Sunday June 28 - No news is bad news

I have nearly nothing to report.

In my self-imposed absence, Dave went to the patch on his own and in the strong westerly breeze was only able to confirm the continuing presence of a Green Sandpiper and a three Teal.

Hopefully I'll be back in business by next weekend at the latest.

Wet garden moths

I was aware that rain was expected at around dawn this morning but as it was GMS evening I felt I should trap anyway. My plan was to leave the trap on its little trolley, just in case.

At 04.00 I was awakened by the sound of a monsoon-like rain pelting down. I got up and dressed as quickly as possible and dashed down to rescue the trap by pulling it into the utility room. It was still dark, although I noticed a Blackbird was singing.

Unsure of what to do next I decided to put the light off and head back upstairs for a shower. On my return I discovered that many moths had left the trap and were now plastering the walls and windows.  I plugged the trap in and turned it on. The bright light had moths flying in all directions, but mostly back to the trap. It also attracted moths to the outside of the door, so I was able to grab them.

As it got properly light I searched for moths, finding some behind framed pictures, ending up with a count of 93 of 39 species (very similar to Wednesday night.) It would not surprise me at all if a few more appear from cracks and crannies tonight.

The highlights were three garden ticks, a macro and two micros. The macro was a moth I am familiar with at Morton Bagot, and I have tended to regard it as a day-flier. This was Latticed Heath. The books do say that they also fly at night and can be attracted by MV, and it would seem also by an Actinic bulb.

Latticed Heath

The two micros had very different routes onto the garden list. The first I recognised immediately from  a recollection of the field guide illustration. It was a male Large Fruit-tree Tortrix, a very distinctive moth.

Large Fruit-tree Tortrix

The second went through two or three incorrect identifications before UKmothID told me what it actually was. My first thought was a Cnephasia ag, but after photographing it I realised it was a different kind of Tortrix. It seemed similar to a Celypha lacunana, but after ruling that out I switched allegiances to Zeiraphera isertana, a species I had trapped in 2018. It didn't look quite right but like all tortrids they can vary in appearance. I sent the tweet. Luckily the expert had my back and told me it was actually Cydia fagiglandana, a moth I had never heard of, let alone seen.

Cydia fagiglandana

It most resembles Cydia splendana, and both can vary their appearance. The caterpillars feed on beech, a tree which isn't common around here (although I can think of a nearby Copper Beech or two.)

I did better with the year-ticks, and these included a micro, Pammene fasciana, which I didn't see last year. My other year tick was the micro Acleris forsskaleana.

Pammene fasciana

Acleris forsskaleana

Also marauding around the bottom of the trap was a large black beetle. I didn't identify, and was revolted to see that its head was swarming with orange mites. It was about to tuck into a deceased Mayfly, and I was worried it would start attacking moths so I caught it and slung it out.

The full list was:

Bird-cherry Ermine 4, White-shouldered House Moth 1, Brown House-moth 2, Crassa unitella 1, Ruddy Streak 1, Acleris forsskaleana 1 (nfy), Large Fruit-tree Tortrix 1 (nfg), Lozotaenia forsterana 1, Light Brown Apple Moth 1, Marbled Orchard Tortrix 1, Celypha striana 1, Zeiraphera isertana 1 (nfy), Bramble-shoot Moth 1, Cydia fagiglandana 1 (nfg), Codling Moth 6, Pammene fasciana 1 (nfy), Phycita roborella 1, Acrobasis repandana 1, Eudonia lacustrata 6, Eudonia mercurella 1, Garden Grass-veneer 8, Crambus pascuella 6, Small Magpie 1, Riband Wave 5, Green Pug 1, Latticed Heath 1 (nfg), Peppered Moth, Scarlet Tiger 2, Common Footman 3, Scarce Footman 1, Coronet 4, Uncertain 6, Dark Arches 1, Marbled Minor ag 1, Heart and Dart 5, Heart and Club 1, Flame 1, Large Yellow Underwing 4, Double Square-spot 1.

PS: As predicted at least one micro has appeared at the windows, trying to get out. It is ridiculously dark and I struggled to make out any part. Nevertheless I think it is a Cydia splendana....which is a pity because it is actually Zeiraphera isertana.

Zeiraphera isertana

Now that's what I call irony.

And another one comes out of the woodwork. Its just a Double Square-spot but unusually is showing its grey underwing which is the best diagnostic feature confirming it isn't the much rarer Triple-spotted Clay.

Double Square-spot

June 25 - ringing data from Morton Bagot

Although I am currently locked down, the ringers aren't and have had a good couple of sessions this week.

Their full totals are:

Blue Tit 9
Great Tit 10
Chiffchaff 9
Sedge Warbler 2
Blackcap 7
Whitethroat 10
Goldcrest 1
Wren 1
Blackbird 1
Song Thrush 1
Robin 1
Dunnock 4
Greenfinch 4
Bullfinch 1
Goldfinch 25 (1)
Reed Bunting 1

Juvenile Goldcrest

Sedge Warbler

Whitethroat

Regular readers of this blog may be startled to discover that I have worked out how to add other people's photos on my blog. Its only taken me eight years to figure it out!

Aside from impressive numbers of Goldfinches, there was a good showing by Whitethroats. Only one retrap, which may suggest that juveniles are well represented in the figures, while some adults may have dispersed already.

Thanks to Tony Kelly for sharing his data and pictures.

Garden moths galore & a Crossbill

With the temperature remaining high all night it was pretty clear that I was going to catch a lot of moths, so I was up at 04.35 to start recording.

Before I get onto moths though, I should mention that at 06.05 a Crossbill flew over. I didn't actually see it, as binoculars are not particularly handy when processing moths, but the call "kyip" sharper than that of a young Greenfinch, gave it away. Judging from the calls I would say it was heading east. I also heard another Siskin, and watched a Sparrowhawk help itself to one of the House Sparrows.

So back to moths. I caught a grand total of 97 moths of 45 species. Of those, 19 were new for the year, and two were lifers. I wouldn't get those statistics if I'd stuck to birds.

The lifers were micros called Batia lunaris and Acrobasis repandana. The fomer was resting on the side of the trap, while I caught two of the latter.

Batia lunaris

Acrobasis repandana

They both seem to be widespread moths, but its nice to get to grips with these tiddlers.

I think I'll give you the full list, followed by photos of the year-ticks.

Bird-cherry Ermine 2 (nfy), Crassa unitella 1 (nfy), Batia lunaris 1 (nfg), Ruddy Streak 3, Mompha subbistrigella 1 (nfy), Bryotropha terrella 3, Twenty-plume Moth 1 (nfy), Aleimma loeflingiana 2, Cnephasia ag 1, Red-barred Tortrix 1 (nfy), Variegated Golden Tortrix 1, Timothy Tortrix 1 (nfy), Light Brown Apple Moth 2, Hedya salicella 1 (nfy), Bud Moth 1 (nfy), Gypsonoma dealbana 2 Notocelia trimaculana/rosaecolana 1, Codling Moth 6, Phycita roborella 1, Acrobasis repandana 2 (nfg), Eudonia lacustrata 1 (nfy), Eudonia mercurella 2, Crambus pascuella 8, Garden Grass-veneer 6, Small Magpie 1 (nfy), Leopard Moth 4 (nfy), Elephant Hawk-moth 1, Riband Wave 3, Flame Carpet 1, Green Pug 1, Brimstone Moth 1, Snout 1 (nfy), White Satin Moth 1, Scarlet Tiger 3 (nfy), Common Footman 2 (nfy), Blackneck 1 (nfy), Grey/Dark Dagger 1 (nfy), Uncertain 6, Cloaked Minor 1 (nfy), Marbled Minor ag 1, Dun-bar 1 (nfy), Heart and Dart 6, Heart and Club 3, Flame 1, Large Yellow Underwing 2.

Bird-cherry Ermine

Blackneck

Cloaked Minor

Common Footman

Crassa unitella

Dun-bar

Eudonia lacustrata

Grey Dagger ag

Hedya salicella (very worn)

Leopard Moth

Mompha subbistrigella

Red-barred Tortrix

Scarlet Tiger

Snout

Twenty-plume Moth

Several of the above have not been seen in the garden since 2018; Blackneck, Small Magpie, Mompha subbistrigella, and Hedya salicella which I suppose makes them a bit more special.

Finally, one moth unfortunately expired  just after I had photographed it. But as it happens this was quite fortuitous because it was a Marbled Minor ag, a species that cannot be identified without genitalia examination, and which I won't deliberately kill. But if it keels over anyway, its fair game. So come November I will hand it over to the Warks Moth recorder and await his verdict. (02/10/2020: rather to my surprise it turned out to be a Rufous Minor, the first confirmed record for SP06).

Rufous Minor (confirmed by gen det)

Its been a long day.

Garden battles & Covid 19

Uh oh ! I would normally be visiting the patch during the week to sample the delights therein, but there's a problem. A close relative, who is an NHS key worker, has been sent home with a temperature and a tummy bug. We may have been exposed to the virus through another relative, so we are self-isolating pending the government's "world-beating" testing regime clunking its way to a diagnosis.

So its back to lockdown and garden wars until we know for certain.

Its bloody hot. Last night a couple of moths made it through the bathroom window. One was a pretty one, a Common Emerald, the other was a tiny one, the migrant Diamond-back Moth. Needless to say, the one which escaped my camera this morning was the Common Emerald. It also narrowly avoided the beak of a juvenile Dunnock which darted at it as it jinked its way across the patio.

Meanwhile the tiny one was as good as gold.

Diamond-back Moth

I have to confess to a rather inconsistent moral approach to garden wildlife. I take sides. Obviously Domestic Cats are public enemy number one (sorry cat-lovers). They attempt to catch my precious birds and leave smelly droppings on the lawn. My deterrence takes the form of rushing noisily at them, and I recently took to pelting them with June-drop apples. They always come back.

I'm also not keen on Grey Squirrels. One in particular finds the bird feeders irresistible, and gets the same treatment as the cats. I even scored a direct hit today. It looked mildly annoyed, and will certainly be back.

Obviously I am on the side of the birds, they can do no wrong. Except when it comes to moths. I feed the birds on seeds and fat-balls, not moths. The birds cannot seem to grasp this, and my only option is to be up at dawn (or earlier) to make my presence felt, like a doorman or a bouncer. Keep off my moths.

So I like moths. But do they like me? I suspect not. Unlike bird feeders which provide a symbiotic relationship for me and the birds, the moths don't get much benefit from being stuck in a box all night, cowering beneath egg boxes to avoid the glare of the light which attracted them there in the first place. All for the benefit of science?

The least I can do is try to keep them alive until the following evening, when I get a little lump in my throat to see them flying off. No birds can catch them. There's bats of course (or at least there should be) but that's nature.

So I garden for wildlife. No insects are sprayed, no slug pellets are laid down, and insects turn up.

Large White

Inside the house its a different story. But in a way its the same story. Blowflies, wasps, bees are all ushered out into the garden. Spiders are tolerated although they do give me the creeps.

Occasionally an insect lands on me. I don't splat it, oh no. I take its picture. Like this one today.

Isn't that pretty. I carefully released it into the garden and set about working out what it was. It was a Variegated Carpet Beetle, Anthena verbasci. The Internet was full of references to them and how to destroy them! It turns out that their grubs are known as Wooly Bears, and will make short work of your carpet, your sofa, and your clothes.

But I won't be calling in the exterminators because they have a right to live, like everything else. Except Black Ants. These little buggers come in through the skirting board every summer, and I'm sorry to say they get powdered. I take sides. In the garden I'm on their side, in the house I'm their sworn enemy. No consistency.

Its a jungle out there, and hopefully we'll soon get the all clear and I'll be back on the patch again.

In the meantime the moth trap goes out tonight.

Garden moths and the odd bird June 22/23

I was up before dawn (04.30) to check the moth trap. The total of 36 moths of 22 species was a tiny bit disappointing, although the clear sky overnight probably didn't help.

There were very few macro moths, the bulk of the catch being micros. These included Bramble-shoot Moth which is surprisingly a garden tick, given that they are frequently disturbed during the day at Morton Bagot.

Bramble-shoot Moth

In addition to this pretty little micro there were two macros and two micros which were new for the year. They were Riband Wave, Scarce Footman, Celypha striana, and Ancylis achatana.

Riband Wave

Scarce Footman

Celypha striana

Ancylis achatana

There were also a couple of honourable mentions, the second Mottled Pug for the garden, and a Water Veneer which was actually alive. Sadly this species is almost always found dead in the trap, the males seem to have a very brief adult phase, the females being wingless and aquatic.

Mottled Pug

Water Veneer

The full list was as follows:

Case-bearing Clothes Moth 1
Ruddy Streak 1
Aleimma loeflingiana 2
Light Brown Apple Moth 1
Ancylis achatana 1 (nfy)
Celypha striana 1 (nfy)
Gypsonoma dealbana (nfy)
Bramble-shoot Moth 1 (nfg)
Codling Moth 4
Phycita roborella 1
Water Veneer 3
Crambus pascuella 3
Garden Grass-veneer 3
poss Agriphila straminella 1
Elephant Hawk-moth 1
Riband Wave 1 (nfy)
Mottled Pug 1
Scarce Footman 1 (nfy)
Buff Ermine 1
Poplar Grey 1
Dark Arches 1
Heart and Dart 5

This list could lengthen if I have misidentified two of the above. One of the "Codling Moths" was very pale, so too one of the "Garden Grass-veneer". I concluded they were just worn moths, but have tweeted pictures in case either can be identified as something else.

Finally, while emptying the trap, I heard a Siskin flying over, and also a Grey Wagtail. Both species are more typical in the autumn, but midsummer records are not unprecedented.

PS UKmothID has looked at the two moths I tentatively identified as a worn Codling Moth and a worn Garden Grass-veneer and has corrected me. Actually I don't know why I went for Codling Moth for the first one, the correct identification is a worn Gypsonoma dealbana almost certainly. The poor guy said my grass moth looked like an Agriphila straminella but as that would be very early and the photo was rubbish (he was kinder than that) he couldn't consider it as certain.

Gypsonoma dealbana

Unidentified grass moth (poss A straminella)

To be honest I'm just massively impressed that this expert is willing to spend so much time correcting or verifying what must be a bucketload of identifications from novice moth-ers throughout the country.

I have corrected my records.

Sunday June 21

The longest day is not generally the most exciting on the birders calendar. Dave joined me as usual, and we got off to a reasonable start when we could hear a Grasshopper Warbler singing from the field behind the beehives.

Although it was mostly cloudy, there was just enough sunshine and warmth to coax various butterflies into the air. I would estimate we saw 20 Ringlets, 10 Marbled Whites, 80 Meadow Browns, and 15 Small Tortoiseshells on the wing.

Ringlet

Underwing shot of Marbled White

Unusually coloured Meadow Brown

One species of bird I do associate with June is Raven, specifically because the young have fledged and family parties play above the fields. This group were a little distant but were worth recording.

The recent rain has flooded the nearest flash, and the only waders visible were 10 Lapwings. But at least the Teal were still present, four drakes and a duck on the nearest flash, and a duck on the furthest. The highlight was two Sand Martins dashing across the flash, the first of the year thanks to lockdown.

Returning to insects, the return journey added a couple of Red Admirals, about 20 Large Skippers, and our first two Small Skippers of the year.

Small Skipper

Dragonflies were a little frustrating. I struggled to get a decent shot of a Common Emerald damselfly as it rested on a swaying tree branch, but it was nevertheless the first of the year. Rather more satisfactory were the opportunities presented by the first Ruddy Darter and first Common Blue damselfly of the year. The latter are vastly outnumbered by Azure Damselflies here.

Ruddy Darter

Common Blue Damselfly

It'll probably be insects, insects, insects for the next month or so. You have been warned.

Garden Moths 19/06/2020

Last night's moth trapping session was completed over the first dry night of the week, and the resultant 32 moths of 13 species have been quite challenging to identify. The temperature overnight was down to 11 degrees, which is nothing special and may account for the modest numbers.

Its always nice when you turn over an egg box and you find yourself looking at a moth you know you haven't seen before. This morning it was a moth which could have been either a micro or a macro. Having leafed through the macro book, I started on the micros and found it in the Tortrix family. It was a whacking great big tortrix called Lozotaenia forsterana.

Lozotaenia forsterana

Perhaps I have been bigging it up a bit too much. It was only the size of a finger-nail, but that's big for a tortrix moth.

The other one which was a tick didn't stand out at all. In fact I thought it was something else until I started comparing it to photos on the Internet. That was when I realised I had caught a Variegated Golden Tortrix, new for the garden.

Variegated Golden Tortrix

Initially I had thought it was a Red-barred Tortrix, but the resemblance proved only superficial. One other micro which provoked a lot of research I eventually identified as just a faded Plum Tortrix, a diagnosis that was later confirmed.

The macro moths were just as tricky. There is a species group which I thought I had sorted out, but it seems likely I haven't yet. I give you moth A.

Uncertain/Rustic

My gut feel is that this is an Uncertain, but I have not had it checked and it may actually be a Rustic. The kidney marks are chocolate brown centred, and there is a dark line linking them, albeit a rather faint one.

Moth B.

Rustic

I suspected this moth was a Rustic and I have had it confirmed as likely to be one. However, even the expert couldn't give it an unequivocal identification. The kidney marks are almost the same colour as the rest of the forewing, and the dark bar linking them is even fainter than in Moth A.

Moth C

Uncertain

This moth was so pale and contrasty that I actually thought it could be a Mottled Rustic. However, its been checked and is definitely an Uncertain. But its unlike any I have seen before.

I somehow overlooked the other moth which was new to the year until I had replaced all the egg boxes back in the trap and had moved it indoors. Out popped a Double Square-spot, an easy moth to identify as long as you ignore the possibility of the much rarer Triple-spotted Clay.

Double Square-spot

Anyway its identity was confirmed by UKmothID from the photo, so that's good enough for me.

The full list was:

Variegated Golden Tortrix 1 (nfg)
Lozotaenia forsterana 1 (nfg)
Plum Tortrix 1
Crambus pascuella 2
Garden Grass-veneer 1
Water Veneer 2
Elephant Hawk-moth 1
Buff Ermine 1
Dark Arches 1
Heart and Dart 16
Rustic 1 (nfy)
Uncertain 1
Rustic/Uncertain 2
Double Square-spot 1 (nfy)