July/early August at IGC – overwhelmed!

Like everyone else, I’ve found the moth trapping superb at the end of July/early August, certainly the best period since the classic year of 2006. Who would have predicted that the summer would be like this after the abysmal first 6 months. Some big catches of moths with the night of the 1st August standing out as exceptional. Ran a trap in the garden plus one at the work-sheds that night and in the morning they were stuffed full with a deep layer of small dead flies and micro moths in the bottom. About 170 species per trap. Last time I saw a catch like this I was trapping in France a few years ago now! Not surprising really as the temperature stayed up in the low twenty degrees C all night.
With these high numbers of moths of course there have been some interesting observations but with little time (as the moth trapping is still pretty good at the moment and I have micros waiting to be identified plus other moths waiting to be photographed still in the fridge!) this will be a brief report.
New site records (so far) have included: Anerastia lotella, Double lobed and Cnaemidophorus rhododactyla (a worn one unfortunately). Other micros almost certainly new to the site await id including some interesting Caloptilias.
Other moths of note have included: Broom-tip (2 on 1st, first record since 2006), White-mantled wainscot (2, with one caught at a new wetland location on the site so could be spreading from the known breeding colony and the other in the garden trap!), Tree-lichen beauty (one caught most nights trapped, I think these are now resident in the area and not migrants), Agriphila tristella (caught one without the ‘antler’ mark on the wing, never seen one like that before), Festoon, Shaded fan-foot (both species still on the wing), Brown silver line (a late one on 1st), Caloptilia falconipennella (a summer brood type, never seen this form before) and  Beautiful yellow underwing.
Been a scattering of what I would class as migrants most nights including small numbers of Dark sword grass, Silver Y, Plutella xylostella and a single N.noctuella. Ermines tailing off with small numbers of both Bird cherry and Willow still regular. Only one Spindle so far but that has always been rare here. I too have seen the appearance of the common underwing species in the traps, and I am thankful that I don’t get the numbers that the coastal trappers catch so at least the micro moths stand a chance of survival here! Commonest species has been fimbriata with much smaller numbers of the others. Dark arches too has picked up in numbers but not high enough to be a pest. Also have had both Copper underwing species now too, plus some Canary-shouldered thorn, a herald of the end of the summer for me.

Neil

Broom-tip

Tree-lichen beauty

White-mantled wainscot

Agriphila tristella form without markings

Caloptilia falconipennella summer brood

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