Westcott, Bucks

The garden has continued to notch up new moths for the year-list and getting to 250 by the beginning of June is actually pretty good.  Looking back over the previous five years I've only managed that once in May (on the 27th, in 2020).  Species are appearing roughly as and when they should, but my feeling is that overall abundance is still depressed because I'm not getting great numbers of anything, not even Treble Lines which is usually providing the highest counts at this time of year.  During the second half of May nightly catches varied between 38 individuals of 23 species (31st, when the temperature fell to 6C here in a strong NE breeze) and 150 of 45 species (25th, one of only two counts above 100 in this period).  That's to two traps, one MV (first deployed at the beginning of May) and one actinic.  The new ones didn't include anything out of the ordinary but are listed below, adult moths only and not including things like Coleophora species retained for close inspection:   

     (16th)  Platyptilia gonodactyla, Hedya pruniana, Fox Moth, Cypress Carpet, Purple Bar, Lime-speck Pug, Scorched Wing, Cinnabar, Bright-line Brown-eye

     (17th)  Cauchas rufimitrella, Pyrausta aurata, Scoparia ambigualis, Freyer's Pug, Pale Oak Beauty

     (18th)  Miller, Middle-barred Minor, Shoulder-striped Wainscot 

     (19th)  Glyphipterix simpliciella, Argyresthia cupressella, Bryotropha basaltinella (retained for checking), Neocochylis molliculana, Grapholita funebrana, Phycitodes maritima, Small Phoenix

     (20th)  Depressaria radiella, Udea olivalis

     (21st)  Blastobasis lacticolella, Crambus lathoniellus, Silver-ground Carpet, Straw Dot, White-point

     (22nd)  Scrobipalpa costella, Burnished Brass, Pale Mottled Willow, Vine's Rustic, Small Clouded Brindle

     (23rd)  Peppered Moth, Turnip Moth, Setaceous Hebrew Character

     (24th)  Ptycholoma lecheana, Endothenia nigricostana, Notocelia trimaculana, Marbled White Spot

     (25th)  Lyonetia clerkella, Chrysoteuchia culmella, Privet Hawk-moth

     (26th)  Luquetia lobella, Aproaerema anthyllidella, Scoparia pyralella, Eyed Hawk-moth, Heart and Dart, Ingrailed Clay

     (27th)  Blood-vein

     (28th)  Paraswammerdamia albicapitella, Lathronympha strigana, Nephopterix angustella, Large Nutmeg

     (29th)  Tinea semifulvella, Eudonia lacustrata, Cataclysta lemnata, Clouded Brindle

     (30th)  Orthotaenia undulana, Grey Pug, Mottled Rustic, Small Dotted Buff  

     (31st)  Nematopogon metaxella, Mottled Beauty  

Ptycholoma lecheana, Westcott 24th May

Fox Moth female, Westcott 16th May

Fox Moth male, Westcott 25th May

Cypress Carpet, Westcott 16th May

Cypress Carpet is a newcomer to this area.  My first garden record was in November 2021 then I had two last autumn and now another pair so far this year (the second was on 20th May).

Endothenia nigricostana (24th) was as usual found during the daytime by keeping an eye on the leaves of our copious amounts of garden Hedge Woundwort Stachys sylvatica.  It was a particularly dark example.

Endothenia nigricostana, Westcott 24th May

Dave Wilton Westcott, Bucks