New record.

A good haul at the trap this morning with several excellent moths. Highlight, undoubtedly, a lilac beauty. First for the garden and consequently, my 1st view of this well marked moth. Even the wings are creased to look like a leaf. I find it a little strange that a moth should wish to look like an autumnal leaf when it readily flies in the height of summer! Also discovered this morning, a small fan footed wave. A small creature that nevertheless, upon close examination, had plenty of patterning and colour. Also, following on from yesterday's peppered moth form insularia, today, the other form f carbonaria, the all black form. As I have all 3 forms, below are 3 photos highlighting the set.


lilac beauty

lilac beauty

undercarriage of lilac beauty.




small fan footed wave

peppered moth ( Biston betularia)

 Biston betularia f insularia

Biston betularia f carbonaria

More year listers

A couple more moths that have been added to the year list; a blotched emerald and a least carpet, along with a new micro, udea prunalis. All expected and one the whole, a disappointing night's total due to no cloud cover, meaning the night time temperature dropped markedly. Also, due to being in Croydon to give another illustrated bird talk, the trap was not switched on until gone midnight.

blotched emerald

least carpet

New parish record

A good haul after a warm night, with peppered moth, both the usual form Biston betularia and the less regular form insularia offering a good comparison of markings. Other usuals were buff ermine, heart and dart, beautiful hooktip, common marbled carpet, clouded border, privet hawkmoth and green carpet.
However, a very large but worn moth was found and identified as a pale oak beauty, a new moth for parish records. Although worn it showed enough to be identified, both by size and by the patterning of the antennae.
 Another unusual moth (for the garden, not Herts) came in the form of a small, well marked moth: a short cloaked moth.

peppered moth

f insularia

pale oak beauty

antennae helped identify this pale oak beauty
 

Butterfly Walk

6 of us headed out in good temperatures to record the butterflies in the west of the parish. Wandering from the village hall to Westland Green and returning via the grasses of Ash Valley Golf Course. In all 10 species were found, with meadow brown being an ever present, with well in excess of 100 specimens being noted. Over 25 ringlets were seen and at least 9 small tortoiseshells.
Over 25 small skippers, just 1 essex skipper, 1 speckled wood, 2 large whites, 1 small white, and 1 small heath were also observed.
However, the highlight was a fly past clouded yellow, only the 2nd parish record, following on from 1 in October 2009.
Also seen, again, 2nd parish record, was an immature broad bodied chaser dragonfly and several narrow bordered 5 spot burnet moths were feeding on clover and bird's foot trefoil.
Birds were very scarce with several buzzards, whitethroat, and swift being noteworthy.

bee orchid

broad bodied chaser

meadow brown

narrow bordered 5 spot burnet

ringlet

small skipper

speckled wood

New moth for the year

A quiet trap this morning, with a common emerald being the only new moth for 2013. 2 privet hawkmoths were present along with regulars such as heart and club, fanfoot and heart and dart.

common emerald

North Norfolk

A day spent working my way along the Norfolk coast before giving an illustrated talk on the birds of The Algarve to Lowestoft RSPB group.
I left early and was at Titchwell Reserve as the birds were still singing. Sedge and reed warblers were evident along with reed buntings. Good numbers of avocet (225) but only 6 chicks seen. Apparently, water levels had risen and washed the eggs away. I wandered to the beach were a few common scoter were on the sea and little terns were fishing as well as sandwich and common terns. Plenty of waders along the tide line, mainly knot and dunlin with a few ringed plovers, godwits and turnstone.
Back on the reserve ruff, both bar and black tailed godwits were observed but no sign of the previous days unconfirmed report of a pallas' gull. Little gulls(6) were fishing and a spoonbill was my first of the year.
As I photographed a sedge warbler a solitary bearded reedling flashed through the reed beds. Another first for the year. A check on the feeders gave superb views of a family party of jays but little else, so I took myself off the Cley.
Here, I added nothing new to my year list but plenty of marsh harriers, a single sparrow hawk and another spoonbill at Arnold's Marsh. In all, a list of over 70 species.

sedge warbler

sedge warbler



sedge warbler

 

reed bunting

black headed gull

avocet

herring gull

common tern

 

 

goldfinch

mute swan

oystercatcher

little egret

spoonbill

jay family

avocet chick

jays


 

100 up for the year

A reasonable haul of regulars along with several new year listers. A beautiful hooktip, fanfoot and a splendid blue bordered carpet went on to the 2013 list. All expected at this time of the year, if not a few weeks ago. These took the garden total for this year to 102, with the beautiful hooktip bringing up the century.
A quick late afternoon visit to Westland Green to check for butterflies and 6 spot burnet moths. Disappointing numbers, meadow browns into double figures, a small skipper and 2 small heaths were the total number, with a few grass moths on the wing, too.

beautiful hooktip

fanfoot

blue bordered carpet.

Good, new moth for parish records

A Phoenix moth was discovered on the sheet adjacent to the light trap last night. A fairly common Herts moth that uses red and blackcurrant bushes as its larval foodplant. This specimen is a male, distinguished by its diagnostic habit of curling its abdomen upwards. 266th species for the parish in a little over 2 years.
Also, new for the year, was a light arches.
Others present: double square spot, heart and dart, peppered moth, common marbled carpet, uncertain, nutmeg, clouded silver, pale prominent, flame shoulder, snout, brown rustic and the micro moth: udea olivalis.

phoenix

light arches

Butterfly walk

A wander from Tescos back to home along footpaths North of the A120. Main reason, on a warm morning, was to record butterflies as well as the birds.
In all 27 sp of birds, with 4 herring gulls over newly mown hayfields. These will have finished/failed at breeding and have returned to their winter quarters. A garden warbler heard and seen near Hadham Lodge whilst evidence of successful breeding was observed in, firstly, 3 kestrels near Stone House Farm and then a family party of chiffchaffs at the River Ash opposite the Nag's Head. Also, both coot and moorhen chicks are now almost fledged around Hadham Hall where a nuthatch was calling.
Butterfly wise, the total was speckled wood (1), small tortoiseshell (3), meadow brown (10), small heath (1) and large white (1). The meadow browns and small heath were my first for the year.
Common blue damselflies around the ponds at Hadham Hall were in low numbers and no dragonflies were seen. Bladder campion was growing along the footpath leading from the primary school to the River Ash.
Near Hadham Hall a sparrow hawk kill with the feathers of a wood pigeon. Easy to tell what caught the bird. Check the points of the quill on the primary wing feathers. If they are still sharp then a sparrow hawk as this plucks its kill whereas a fox rips the feathers out. Consequently the tips of the quill will invariably be broken.

briar rose

speckled wood

small tortoiseshell

small heath

sparrow hawk kill

meadow brown

More new moths

A god selection of moths with clouded brindle, riband wave, dark arches, mottled beauty, flame and blood vein all new for the year. also, tawny marbled minor and wormwood pug from late June now confirmed after dissection. Both these new for my parish list. Also, a splendid scorched carpet was roosting near the trap, on lilac leaves and in the trap a few brimstone, tawny marbled carpet, common wainscot, heart and dart, clouded silver, common white wave, straw dot, buff ermine and brown rustic. Not too bad.

mottled beauty

common white wave

scorched wing

clouded brindle

dark arches