Home Wood- 25th February 2015

After missing the whole of January, mainly due to the cold and unreasonable weather. It was time to get back into the woods, albeit in the modest form of a single battery powered Actinic/Synergetic Skinner trap. Weather wise, it was probably one of the best nights of the month with temperatures not dipping below 8°C. Not a bad haul, but nothing particularly unexpected. In the garden, it was a bit quieter. However, I did add Common Quaker and March Moth to my list.

Small Brindled Beauty

Early Moth

Engrailed

March Moth

1025 Tortricodes alternella 

Home Wood- 25-02-15 38 of 9 species

1025  Tortricodes alternella  4
1663  March Moth (Alsophila aescularia)  9
1925  Small Brindled Beauty (Apocheima hispidaria)  1
1926  Pale Brindled Beauty (Phigalia pilosaria)  11
1932  Spring Usher (Agriopis leucophaearia)  1
1934  Dotted Border (Agriopis marginaria)  4
1947  Engrailed (Ectropis bistortata)  1
1960  Early Moth (Theria primaria)  1
2258  Chestnut (Conistra vaccinii)  6

Home Wood Catch Report- 21/03/2011

This was the 1st manned trip to the wood and conditions couldn't have been better. A still, overcast night with the temperature hovering around 12°C. In fact when I got home at 10.30pm it was still an extremely mild 10.6°C.

We elected to use a  100w FUL Actinic Skinner in Location #1 and a set up comprising of 2x 80w MV lights and a sheet in Location#2. Location map available- HERE, there is also a Home Wood page on the right under 'Lists & Info'. Please scroll to the bottom of this post for the results-

Red-green Carpet

Only 1 caught using MV.

 Shoulder-stripe / Brindled Pug

The variable Shoulder-stripe was one of the most numerous (top).

 Lead-coloured Drab

Just 1 of this target species, attracted to Actinic light.

 Streamer

4 in total

 Small Brindled Beauty

Numbers lower than last time out- 4 in total

 Acleris cristana 1054

1 of 2 caught by MV light- location #2

 Acleris furrugana/notana 1044/45

1 caught by MV light

 Acleris literana 1061

Undoubtedly the star of the show- caught by MV light- location #2

The traps were on from 7.00pm until 9.40pm , Observers M. Burgess, L. Burgess

The results- 134 of 26 species-   key- 100w FUL Actinic (loc.#1),  2x80w MV & sheet (loc.#2)

• 2187 Common Quaker- (10 - 8) = 18 Site 1st
• 2188 Clouded Drab- (5 - 0) = 5
• 2182 Small Quaker- (8 - 0) = 8 Site 1st
• 1947 Engrailed- (6 - 5) = 11
• 1930 Oak Beauty- (6 - 4) = 10 Site 1st
• 1925 Small Brindled Beauty- (0 - 4) = 4
• 1747 Streamer- (2 - 2) = 4 Site tick
• 1746 Shoulder-stripe- (10 - 6) = 16 Site 1st
• 1852 Brindled Pug- (1 - 1) = 2 Site 1st
• 2258 Chestnut- (5 - 2) = 7 Site 1st
• 2139 Red Chestnut- (5 - 2) = 7 Site 1st
• 2256 Satellite- (4 - 3) = 7 Site 1st
• 2190 Hebrew Character- (4 - 3) = 7
• 1663 March Moth- (5 - 3) = 8
• 2185 Lead-coloured Drab- (1 - 0) = 1 Site 1st
• 1659 Yellow Horned- (0 - 1) = 1 Site 1st
• 2243 Early Grey- (0 - 2) = 2 Site 1st
• 1760 Red-green Carpet- (0 - 1) = 1 Site 1st
• 2259 Dark Chestnut- (1 - 0) = 1 Site 1st

Micros-

• 663 Diurnea fagella- (2 - 4) = 6 Site 1st
• 1524 Emmelina monodactyla- (1 - 0) = 1 Site 1st
• 1025 Tortricodes alternella- (0 - 1) = 1
• 688 Agonopterix heracliana- (0 - 2) = 2 Site 1st
• 1054 Acleris cristana- (0 - 2) = 2 Site 1st
• 1044/5 Acleris furrugana/notana- (0 - 1) = 1 Site 1st
• 1061 Acleris literana- ( 0 - 1) = 1 Site 1st

Notable absences were Pine Beauty and Twin-spotted Quaker, both of which I thought we'd get.

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.

The Lodge......13/03

A few moths on a morning visit. Top is a Small Brindled Beauty found on the Osprey building. Bottom is 1 of 4 Dotted Border also seen on the Osprey. The only other moth was a Chestnut.
The other highlight was a Peregrine flying high over the quarry car park accompanied by 8 soaring Common Buzzards!