Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Geometers (Geometridae) - part 4: Carpets III (Pennithera to Dysstroma)

GEOMETERS (GEOMETRIDAE) (continued)


Pine Carpet Pennithera firmata - Singles here on 24th September and 5th October 2019 and 1st August and 27th September 2020, making it 4 consecutive years that I've trapped 2 here (before that one in 2016 and none in 2014/15).  Elsewhere singles at Swanton Great Wood and Row Heath (West Runton) on 27th and 31st August 2019 and one at Bintree Wood on 13th June 2020.

Pine Carpet, Swanton Great Wood, 27th August 2019

Pine Carpet, North Elmham, 5th October 2019

Spruce Carpet Thera britannica - Singles here on 23rd October and 2nd November 2019, 2 on 27th May and one on 18th October 2020.  That's about average here.  Elsewhere singles at Swanton Great Wood and Row Heath (West Runton) on 27th and 31st August 2019.

Spruce Carpet, North Elmham, 23rd October 2019

Spruce Carpet, North Elmham, 27th May 2020

male Spruce Carpet, North Elmham, 18th October 2020

Grey Pine Carpet Thera obeliscata - Despite having averaged about 7 a year I didn't catch any of these at home in 2019 and only 3 in 2020 (21st May and 14th and 15th August).  A few elsewhere including one at the meadows on 22nd April 2019, one at Bintree Wood, 6 at Hills and Holes, 6 at Row Heath (West Runton), one in Cornwall and singles at 3 sites on Mull.  One or two of the latter (shown below) were types that I find quite tricky to tell apart from Spruce Carpet - fortunately they were males enabling me to check their diagnostic antennae.

male Grey Pine Carpet, Carsaig (Mull), 13th June

male Grey Pine Carpet, Ceann Chnocain (Mull), 13th June - showing the diagnostic antenna

Grey Pine Carpet, Hills and Holes, 21st May 2020

Juniper Carpet Thera juniperata - None.  This is a rare example of a moth that I caught regularly at my last house in Bawdeswell (25 in the bedroom between 2007 and 2013) but which I haven't caught at all since moving to North Elmham in 2014.


Blue-bordered Carpet Plemyria rubiginata - Singles in the garden on 23rd July 2019 (my latest ever record, though only by a day) and 24th June 2020.  I just about record this here annually with a total of 9 since 2015.

Blue-bordered Carpet, North Elmham, 23rd July 2019

Blue-bordered Carpet, North Elmham, 24th June 2020

Barred Yellow Cidaria fulvata - 6 caught in the garden between 24th June and 5th July 2019 and then just 2 in 2020, on 22nd and 26th June.  About 8 is average.  Elsewhere one at the meadows, one at Weybourne and 4 at Brancaster.

Barred Yellow, North Elmham, 27th June 2019

Barred Yellow, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 30th June 2019

Barred Yellow, North Elmham, 22nd June 2020

Broken-barred Carpet Electrophaes corylata - None in 2019, my first blank year since moving here, and just 2 in 2020, on 18th and 20th May.  I had caught 3-4 in the garden in each of the previous 4 years.

Broken-barred Carpet, North Elmham, 18th May 2020

Purple Bar Cosmorrhoe ocellata - 3 caught in my garden between 21st and 30th August 2019 and 6 between 30th July and 22nd August 2020.  Also one next door, 2 at Bintree Wood and one at Sculthorpe Moor (26th April 2019).  A fairly typical showing.


Phoenix Eulithis prunata - One in my garden trap on 26th July 2019 but none in 2020.  I recorded 13 here in 2 years (2016-17) but none in 2018 so this species seems to be quite erratic in its occurrence here.  Elsewhere one at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019, my latest ever record.

Phoenix, North Elmham, 26th July 2019

Chevron Eulithis testata - None in 2019; one in the garden on 11th August 2020 was a first for the garden.  The only other relatively local example that I've ever caught was one at my old house in Bawdeswell back in 2010.

Chevron, North Elmham, 11th August 2020

Spinach Eulithis mellinata -None.  This was one of the biggest holes in my moth list until 2018 but it remains a gap in my garden list despite there being a record from the other moth-trapper in my street.


Barred Straw Gandaritis pyraliata - Totals of 61 in the garden between 22nd June and 14th July 2019 and 57 between 13th June and 12th July, including a record count of 9 on 5th July 2019.  Despite the record the overall numbers were average.  Elsewhere 9 at the meadows (5 nights), one at Bintree Wood and one at Hellesdon.

Barred Straw, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 30th June 2019

Barred Straw, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 7th July 2019

Barred Straw, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 18th July 2020

Small Phoenix Ecliptopera silaceata - Totals of 5 trapped at home between 21st July and 7th August 2019 and 3 between 26th May and 11th August 2020.  Although I've recorded up to 8 in a year here, 2 out of 5 years were blank.  Elsewhere one at the meadows on 31st May, one in Hellesdon and a total of 10 on Mull.

Small Phoenix, Carsaig (Mull), 10th June 2019

Small Phoenix, North Elmham, 7th August 2019

Small Phoenix, North Elmham, 26th May 2020

Small Phoenix, North Elmham, 23rd July 2020

Red-green Carpet Chloroclysta siterata - In the spring flight period one in the garden on 23rd May 2019 and one at the meadows a couple of nights later, then singles at home on 20th and 21st May 2020.  In the autumn singles in the garden on 4th October and 26th November 2019 (my latest ever) and one at the meadows on 4th October, then 3 between 20th September and 20th October 2020 and 2 at the meadows on 8th November.  After 13 here in my first autumn (2014) I thought this species was going to be commoner here but it must have been a good year as I've only had a total of 20 in 6 years since then (with none in 2018).

Red-green Carpet, North Elmham, 23rd May 2019

Red-green Carpet, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 4th October 2019

Red-green Carpet, North Elmham, 20th May 2020

Red-green Carpet, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 8th November 2020

Common Marbled Carpet Dysstroma truncata - In 2019, 9 in the garden between 1st and 15th June and then 5 between 7th and 28th September.  In 2020, 11 between 21st May and 24th June and 11 between 8th August and 30th September.  These were my worst showings so far - I was averaging 65 a year previously.  Elsewhere 2 at the meadows, 2 at Swanton Great Wood, 2 at Whitwell Street, 2 on Mull and 26 in Cornwall.

Common Marbled Carpet, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 31st May 2019

Common Marbled Carpet, Swanton Great Wood, 27th August 2019

Dark Marbled Carpet Dysstroma citrataa - None.  I have never seen this species, in fact I'm not convinced it exists in Norfolk...


Next page: more Geometridae

A bumper crop of new moths for the year

I found this Corn Moth Nemapogon granella in the house on Friday 25th May, the third consecutive year I've recorded this generally scarce species, all inside the house.

Corn Moth Nemapogon granella, North Elmham, 25th May

While I was out trapping at the Meadows I had the trap running in the garden, where during the course of the night I trapped exactly the same number of moth species as I'd caught at the Meadows, 61.  These included a notable total of 16 new for the year: Pale-backed Clothes Moth Monopis crocicapitella, 3 Bird’s-nest Moths Tinea trinotella, Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella, Garden Mompha Mompha subbistrigella, Hedge Tortrix Isotrias rectifasciana, 3 Yellow-faced Bells Notocelia cynosbatella, Triple-blotched Bell Notocelia trimaculana, Narrow-winged Grey Eudonia angustea, 2 Silver-ground Carpets, Common Marbled Carpet, Broken-barred Carpet, Foxglove Pug, Grey Pug, Brown Silver-line, Setaceous Hebrew Character and Rustic Shoulder-knot.

Pale-backed Clothes Moth Monopis crocicapitella, North Elmham, 25th May

Bird's-nest Moth Tinea trinotella, North Elmham, 25th May

Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella (female, gen det), North Elmham, 25th May

Garden Mompha Mompha subbistrigella, North Elmham, 25th May

Hedge Tortrix Isotrias rectifasciana, North Elmham, 25th May

Yellow-faced Bell Notocelia cynosbatella, North Elmham, 25th May

Triple-blotched Bell Notocelia trimaculana, North Elmham, 25th May

Common Marbled Carpet, North Elmham, 25th May

Broken-barred Carpet, North Elmham, 25th May

Foxglove Pug, North Elmham, 25th May

Grey Pug (male, gen det), North Elmham, 25th May

The other moths trapped were Little Dwarf Elachista canapennella, 2 White-shouldered House Moths Endrosis sarcitrella, Light Brown Apple-moth Epiphyas postvittana, Common Birch Bell Epinotia immundana, Hook-streak Grass-veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, 3 Bee Moths Aphomia sociella, 2 Common Swifts, Red Twin-spot Carpet, 2 Green Carpets, Small Rivulet, Mottled Pug, 8 Common Pugs, Brimstone Moth, Common White Wave, Poplar Hawk-moth, Pale Tussock, 3 White Ermines, Cinnabar, Small Square-spot, Common Wainscot and 5 Treble Lines.

Two caddisfly species were new for the year too: Ithytrichia lamellaris and Hydropsyche pellucidula.  The only other caddis was Limnephilus sparsus.

Ithytrichia lamellaris (female), North Elmham, 25th May

Hydropsyche pellucidula (female), North Elmham, 25th May

A Common Wasp was the only other by-catch I identified.

Another good haul

Insects at Ryburgh on 16th May included the Scorpion Fly Panorpa germanica, the click beetle Dalopius marginatus and a Silver-ground Carpet.  I then found myself heading up to Walsey Hills at Cley to see an Iberian Chiffchaff noticing Green Long-horn Adela reaumurella, Orange-tips and Holly Blues while I was enjoying the Iberian Chiff.

Panorpa germanica (female, gen det), Ryburgh, 16th May

That night was another good one with Hawthorn Bent-wing Bucculatrix bechsteinella new for the house.

Hawthorn Bent-wing Bucculatrix bechsteinella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 16th May

Like the previous night a high proportion of the species recorded were new for the year: Oak Bent-wing Bucculatrix ulmella, 2 Ribwort Slenders Aspilapteryx tringipennella, Blackthorn Slender Parornix torquillella, Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella, Clover Case-bearer Coleophora alcyonipennella, Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, Common Swift, Maiden's Blush, Common Marbled Carpet, Broken-barred Carpet, Small Rivulet, Mottled Pug, Pebble Prominent, Chocolate-tip and 2 Orange Footmen.

 Oak Bent-wing Bucculatrix ulmella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 16th May

Ribwort Slender Aspilapteryx tringipennella, North Elmham, 16th May

Blackthorn Slender Parornix torquillella (female, gen det), North Elmham, 16th May

Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella, North Elmham, 16th May

Small Clover Case-bearer Coleophora alcyonipennella (female, gen det), North Elmham, 16th May

Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, North Elmham, 16th May

Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, North Elmham, 16th May

Common Marbled Carpet, North Elmham, 16th May

Broken-barred Carpet, North Elmham, 16th May

Small Rivulet, North Elmham, 16th May

Mottled Pug, North Elmham, 16th May

Pebble Prominent, North Elmham, 16th May

Chocolate-tip, North Elmham, 16th May

Orange Footman, North Elmham, 16th May

Other species were 3 Little Dwarfs Elachista canapennella, 2 Fen Flat-bodies Depressaria ultimella, Common Birch Bell Epinotia immundana, 2 Bee Moths Aphomia sociella, 2 Chinese Characters, 2 Red Twin-spot Carpets, 5 Green Carpets, Currant Pug, 7 Common Pugs, 2 Oak-tree Pugs, 8 Brimstone Moths, 2 Scalloped Hazels, 3 Waved Umbers, White-pinion Spotted, Poplar Hawk-moth, Pale Prominent, Pale Tussock, White Ermine, 2 Shuttle-shaped Darts and 2 Treble Lines.

This beetle proved to be Cantharis cryptica.

Cantharis cryptica, North Elmham, 16th May

The caddisfly Micropterna lateralis was new for the house while 2 Hydropsyche siltalai were new for the year.  Other caddis were 2 Glyphotaelius pellucidus and Limnephilus sparsus.

Micropterna lateralis (male), North Elmham, 16th May

Hydropsyche siltalai (female), North Elmham, 16th May