Nearly didn’t trap on the night of the 9th, with the forecast for heavy rain. But, a check of the sky at dusk showed it was cloudy but didn’t really look like rain cloud so out the traps went, up in the woods round the sheds in case the rain did arrive.
As suspected, it was dry in the morning and once I arrived to check the traps found them covered in moths and full inside too. Still collating results now 2 days later but currently list stands at 140 species. Large numbers (hundreds) of the canopy feeding tortrix caught: Tortrix viridana (easily over 500), Archips podana, Archips xylosteana, Pandemis cerasana and Alemmia loeflingiana. Highlights seen included: Red-necked footman (I think this is now resident in the area), Rosy marbled, Festoon (4), Blotched emerald (13), Bactra robustana, Argyresthia glaucinella, Gypsonoma oppressana and Eucosma campoliliana. Like Matthew, I too caught a Dun-bar, this must be at least a month early! Heart and club and Uncertain coming onto the wing here too. Hawkmoths still really noticeable by their absence, especially Pine which is normally my commonest species – I’ve had one so far. Did get a Privet hawk and 3 Small elephant, the latter being the only species that has been around in numbers here.
2 nice beetles in the trap as well – a male Stag beetle and the scarce dung beetle Odonteus armiger, a small beetle that has a mobile horn in the centre of its head, one I’ve caught in traps here in previous years and there are very few county records for it.
Didn’t trap last night as I was too overwhelmed with the catch from the 9th and needed a night off!
Hopefully the good conditions will continue for a little while longer
Neil