Hedging my bets

The moth trap went out last night before I went to the pub for a couple of ales, and when I came back I knew it was not going to be a great catch. It was clear and cold, and I could only see one moth in the trap. This morning I was therefore not surprised to only find 27 moths. Though I was pleasantly surprised to see that there were three new species for me.

The first of these was a Green Carpet, on the eggboxes I put around the outside of the trap. This is actually a rather common species and one I thought I would have seen by now.

Green Carpet

Whilst looking through the Flounced Rustics (again the most abundant species), I found two dark nocuitds. I first thought these were a dark from of the former, but a closer look meant they surely had to be something different. Curiously, whilst they both looked the same in terms of markings, they was a difference in size and structure between the two. I eventually settled on these being Hedge Rustics, and a look at images on the internet confirmed this.

Hedge Rustics

The other new moth was a Brown-spot Pinion. Apparently a very common moth which is beginning to come into it's flight season, so I am expecting a few more of these. Otherwise it was the usual suspects, though there was a nice Antler Moth in the trap as well.

Brown-spot Pinion

Antler Moth

A view of Batch Valley

We took a long planned walk to the top of Caer Caradoc today. This imposing hill is opposite All Stretton, and since we moved to Batch Valley we have been looking forward to making it to the top of the hill we see from our garden. We were not disappointed, with a glorious view of Batch Valley and the Long Mynd.

The view from the top of Caer Caradoc. Batch Valley is in the centre of the picture.

We were not the only ones out and about on Caer Caradoc today. Close to the very top we found this Fox Moth larva going about it's business. A species found across the Shropshire Hills, this is another insect to be looking out for around Batch Valley.

Fox Moth larva

The Moth Trap will be going out tonight. Not expecting a huge catch, but hoping for a few new species.

Hat decoration

This Black Darter was using a floppy hat as a resting place at Whixall Moss today.

Black Darter

Wall

We ventured out of Batch Valley and onto the Long Mynd today, walking up Townbrook Hollow and back down Ashes Hollow. One of our favourite walks and plenty of butterflies were in evidence once the sun started to shine, including a Grayling which just eluded the camera. On the walk back across to Church Stretton we came across this nectaring on thistles.

Wall

This is the first Wall butterfly I have seen for decades. They have declined substantially in central England and I never saw one when I lived in Oxfordshire. So I was very pleased to see this beautiful insect. We also came across this interesting fungi which I need to look up.

Fungi

After I walk we popped up to Hanwood, and found this pretty Silver Y moth hanging on a Hydranga.

Silver Y

Autumnal change

The autumnal feel in the weather has been matched by the appearance of a new moth for the garden. This time a beautiful Autumnal Rustic. This is a moth I had been hoping to record, and I was not disappointed when I saw the insect this morning.

Autumnal Rustic

I also recorded another new macro species this morning, one of the Treble-bars. Though it look like a distinctive moth, there are two very similar species - the Treble-bar and it's congener the Lesser Treble-bar. So I had an (undignified) look at the claspers at the tip of the abdomen, and by their long and pointed shape I was able to identify it as a Treble-bar.

Treble-bar

With distinctive pointed claspers

The other new moth for the garden was a beautiful mico moth called Cydia splendana.

Cydia splendana

Other highlights in the trap were another Canary-shouldered Thorn, a Feathered Gothic and a Small Wainscot. Flounced Rustics made up a third of all moths caught with 17 individuals. There were also a few yet to identify, which I will get onto in the next couple of days.

Mystery solved?

On my very first trap on 4 August, two of the first moths I pulled out of the trap were these ones.

The Annulet (and a mystery pug)

Being just two of the many moths that I could not identify, I took a quick photograph and thought no more about it. Over the next couple of days I worked through most of my photographs, but these two (and a couple of Uncertain-type moths) were troubling me.

I posted these as identification queries forums and the first replies I got suggested the larger moth was The Annulet and the smaller moth a Wormwood Pug, and I was happy with this. This was until I looked into the distributions and found out that Annulet would be quite unusual in Shropshire. So I asked another expert who thought is was not an Annulet, but actually an Engrailed. I also looked into the pug a bit more and was not happy that it could be safely identified and am still set in that view. Totally confused I posted the picture on another forum, and the unanimous opinion was Annulet for the large moth (and uncertainty for the smaller one).

So is the mystery solved? Well, yes and no. Despite all the positive identifications, the one doubting voice means there should be some uncertainty. However, I have looked and looked I am now convinced that this is The Annulet. I am very grateful indeed for those who have looked at my pictures and have given their opinions. I am just hoping that in time I will catch a more obvious example.

A hawk and two canaries

I good nights weather saw the moth trap going out on Saturday night. I had a feeling it was going to be an interesting, if not a bumper, catch when I checked the trap before going to bed and saw a Feathered Gothic nestling in the egg boxes. I decided to leave it until the morning rather than disturb the trap, and it was one of last moths I took out.

Feathered Gothic

The first moth I saw on Sunday morning was a beautiful thorn clinging to the outside of the trap. The moth was quickly potted and then easily identified as a Canary-shouldered Thorn, the third thorn in four trapping sessions following Early and September Thorns this month.

Canary-shouldered Thorn

As soon as I looked in the trap a broad grin stretched across my face as the familiar profile of this beast was obvious.

Poplar Hawk-moth

This Poplar Hawk-moth is one of the species I was looking forward to catching, and I was not disappointed with this exquisite moth.

Poplar Hawk-moth

There were plenty of other good moths in the trap. This included new macro species Common Carpet, Common Marbled Carpet and a Small Wainscot. I also made an effort with more of the micros, and this added Blastobasis adustella, Agriphila geniculea and Agriphila tristella. One the the most interesting things about trapping regularly is seeing how the spectrum changes over time, with 16 Flounced Rustic becoming the commonest moth this week and only one Scarce Footman caught, as opposed to 2 of the former and 41 of the latter two weeks ago.

Small Wainscot