Silky Wainscot (23rd, with another on the 24th) was most unusual and only one has been seen here previously, way back in 2013.  The rather uninspiring micro Psychoides verhuella (24th), new for the garden list, was found wandering around on the inside of a window next to our open back door.  This is one of two tiny moths from that family which use Hart's-tongue Fern as their main larval food-plant.  We don't have any of it here but the plant may well be growing in neighbouring gardens.  The migrant Delicate (25th, with another on the 26th, the fifth and sixth garden records here) was a very nice visitor this early in the season, as was the Humming-bird Hawk-moth (26th) which was seen in the early evening looking for somewhere to roost on the rear of our house.  Arguably the best visitor of all for this period was the Bird's Wing (28th) which was another completely new addition to the site list, garden macro number 459.  It is very local but fairly widespread in the south of Bucks but this appears to be the first county record out on the clay of Aylesbury Vale.  The 29th brought Reddish Light Arches, an occasional garden visitor although the last sighting was six years ago, but the heathland specialist True Lover's Knot on that same date seemed very out-of-place here.  Surprisingly, it has been recorded at Westcott twice before (in May and July 2017). 

Dark Arches, Westcott 26th June

Numbers of Footman moths and Heart & Dart are starting to build now but it is currently Chrysoteuchia culmella, Acentria ephemerella and Dark Arches which are providing the highest nightly counts.  Dark Arches first appeared on 31st May and nightly numbers remained in single digits until 15th June and then in the teens until the 25th when they started racing away.  With 874 individuals already recorded in the garden (276 last night alone) this will obviously be one of its better years here and a four-digit final count is guaranteed, but I doubt that the total of 3,936 achieved in 2019 will ever be surpassed!  

Clay (left) & White-point (right), Westcott 24th June

Clay first appeared here on the 23rd but I'm still getting first-brood White-point so care is needed in differentiating between these two species.  Spot shape doesn't always help, but size is often a good indicator, with Clay generally larger and certainly longer-winged.  White-point was regarded as a migrant until about ten years ago when it began to take up residence locally.  Its first brood is usually smaller than the second but numbers have been climbing steadily and last year reached 48 here in May and June (out of 259 altogether).  This year I've had 133 in May and June. 

Dave Wilton Westcott, Bucks