Westcott, Bucks

The first half of November has been fairly typical here, with catches by the garden actinic trap ranging quite widely between 41 moths of 12 species (on the 3rd) and two moths of a single species (on the 10th when we had our first proper frost of the winter).  Last night (15th) produced 28 moths of 7 species.  There have as yet been no empty traps but the first of those can't be far off now.  Appearances over these 15 nights have been made by the following 26 species:  micros Agonopterix arenella, Amblyptilia acanthadactyla, Epiphyas postvittana, Acleris schalleriana & Udea ferrugalis along with macros December Moth, Red-green Carpet, Winter Moth, November Moth agg, Feathered Thorn, Mottled Umber, Scarce Umber, Figure of Eight, Turnip, Green-brindled Crescent, Merveille du Jour, Sprawler, Satellite, Dark Chestnut, Red-line Quaker, Yellow-line Quaker, Brick, Beaded Chestnut, Barred Sallow, Pink-barred Sallow & Angle Shades.     

Amblyptilia acanthadactyla, Westcott 12th November

December Moth first appeared on the 2nd and a total of 24 have been seen so far, including a female last night, while Feathered Thorn is doing really well (110 counted to date, 121 in 2018 being the total to beat).  Those two species, along with Sprawler, are now providing the majority of each catch alongside occasional appearances by Red-green Carpet, Winter Moth, the Novembers, Mottled Umber & Dark Chestnut.  Scarce Umber made its first visit here last night (15th) with two individuals, both of which had settled on fallen leaves on the lawn a short distance from the trap, and it rounds off the garden year-list as far as expected species are concerned.  Unlike those of its Mottled cousin which will be around well into next year, the males of Scarce Umber have a relatively short flight period and will only be on the wing for the next three or four weeks.

December Moth male, Westcott 2nd November

December Moth female, Westcott 15th November

Feathered Thorns (female left), Westcott 7th November

Scarce Umber, Westcott 15th November

The Sprawler total for this season has now reached 147, currently the second highest count for the garden with only another 8 required to make this its best year ever here.  As Martin pointed out in his post below, they are such a hardy moth!  As usual only a small proportion of the total so far have actually entered the trap and the rest seem quite happy to sit around on the lawn or on nearby dew-soaked vegetation, even if it is raining. 

Dave Wilton Westcott, Bucks