Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Golds (Micropterigidae), Purples (Eriocraniidae) and Swifts (Hepialidae)

GOLDS (MICROPTERIGIDAE)


Red-barred Gold Micropterix tunbergella - None.  I'm yet to find this species anywhere but I reckon there's a chance of finding it on the Hawthorn flowers at the meadows.  Probably not much chance of finding it at home.


Black-headed Gold Micropterix mansuetella - None.  Another one I'm not expecting to find at home, but perhaps half a chance of getting them at the meadows someday.


White-barred Gold Micropterix aruncella - None.  Perhaps a bit more likely that than the previous species to turn up at the meadows and who knows, maybe even at home one day.


Plain Gold Micropterix calthella - Up to 10+ at the meadows between 12th and 25th May 2019 and up to 7 between 25th April and 15th May 2020.  I've not recorded this at home, and not really expecting it either.

Plain Golds Microtperix calthella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 25th April 2020

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PURPLES (ERIOCRANIIDAE)


Common Oak Purple Dyseriocrania subpurpurella - One in my garden moth trap on 11th April 2020 was only my second here (following one in 2016).  Singles recorded at the meadows on 3 dates between 21st and 29th April 2019 and on 10th and 24th April 2020.

Common Oak Purple Dyseriocrania subpurpurella, North Elmham, 11th April 2020

White-spot Purple Eriocrania unimaculella - None.  I've never seen this species but there are records reasonably nearby so it may well crop up here sometime.


Mottled Purple Eriocrania sparrmannella - None.  Another one I've never seen, and a striking species that I would very much like to see.  It seems to be fairly widespread, if scarce, so must be a fair chance of coming across it sooner or later.


Small Birch Purple Eriocrania salopiella - None.  I've never caught this species though I did photograph one Dave N caught once.  It's another reasonably widespread species that might turn up here someday.


Washed Purple Eriocrania cicatricella - None.  Yet another scarce but widespread member of the family that I'm yet to encounter.


Early Purple Eriocrania semipurpurella - A male was netted in flight at the meadows fairly early in the morning on 17th April 2019, only the second time I've confirmed this species.  There were also some unidentified Eriocrania mines in the Downy Birch that was growing along the disused railway (sadly these trees were chopped dowin in the autumn).  I haven't recorded this species at home yet.

Early Purple Eriocrania semipurpurella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 17th April 2019

Large Birch Purple Eeriocrania sangii - None.  I have recorded this species at home once (2018) - the only Eriocrania that I've recorded here.

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SWIFTS AND GHOST MOTH (HEPIALIDAE)


Orange Swift Triodia sylvina - 2019 was a below-average year with 14 at home between 7th August and 4th September; also one to light at the meadows, a big female scattering its eggs.  2020 was more typical with 24 between 5th August and 13th September, but none anywhere else.

female Orange Swift, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd August 2019

Common Swift Korscheltellus lupulina - A total of 56 in the garden moth trap between 17th May and 19th June 2019, just about my best year here.  Fewer in 2020 with 30 between 20th May and 21st June.  Also up to 10 at the meadows on 3 dates in 2019 and 2 in 2020.

Common  Swift, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 25th May 2019

Gold Swift Phymatopus hecta - None.  I've never recorded this species at home or at the meadows but it must be a strong possibility as I've seen it at Bintree Wood and Beetley Common.  Its foodplant (Bracken) doesn't grow at the meadows but does grow just a few yards further down the railway line.


Ghost Moth Hepialus humuli - Singles recorded at home on 7 nights between 24th June and 30th July 2019, my joint worst year in 5 for this species.  However 2020 was even worse with singles on just 2 nights, 8th and 9th July.  Also one at the meadows on 9th June 2020.

Ghost Moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 9th June 2020

Next page: Pigmies (Nepticulidae)

Grapholita lobarzewskii - the second for Norfolk (and first for the vice-county)

The pheronome lures often attract insects that aren't their target and this Syrphus ribesii (a hoverfly) was one such example.

Syrphus ribesii, North Elmham, 21st June

New moths for the year that night were Common Groundling Teleiodes vulgella, Base-lined Grey Scoparia basistrigalis, Clay and Plain Golden Y.

Common Groundling Teleiodes vulgella, North Elmham, 21st June

Base-lined Grey Scoparia basistrigalis (male, gen det), North Elmham, 21st June

Plain Golden Y, North Elmham, 21st June

The rest of the moths that unremarkable night were 3 Large Ivy Tortrixes Lozotaenia forsterana, Common Marble Celypha lacunana, Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, Marsh Grey Eudonia pallida, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, Small Magpie Anania hortulata, Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla, Common Emerald, Single-dotted Wave, 3 Treble Brown Spots, Riband Wave, Garden Carpet, 2 Barred Straws, Clouded Border, 2 Willow Beauties, Engrailed, Common White Wave, Light Emerald, Elephant Hawk-moth, Common Footman, 9 Buff Ermines, 2 Cinnabars, 2 Heart and Clubs, Heart and Dart, Ingrailed Clay, Common Wainscot, 2 Brown Rustics, 4 Uncertains, and Spectacle.

If that was poor then the following night is probably best described as tragic.  Just 16 moths of 12 species, in the fourth week of June (and no mayflies, lacewings, caddisflies, bugs or beetles).  It may have been cool but this is ridiculous!  They were London Dowd Blastobasis lacticolella, Light Brown Apple-moth Epiphyas postvittana, 2 Large Ivy Tortrixes Lozotaenia forsterana, Common Swift, Single-dotted Wave, Common Footman, 3 Buff Ermines, Heart and Club, Heart and Dart, Ingrailed Clay, 2 Brown Rustics and Dark Arches.

Common Swift, North Elmham, 22nd June

Next day a quick visit to the allotments produced Yellow Shell and a Dock Bug.  I put the pheronome lure out again for Grapholita lobarzewskii.  This is a newly-developed lure and Jon Clifton caught Norfolk's first lobarzewskii in his garden when trialling it last year, but it also attracted a number of Grapholita janthinana.  Aware of this it was no great surprise when I found a Grapholita in the lure trap to find that it was 'just' a Pale-bordered Piercer Grapholita janthinana.  But that's only the second time I've had this moth here so not all that bad really.

Pale-bordered Piercer Grapholita janthinana (male, gen det), North Elmham, 23rd June

That night was only a little better than the previous one, with London Dowd Blastobasis lacticolella, Flax Tortrix Cnephasia asseclana, Common Marble Celypha lacunana, Small Magpie Anania hortulata, Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla, 2 Single-dotted Waves, Riband Wave, Clouded Border, Brimstone Moth, 2 Willow Beauties, Mottled Beauty, 5 Buff Ermines, Cinnabar, 3 Heart and Clubs, 3 Heart and Darts, Double Square-spot, Bright-line Brown-eye, Common Wainscot, 5 Brown Rustics, 3 Uncertains, Burnished Brass, Spectacle and Straw Dot.

The following day got a whole lot better, starting with the contents of the Grapholita lobarzewskii pherenome lure trap.  In it was a moth that looked superficially similar to Grapholita janthinana, but was immediately obviously different from the Grapholita janthinana I'd caught in there the previous day.  For a starter it was substantially larger, but it was also structurally different being noticeably longer and at least proportionately narrower in the wing.  From below the hindwing cilia looked white and when I managed to encourage it to show its hindwings they were really dark.  Surely this was the boy!  I was so sure I was tempted not to dissect it - surely it couldn't not be lobarzewskii!  But this is a significant record and would only be accepted on dissection so I dutifully did the business.  Sure enough, it proved to be a male Kent Fruit Piercer Grapholita lobarzewskii, the second record for Norfolk (and first for this vice county).  A nice fresh one too, which is something I can't say about most of the janthinana I've seen previously!

Kent Fruit Piercer Grapholita lobarzewskii (male, gen det), North Elmham, 24th June

Here it is with the Grapholita janthinana from the previous day, for comparison:

Pale-bordered Piercer Grapholita janthinana (left) and Kent Fruit Piercer Grapholita lobarzewskii (right)

Remarkably this wasn't my only new moth that day as the night's moth trap produced a Rose Case-bearer Coleophora gryphipennella.  To be fair I didn't have much inkling about this one until I dissected it quite a long time later.  They say that the antennae being clearly ringed right to the tip is a good indicator for this species, but to my eyes this species is extremely similar to various other Coleophora species, some of which can have antennae ringed to the tip.

Rose Case-bearer Coleophora gryphipennella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 24th June

Triangle-marked Roller Ancylis achatana, Swallow-tailed Moth and Dingy Footman were all new for the year that night.

Triangle-marked Roller Ancylis achatana, North Elmham, 24th June

Swallow-tailed Moth, North Elmham, 24th June

Other moths were Tipped Oak Case-bearer Coleophora flavipennella, Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella, Common Yellow Conch Agapeta hamana, Black-headed Conch Cochylis atricapitana, 2 Large Fruit-tree Tortrixes Archips podana, Privet Tortrix Clepsis consimilana, Light Brown Apple-moth Epiphyas postvittana, 3 Large Ivy Tortrixes Lozotaenia forsterana, 5 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, Triple-blotched Bell Notocelia trimaculana, Hoary Bell Eucosma cana, Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella, Inlaid Grass-veneer Crambus pascuella, 2 Small Greys Eudonia mercurella, 8 Small Magpies Anania hortulata, White Plume Pterophorus pentadactyla, Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla, Dwarf Cream Wave, 2 Small Dusty Waves, Riband Wave, Garden Carpet, 3 Barred Straws, 3 Barred Yellows, Foxglove Pug, Double-striped Pug, Lilac Beauty, Willow Beauty, Mottled Beauty, Common White Wave, 2 Common Footmen, 8 Buff Ermines, Cinnabar, 2 Heart and Clubs, 3 Heart and Darts, 2 Flames, Ingrailed Clay, 4 Double Square-spots, Common Wainscot, 4 Brown Rustics, Marbled Minor, Tawny Marbled Minor, Treble Lines, 13 Uncertains, Mottled Rustic, 2 Straw Dots and Snout. Caddisflies were Hydropsyche pellucidula and 2 Grouse Wings Mystacides longicornis.

dark barred but not Dark-barred

Thursday night was a good night with 10 new moths for the year: Common Marble Celypha lacunana, Rush Marble Bactra lancealana, Hook-streak Grass-veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Small Magpie Anania hortulata, Common Swift, Small Rivulet, Pale Oak Beauty, Common White Wave, Bright-line Brown-eye and Silver Y.

Common Marble Celypha lacunana, North Elmham, 24th May

Rush Marble Bactra lancealana, North Elmham, 24th May

Hook-streak Grass-veneer Crambus lathoniellus, North Elmham, 24th May

Small Magpie Anania hortulata, North Elmham, 24th May

Common Swift, North Elmham, 24th May

Small Rivulet, North Elmham, 24th May

Pale Oak Beauty, North Elmham, 24th May

Common White Wave, North Elmham, 24th May

Bright-line Brown-eye, North Elmham, 24th May

Silver Y, North Elmham, 24th May

Also recorded were Bee Moth Aphomia sociella, Chinese Character, 2 Red Twin-spot Carpets, Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet, Garden Carpet, Green Carpet, 5 Mottled Pugs, Brimstone Moth, Poplar Hawk-moth, 2 Pale Prominents, 3 White Ermines, Least Black Arches, Flame Shoulder, 2 Common Wainscots, 6 Treble Lines and Spectacle. Non-moths included the springtail Orchesella cincta, the soldier beetle Cantharis cryptica and the caddisfly Grammotaulius nigropunctatus.

This Red Twin-spot Carpet is one of the darkest-barred examples I've seen, though still recognisable as Red (but I did gen det it just to make sure).  There are a few red scales in a wedge towards the outer half of the dark bar, and a very few on the inner part too, but at a glance it just looks black.  However there are other give-aways that it's Red, such as the lack of indents in this bar (not that that's an entirely reliable feature on its own).

Red Twin-spot Carpet (male, gen det), North Elmham, 24th May

Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet (male, gen det), North Elmham, 24th May

Orchesella cincta, North Elmham, 24th May

With some excellent help from Keith Kerr I (well, he) managed to identify another spider from the meadows - Anelosimus vittatus.  Thanks Keith!

Anelosimus vittatus, North Elmham, 19th May

A decent evening at last

Warm, calm and cloudy - a perfect recipe for moths.  For the first time this year all three were in play on Friday night (well, not quite calm, but no more than a light breeze) and we were sure to enjoy the best night of the year so far.  Indeed it proved, though I think I've had better nights at this time of year in better years.

A little bit of dusking on the patch secured Skin Moth Monopis laevigella, Swan-feather Dwarf Elachista argentella and Hook-streaked Grass-Veneer Crambus lathoniellus in the Beetley area. 

Swan-feather Dwarf Elachista argentella, Rawhall Wood, 22nd May

Then I set up the light at Creaking Gate Lake where things got off to a slower start than I had anticipated.  Eventually it picked up and a reasonable selection was accrued.

The highlight was a new moth for me, Downland Marble Endothenia oblongana.There are very few inland records of this moth and it's not an easy ID to separate from the slightly more frequently-recorded Teasel Marble Endothenia gentianaeana.  Size was just about within range for a small gentianaeana and I thought at first I could detect the small pale mark beyond the post median fascia that is supposed to be shown by that species.  But it had little grey/violet irrotation in the base, no violet near the tip and the pattern of the apical region seemed better for oblongana - indeed one of the oblongana shown on Lepiforum looked  a very good match for my moth.  They're not the easiest to gen det either, but all internal features I could see seemed to support oblongana.

Downland Marble Endothenia oblongana, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Other highlights included Figure of Eighty, a species I've only seen occasonally, and my first Lime Hawkmoth of the year.

Figure of Eighty, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Lime Hawkmoth, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

The supporting cast were 3 Carrion Moths Monopis weaverella, 2 Ribwort Slenders Aspilapteryx tringipennella, 2 Dark-barred Tortrices Syndemis musculana, Common Birch Bell Epinotia immundana, Hook-streaked Grass-Veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, Common Swift, Pebble Hook-tip, 2 Silver-ground Carpets, 3 + Green Carpets, May Highflyer, Brindled Pug, Treble-bar, Brimstone Moth, Scalloped Hazel, Common White Wave, Iron Prominent, 2 Pebble Prominents, Coxcomb Prominent, 3 Pale Tussocks, Orange Footman, 2 White Ermines, Cinnabar, Least Black Arches, Shuttle-shaped Dart, Flame Shoulder, Hebrew Character, Angle Shades and Nut-tree Tussock.

Common Swift, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

May Highflyer, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Silver-ground Carpet, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Common Birch Bell Epinotia immundana, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Non-lepidopteran interest was kept up with a bug-lifer, Harpocera thoracica.

 Harpocera thoracica, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Among the beetles were a couple I can't identify and a couple I've tenatively identified - let me know if you can help.  Also Cream-spot Ladybird and, once again, 16 Cockchafers - seems to be a good year for them, unfortunately.

unidentified Beetle, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

unidentified Beetle, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

probable Athous haemorrhoidalis, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

apparent Cantharis nigricans, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Plenty of other insects there too, including the first Bramble Sawfly that I recall seeing.

Bramble Sawfly Arge cyanocrocea, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Birch Shieldbugs, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Chloeon diperum, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Downlooker Snipefly Rhagio scolopaceus, Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

Micropterna lateralis (I think), Creaking Gate Lake, 22nd May

I gave up shortly after midnight and returned home at which point it started drizzling.  The garden was heaving with moths.  I ended up with 68 moths of 41 species - including no less than 16 that were new for the year for the garden.  Those were Carrion Moth Monopis weaverella, Bird’s-nest Moth Tinea trinotella, Ribwort Slender Aspilapteryx tringipennella, Yarrow Conch Aethes smeathmanniana, Many-plumed Moth Alucita hexadactyla, Hook-streaked Grass-Veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, Water Carpet, Grey Pine Carpet, May Highflyer, Sandy Carpet, White-pinion Spotted, 2 Orange Footmen, Shears and Rustic Shoulder-knot.

Shears, North Elmham, 22nd May

Grey Pine Carpet, North Elmham, 22nd May

May Highflyer, North Elmham, 22nd May

Orange Footman, North Elmham, 22nd May

Rustic Shoulder-knot, North Elmham, 22nd May

White-pinion Spotted, North Elmham, 22nd May

Yarrow Conch Aethes smeathmanniana, North Elmham, 22nd May

Hook-streaked Grass-Veneer Crambus lathoniellus, North Elmham, 22nd May

Bird's-nest Moth Tinea trinotella, North Elmham, 22nd May

Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, North Elmham, 22nd May

Water Carpet, North Elmham, 22nd May

Sandy Carpet, North Elmham, 22nd May

Among the others another Fen Flat-body Depressaria ultimella was notable, as were Pale Pinion and Herald.

Fen Flat-body Depressaria ultimella, North Elmham, 22nd May

Pale Pinion, North Elmham, 22nd May

Herald, North Elmham, 22nd May

5 Waved Umbers was my highest count ever of this species.

Waved Umbers, North Elmham, 22nd May

The others were Little Dwarf Elachista canapennella, Common Flat-body Agonopterix heracliana, Common Marble Celypha lacunana, Yellow-faced Bell Notocelia cynosbatella, Narrow-winged Grey Eudonia angustea, 2 Bee Moths Aphomia sociella, 2 Chinese Characters, Blood-vein, 2 Red Twin-spot Carpets, Green Carpet, 9 Common Pugs, Treble-bar, 7 Brimstone Moths, 2 Scalloped Hazels, Buff-tip, 2 Pale Tussocks, White Ermine, 2 Cinnabars, Shuttle-shaped Dart, Bright-line Brown-eye, Angle Shades and 3 Treble Lines.

Angle Shades, North Elmham, 22nd May

Cinnabar, North Elmham, 22nd May

Treble-bar, North Elmham, 22nd May

Other insects included a Birch Shieldbug here too:

Birch Shieldbug, North Elmham, 22nd May

This caddisfly is a new one for me, I think - though I'm not 100% sure if the ID is correct or if there are other similar species that should be considered.

probable Ecnomus tenellus, North Elmham, 22nd May