On Friday Brian and I trapped at Herringfleet Hills. A very warm night with the temperature remaining above 18c despite only wispy thin, very high cloud. 8 traps deployed, with me again using Brian’s spare generator. Brian had some trouble with a woodland based trap which had been fitted with a new bulb. After some time, running a different cable out and checking connections, the trap was in action with another bulb fitted. A Barn Owl flew low over my head, extremely close, while setting up my last trap on the high land on the site where 3 traps were located.
The first trap round bypassed the trap switched on late in the woods and a decent amount of moths seen. At one trap we both lacked the ability to pot interesting micros of 3 or 4 species, throughout the night we were bitten by mosquitos, and flying ants and Icneumon wasps too ( not sure if these sting or bite) to the point that it became a source of amusement. Further calamity occurred with the spare genny running out of petrol on the final trap round after I had checked only one of my four traps and then further I slipped on a tree root on the steep hillside descent trying to bring too much gear down at once and hit the ground hard on my back. However, we already had our moth of the night from an earlier trap round, a Gypsy Moth, and it was in Brian’s troubled woodland trap. Later Brian nearly let it free but luckily managed to repot it, minus some scales, within the confines of his net. It was an exciting find for us both! Other moths of note among the 135 approx species were G. alismana which we have had determined from the site before and Small Mottled Willow. P. alpinella, White line Dart in high number, Garden Tiger, Pine and Poplar Hawk-moth and still plenty of Large Emerald.
