Description


A diary of my mothing activity covering highlights and photos from my moth trapping activities. Mainly Norfolk (UK), occasionally beyond. I may mention other wildlife sightings here, especially insects, but for birds see my birding diary.

Thursday 28 September 2017

Water Shrew gobbling up the moths

On the evening of Monday 14th August Dave and I headed off to Potter Heigham for some mothing.  Conditions weren't idea with a little more breeze than we would have liked but we thought it was worth a shot. There were certainly a lot of flies attracted to the light - if not quite so many moths.

My second ever Reed Smudge Orthotelia sparganella was one of the highlights but there were a number of interesting moths like Hemp-agrimony Plume Adaina microdactyla, Chevron and 2 Dotted Footmen. Unsurprisingly in the habitat there was a nice variety of Wainscots and the like including 4 Southern Wainscots, Smoky Wainscot, 5 Reed Daggers, 2 Small Wainscots, 3 Bulrush Wainscots, 2 Twin-spotted Wainscots, 4 Webb's Wainscots, 2 Small Rufous and Silky Wainscot.

Hemp-agrimony Plume Adaina microdactyla (male, gen det), Potter Heigham, 14th August



Chevron, Potter Heigham, 14th August


Dotted Footman, Potter Heigham, 14th August


Silky Wainscot, Potter Heigham, 14th August


Other moths were Carrion Moth Monopis weaverella, Triple-spot Dwarf Elachista maculicerusella, Brindled Flat-body Agonopterix arenella, Bulrush Cosmet Limnaecia phragmitella, 2 Hook-marked Straw Moths Agapeta hamana, 3 Cyclamen Tortrixes Clepsis spectrana, Flax Tortrix Cnephasia asseclana, Blotched Marble Endothenia quadrimaculana, 5 Wainscot Veneers Chilo phragmitella, Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella, Pearl Veneer Agriphila straminella, 2 Common Grass-veneers Agriphila tristella, 2 Giant Water-veneers Schoenobius gigantella, 4 Marsh Greys Eudonia pallida, 3 Brown China-marks Elophila nymphaeata, 2 Ringed China-marks Parapoynx stratiotata, Small China-mark Cataclysta lemnata, 2 Drinkers, Blood-vein, 2 Common Carpets, Lime-speck Pug, Double-striped Pug, Brimstone Moth, Willow Beauty, Poplar Hawk-moth, Sallow Kitten, Pale Prominent, Yellow-tail, Black Arches, 3 Garden Tigers, Ruby Tiger, Shuttle-shaped Dart, 4 Flame Shoulders, 2 Large Yellow Underwings, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Least Yellow Underwing, 2 Setaceous Hebrew Characters, Square-spotted Clay, Six-striped Rustic, Nutmeg, Cabbage Moth, 2 Dog's Tooths, Antler Moth, 2 Dark Arches, 3 Common Rustics, Lesser Common Rustic, 2 Burnished Brasses, 6 Gold Spots and 3 Straw Dots.

Giant Water-veneer Schoenobius gigantella, Potter Heigham, 14th August


One visitor to the sheet beneath one of the MV lights was a very welcome surprise, even if it was gobbling up moths ten to the dozen.  It was this Water Shrew.  Technically a lifer for me though I've seen 2-3 run across the path in front of me that I've been 99% sure about plus one or two dead animals.  Great to see one up close like this.  It sniffed a few flies but largely ignored them in favour of the larger juicier moths.



Water Shrew, Potter Heigham, 14th August


Another lifer was the only caddisfly I retained for checking - Holocentropus picicornis.  The typical form has yellow mottling like many other caddisflies in the Polycentropidae family so I assume this is the form aurata which has unmarked yellowish-brown wings.

Holocentropus picicornis (male), Potter Heigham, 14th August


A reasonable selection of moths at home that night including a Little Cosmet Mompha raschkiella which I'd only added to my garden list in July. A Rush Marble Bactra lancealana was an interesting form - I think moths looking like this are often put down as robustana but the genitalia seem to confirm this one as lancealana.   Bactra furfurana also has a form quite similar to this - I think this genus is harder to identify than some people give it credit for - and gen detting them isn't always easy either.

Rush Marble Bactra lancealana (female, gen det), North Elmham, 14th August


Other moths were Hazel Slender Parornix devoniella, Bird-cherry Ermine Yponomeuta evonymella, Woundwort Case-bearer Coleophora lineolea, Golden-brown Tubic Crassa unitella, Brown House Moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella, Long-horned Flat-body Carcina quercana, Dark Groundling Bryotropha affinis, House Groundling Bryotropha domestica, Dingy Dowd Blastobasis adustella, 6 Light Brown Apple Moths Epiphyas postvittana, Maple Button Acleris forsskaleana, Dark-triangle Button Acleris laterana, 2 Garden Rose Tortrixes Acleris variegana, 3 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, Pale-streak Grass-veneer Agriphila selasella, 3 Pearl Veneers Agriphila straminella, 12 Common Grass-veneers Agriphila tristella, 3 Chequered Grass-veneers Catoptria falsella, 2 Small Greys Eudonia mercurella, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, Small Purple and Gold (Mint Moth) Pyrausta aurata, Pale Straw Pearl Udea lutealis, 9 Mother of Pearls Pleuroptya ruralis, 2 Grey Knot-horns Acrobasis advenella, Beautiful Plume Amblyptilia acanthadactyla, Orange Swift, 2 Single-dotted Waves, 2 Riband Waves, Garden Carpet, 3 Common Carpets, 5 Brimstone Moths, Canary-shouldered Thorn, 3 Willow Beauties, Pale Prominent, Dingy Footman, 4 Flame Shoulders, 2 Large Yellow Underwings, Lesser Yellow Underwing, 6 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwings, 2 Small Square-spots, Setaceous Hebrew Character, 2 Square-spotted Clays, Burnished Brass, 2 Spectacles, 7 Straw Dots and Pinion-streaked Snout.

Small Purple and Gold (aka Mint Moth) Pyrausta aurata, North Elmham, 14th August


Lacewings and caddisflies consisted of Chrysoperla carnea agg., Cunctochrysa albolineata, Ithytrichia lamellaris, Hydropsyche siltalai and Limnephilus lunatus. There was a Forest Bug and the beetle list was Ilybius ater, 4 Bradycellus verbasci, Nicrophorus investigator and Aphodius rufipes.


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