A Crazy Month

December 2015 has been an exceptional month. Usually I only trap on favourable nights in Winter. So if its too cold or too windy, I've tended not to bother. Unfortunately, I haven't got 'blanks' recorded for the first years of my records. A bit of a blunder really, though as said, this wouldn't account for many if any nights in some years, so not as scientific as I would have liked. But I suppose you can get the gist of it.
Clearly the high yields are down to high temperatures at night. This has led to more than a few surprises up and down the country, especially on the South coast. December isn't usually considered to be a highlight in migrant terms. But the season hasn't really tailed off since October. I for one will keep the traps burning until the end of the year as anything seems possible.

Black-spotted Chestnut

 This was the surprise of the year, caught 18th Decmber. Though I missed out on getting my first 'New for VC' macro moth by a matter of 20 hours as one was caught in Biggleswade (17th December)- by my father!
Incredibly, this species has only been know in the UK since 2011 and I actually had to renew my Mapmate licence to update my checklist as it didn't exist!
The only other records come from a small colony in Kent and a single record in Suffolk. Easily the rarest moth I've ever caught and the furthest North the species has ever been recorded in Britain!

Spring Usher

 .........Though should be called the 'Christmas Usher' this year. After an early record from The Lodge, Sandy on 17th, I was still very surprised to catch this on 21st December. My previous earliest record was 18th January!

Scarce Umber

Fairly scarce in my garden, usually with one record per year. All previous record have been in November. But this turned up 7th December.

Below is all of my records from the garden in December. This year comes off the back of three blanks, so makes it particularly unusual.


12/2009- from 2 records- 2 of 2 species

1524 Emmelina monodactyla 1- found indoors 2-12
2469 Scoliopteryx libatrix Herald 1- found hibernating 10-12

12/2010- from 7 Productive nights- 13 of 3 species

1631 Poecilocampa populi December Moth 1
1799 Operophtera brumata Winter Moth 11
1800 Operophtera fagata Northern Winter Moth 1

12/2011- from 5 Productive nights- 12 of 5 species

0695 Agonopterix alstromeriana 1
1631 Poecilocampa populi December Moth 1
1799 Operophtera brumata Winter Moth 8
2256 Eupsilia transversa Satellite 1
2258 Conistra vaccinii Chestnut 1

12/2012- No Records

12/2013- No Records

12/2014- No Records

12/2015- from 6 Productive nights (4 blanks)- 49 of 14 species so far........

0998 Epiphyas postvittana Light Brown Apple Moth 5
1047 Acleris schalleriana  1
1524 Emmelina monodactyla 3
1799 Operophtera brumata Winter Moth 18
1932 Agriopis leucophaearia Spring Usher 1
1933 Agriopis aurantiaria Scarce Umber 1
1935 Erannis defoliaria Mottled Umber 1
2087 Agrotis segetum Turnip Moth 1
2258 Conistra vaccinii Chestnut 1
2259 Conistra ligula Dark Chestnut 11
2259a Conistra rubiginosa Black-spotted Chestnut 1
2306 Phlogophora meticulosa Angle Shades 1
2321 Apamea monoglypha Dark Arches 1
2441 Autographa gamma Silver Y 3

Valentine's Moths

I haven't done a lot of trapping in the past two months, due mainly to the extremely low night time temperatures. Agonopterix heracliana was attracted to a lit window on 9th Feb and then two days later a slight upturn in night time temps tempted me to try the traps, the first time they'd been out for almost two weeks.

Pale Brindled Beauty

Spring Usher

The catch was from two traps at either end of the garden. It was interesting that the Twin 15w Actinic easily out performed the far larger and slightly more powerful Twin 20w Synergetic. Though this could simply be down to location. Tonight, I will be trapping again and have reversed the traps to see if it makes any difference. I have also heard that Synergetic tubes lose some of their potency after around a year's use? It would be hard for me to prove, so having had the current tubes from June 2013- I may invest in new ones for the upcoming months.

Upper Caldecote Garden  14-02-2015-

Twin 20w Synergetic Skinner

1926  Pale Brindled Beauty (Phigalia pilosaria)  1

Twin 15w Actinic Skinner

1926  Pale Brindled Beauty (Phigalia pilosaria)  2

1932  Spring Usher (Agriopis leucophaearia)  2 NFY

2259  Dark Chestnut (Conistra ligula)  1

The first stirrings...........

............finally appeared after the worst start to a year I've ever had. In fact up until the 16th February, I had only recorded three species; Pale Brindled Beauty, Agonopterix heracliana and Emmelina monodactyla. To be honest I hadn't really put the trap out much, electing to use the single BLB bulb on the shed at the bottom of the garden. On 17th February the wind had finally died down, it had stopped raining and the temperature had increased, so I put out two traps as well as using the bulb.
A quick patrol at 8.00pm revealed a single Ypsolopha ustella, attracted to the bulb, that evaded capture. A moth I didn't see last year. The rest I found in the morning.

Upper Caldecote Garden- 17-02-14 7 of 6 species-

0461  Ypsolopha ustella  1 NFY BLB Bulb
0688  Agonopterix heracliana  2 BLB Bulb
1663  March Moth (Alsophila aescularia)  1 NFY Twin 20w Synergetic Skinner
1932  Spring Usher (Agriopis leucophaearia) 1 NFY Twin 15w Actinic Skinner
2236  Pale Pinion (Lithophane hepatica) 1 NFY  Twin 20w Synergetic Skinner
2258  Chestnut (Conistra vaccinii) NFY  1 Twin 20w Synergetic Skinner

Chestnut

March Moth

 Pale Pinion

Spring Usher

The night after, another night with three lights burning produced two more NFYs. Singles of Dark Chestnut and Hebrew Character brought the years total to 11 species.

Like Buses......25-01

So, no Spring Ushers for almost three years and then two in a week. Well, that's mothing for you I suppose. Quite a good night really and since then we've been back in the freezer with not a lot new to talk about. Roll on Spring!

Spring Usher

Result for Upper Caldecote Garden- 25-01-12- 4 of 4 species-

•  0461 Ypsolopha ustella 1 NFY 
•  2259 Conistra ligula Dark Chestnut 1 
•  1799 Operophtera brumata Winter Moth 1 
•  1932 Agriopis leucophaearia Spring Usher 1

New Year, New Moth- 18-01

...................And to complete the set on page 64 of my ring-bound copy of the 'Concise Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland' by Townsend, Waring and Lewington. My garden finally turned up one of these. This was the only moth I found this morning, after a cold forgettable week of no trapping.

Spring Usher

This is a not a wholly unexpected find. But it's another gap filled and another step closer to 300 garden macros. I hope to achieve this target during this year........

There's no place like Home...23/02

After turning up at Broom GP's main gate in September last year and realising that my key, issued to me by the estate didn't work. I knew that time was up for mothing at this site. During last year I also tried to arrange a field survey in Sheerhatch Wood. This, like many others in the area is an estate run shooting wood. So after talking to the warden (a man more suited to Victorian times than the present day), realised that I wouldn't be making many inroads here either and it's worth mentioning that the same estate controls both sites!
But Hallelujah, we now have a new site to trap- Home Wood, run by the Forestry Commission though is still a private site. Although separated from Sheerhatch by just over a mile, attitude wise they are poles apart! There is now a page dedicated to Holme Wood under 'Lists and Info' on the right of the page- HERE.

Home Wood

The trap on the morning of 24th Feb- looking west along the main ride.

So this was the 1st outing at a new site.  It was decided to start with just to drop off a battery driven twin 15 watt Actinic/UV trap and collect it in the morning. The results were better than expected........photos courtesy of Trent Duval- (We are the Campions)

Small Brindled Beauty 

Spring Usher

Engrailed spp.

  March Moth

  

 Dotted Border

Clouded Drab

The list is as follows-

1. Small Brindled Beauty- 7
2. Dotted Border- 5
3. March Moth- 5
4. Tortricodes alternella- 2
5. Spring Usher
6. Engrailed spp.
7. Hebrew Character
8. Pale Brindled Beauty
9. Clouded Drab

24 moths of 9 species is pretty good for an unmanned Actinic trap.