For those of you who hanker after the rare ones and those who get them. I have been through 2 two days of frustration and have now given up!
On 28th May, which is the night when thunderstorms came up from the south I captured an Agrotera nemoralis at The Patch. I took it home to photograph. After a spell in the fridge I took it out to photo. It appeared settled and then just as I was about to click it took off. Instead of going to the window, as most do, it decided to fly into the dark places in the room and disappeared! After failing to surface over two nights I have spent this morning searching through dust, spiders webs and tonnes of spider victim moths to no avail. I will have to settle my mind now and get back to routine. If it does appear in future that will be a bonus, but such frustration! It is the second Suffolk record (if accepted).
I feel your frustration Raymond. The way to catch it is a tried and tested method – run your MV trap in the room the moth escaped in tonight. It should then appear from it’s hiding place! I know of eminent lepidopterists that have been through this experience and have re-trapped specimens. Worth a go!
Or you could try sugaring the lamp shade – or wine ropes draped over the sofa…
I have experienced just such a photo debacle myself, whilst in Malaysia a few years ago. It was a jade hawk – a big thing (i.e. about 1000 times bigger than your Agrotera) which managed to disappear in a locked air-conditioned hut with hardly any furniture or nooks and crannies. I still find myself gritting my teeth at the memory…
Tony H.
Happened to me quite a few times! A very frustrating experience. Worst one I had was my first ever Nemophora metallica (not from Suffolk) that flew off and I lost it. Did find it, went to re-pot it but it flew off straight into a spider’s web and caught and carried off to be eaten instantly!
Good, in a strange way, to hear of the tribulations of others too. Makes a change to the routine reports. Doesn’t change the loss though. I think it has become a spider victim. Time to clear out sit and reflect before getting back to the good mothing this year.