Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Flat-bodies (Depressariidae) (part 2: Depressaria and Telechrysis), Ermels (Ethmiidae) and Cosmets (Cosmopterigidae)

FLAT-BODIES (DEPRESSARIIDAE) (continued)


Parsnip Moth Depressaria radiella - One in my garden moth trap on 22nd April 2020.  This species is unexpectedly scarce here with just 2 previous records (in 2014 and 2015).  I used to see it regularly at Bawdeswell so expected more here.

Parsnip Moth Depressaria radiella, North Elmham, 22nd April 2020

Brown Flat-body Depressaria badiella - None.  I've only seen this species at Winterton and I'm not sure how likely it is to crop up locally.  There's plenty of its foodplants round here but in Norfolk records are pretty much restricted to the coast and one site in the Brecks.


Fen Flat-body Depressaria ultimella - One in my garden trap on 8th November 2020, my first ever autumn record.  I had 1-2 here each spring from 2015 to 2018, so 2019 was my first blank year, but I made up for it with one at the meadows on 22nd April.

male Fen Flat-body Depressaria ultimella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd April 2019

male Fen Flat-body Depressaria ultimella, North Elmham, 8th November 2020

Chervil Flat-body Depressaria sordidatella - None.  One in my garden in 2016 was the first county record since 1874 so perhaps not all that likely to be repeated quickly.


Streaked Flat-body Depressaria chaerophylli - Singles caught in the garden on 22nd April 2019 (quite a worn and therefore indistinct individual) and 20th May 2020.  I've previously caught this species here in 2016 and 2017 (3).

male Streaked Flat-body Depressaria chaerophylli, North Elmham, 22nd April 2019

female Streaked Flat-body Depressaria chaerophylli, North Elmham, 20th May 2020

Treble-spot Flat-body Telechrysis tripuncta - 2 netted at the meadows early on 1st June 2020, at exactly the same place and the same time of day as I netted 2 on 15th June 2018.  On both occasions it followed a clear night and was quite chilly.  I've caught this species at home once, in 2017.

Treble-spot Flat-body Telechrysis tripuncta, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 1st  June 2020

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ERMELS (ETHMIIDAE)


Dotted Ermel Ethmia dodecea - One at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020 but sadly I didn't manage to get a photo.  None at home where I've recorded this species 3 times, twice in 2016 and once in 2017.


Comfrey Ermel Ethmia quadrillella - None.  I've not found this species locally and it's not as widespread as the previous species so not sure how likely it is to crop up round here.


Bordered Ermel Ethmia bipunctella - None.  I've never seen this species but it's not all that far away from here so I have hope.  A lovely fresh example in my garden moth trap would go down very well indeed.

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COSMETS (COSMOPTERIGIDAE)


Bulrush Cosmet Limnaecia phragmitella - A total of 25 caught at home over 10 nights between 9th  July and 14th August 2019, with a peak of 15 on 25th July.  This is my best year to date but numbers of this species seems to fluctuate wildly.  I caught 4 in 2020 between 16th and 30th July.  Most years it is very scarce or absent but every now and then there are loads.  Good years were 2014 (23 at my old house in Bawdeswell, with no proper trap), 2016 (19 here) and now 2019 (25).  Apart from those years, I had one at Bawdeswell in 2009, 2 here in 2017, one here in 2018 and apart from the 4 in 2020, none at all in any of the other years.  Elsewhere in 2019, one at the meadows on 26th July.

Bulrush Cosmet Limnaecia phragmitella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 26th July 2019

Hedge Cosmet Cosmopterix zieglerella - None.  I've never seen an adult of this species but it's pretty widespread in Norfolk so I should in theory have a good chance of finding them locally.  It would help if I could find some hops growing in the hedgerows first...


Fen Cosmet Cosmopterix lienigiella - None.  I've only ever seen one of these and it wasn't local, but there are records from the neighbouring 10k square so I must have a chance of finding it at the meadows at least (although their preference for large reed beds might stack the odds against me - there is Common Reed growing by the railway and nearby on the river but you certainly couldn't describe it as a large reed bed).


August Cosmet Sorhagenia rhamniella - None.  This is the only member of the genus that I've ever seen, and only once - one caught in my garden in June 2018.


Next page: Gelechiidae

Some good mothing at the meadows

A return to poor form on 14th June with just 28 species of moth, though these included a lovely Beautiful Golden Y, new for the year.  The others were Light Brown Apple-moth Epiphyas postvittana, 4 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, 5 Garden Grass-veneers Chrysoteuchia culmella, Hook-streak Grass-veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Little Grey Eudonia lacustrata, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, Lesser Pearl Sitochroa verticalis, 3 Small Magpies Anania hortulata, Treble Brown Spot, Silver-ground Carpet, Scorched Wing, 2 Brimstone Moths, Privet Hawk-moth, 3 White Ermines, 17 Buff Ermines, Cinnabar, 3 Heart and Darts, Flame, 2 Flame Shoulders, 2 Ingrailed Clays, Setaceous Hebrew Character, 3 Common Wainscots, Shoulder-striped Wainscot, 5 Brown Rustics, Small Angle Shades, 3 Treble Lines and 5 Straw Dots.

Beautiful Golden Y, North Elmham, 14th June

With such a small haul of moths in the trap it was barely light by the time I'd finished going through it, so I took the opportunity to get up to the meadows early.  I netted two Treble-spot Flat-bodies Telechrysis tripuncta as I wandered down the trap, a species that is only recorded in Norfolk about twice a year on average.  I'd only ever seen them twice before.

Treble-spot Flat-body Telechrysis tripuncta, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

These were followed by a Meadow Dwarf Elachista triatomea, along with Common Nettle-tap Anthophila fabriciana, 2 Timothy Tortrixes Aphelia paleana, Garden Grass-veneer Chrysoteuchia culmella and Hook-streak Grass-veneer Crambus lathoniellus.

 Meadow Dwarf Elachista triatomea, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Timothy Tortrix Aphelia paleana, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

view across the River Wensum from North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Other wildlife recorded that morning included Green Nettle Weevil Phyllobius pomaceus, the hoverfly Melanostoma scalare and a number of Kentish Snails and White-lipped Snails.

I returned to the meadows in the evening for some moth trapping.  It was one of the better night's trapping I've done here (maybe the best?) with 82 species including some nice ones, if nothing enormously unusual: Meadow Case-bearer Coleophora mayrella, 4 Hedge Case-bearers Coleophora striatipennella, Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella, 2 Black-headed Dwarfs Elachista atricomella, Swan-feather Dwarf Elachista argentella, London Dowd Blastobasis lacticolella, Common Yellow Conch Agapeta hamana, Black-headed Conch Cochylis atricapitana, 2 Barred Fruit-tree Tortrixes Pandemis cerasana, Variegated Golden Tortrix Archips xylosteana, Dover Shade Cnephasia genitalana, 6 Light Grey Tortrixes Cnephasia incertana, Yellow Oak Button Aleimma loeflingiana, 35 Green Oak Tortrixes Tortrix viridana, 3 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, 6 Plum Tortrixes Hedya pruniana, 3 Marbled Orchard Tortrixes Hedya nubiferana, Triple-blotched Bell Notocelia trimaculana, 5 Hoary Bells Eucosma cana, 2 Red Piercers Lathronympha strigana, 3 Garden Grass-veneers Chrysoteuchia culmella, 3 Hook-streak Grass-veneers Crambus lathoniellus, Meadow Grey Scoparia pyralella, 3 Common Greys Scoparia ambigualis, 2 Lesser Pearls Sitochroa verticalis, 2 Small Magpies Anania hortulata, Elder Pearl Anania coronata, 2 Fenland Pearls Anania perlucidalis, 2 Ghost Moths, Blood-vein, Single-dotted Wave, 3 Silver-ground Carpets, Green Carpet, 2 Sharp-angled Carpets, Lime-speck Pug, 4 Clouded Borders, 4 Scorched Wings, Mottled Beauty, Pale Oak Beauty, Common White Wave, Common Wave, Light Emerald, Eyed Hawk-moth, 2 Poplar Hawk-moths, 5 Elephant Hawk-moths, Swallow Prominent, Pale Prominent, 2 Marbled Browns, Lobster Moth, Four-dotted Footman, Common Footman, 4 White Ermines, 4 Buff Ermines, 10 Cinnabars, 5 Heart and Darts, 5 Flames, 4 Flame Shoulders, 4 Ingrailed Clays, Small Square-spot, 10 Setaceous Hebrew Characters, 2 Bright-line Brown-eyes, Clay, Smoky Wainscot, 7 Common Wainscots, Shoulder-striped Wainscot, Poplar Grey, Grey Dagger, 6 Brown Rustics, Small Angle Shades, Small Clouded Brindle, Large Nutmeg, Rustic Shoulder-knot, 3 Marbled Minors, 10 Middle-barred Minors, 5 Treble Lines, 3 Uncertains, Vine's Rustic, 2 Mottled Rustics, Green Silver-lines, 2 Burnished Brasses, 8 Straw Dots and 2 Snouts.

Meadow Case-bearer Coleophora mayrella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Black-headed Dwarf Elachista atricomella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Variegated Golden Tortrix Archips xylosteana, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Dover Shade Cnephasia genitalana (male, gen det), North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Light Grey Tortrix Cnephasia incertana (male, gen det), North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Hoary Bell Eucosma cana, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Red Piercer Lathronympha strigana, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Meadow Grey Scoparia pyralella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Lesser Pearl Sitochroa verticalis, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Small Magpie Anania hortulata, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Ghost Moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Sharp-angled Carpet, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Eyed Hawk-moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Poplar Hawk-moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Elephant Hawk-moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Swallow Prominent, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Pale Prominent, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Lobster Moth (with Green Oak Tortrix), North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Four-dotted Footman, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Cinnabar (with Green Oak Tortrix), North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Small Square-spot, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Clay, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Grey Dagger (male, gen det), North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Small Angle Shades, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Small Clouded Brindle, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Large Nutmeg, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Green Silver-lines, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Snout, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Other inverts recorded included Common Toad, 4 mayflies that I think were probably Caenis horaria, the caddisflies Phryganea grandis, 2 Limnephilus auricula and Limnephilus flavicornis, the mirid bugs Phylus palliceps and Stenodema laevigata, a Great Blackclock beetle Pterostichus niger, a luminescing Glow-worm Lampyris noctiluca, the sawfly Tenthredo livida and the spider Nuctenea umbratica.

Common Toad, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Phylus palliceps, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Great Blackclock Pterostichus niger, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

luminescences from a Glow-worm Lampyris noctiluca, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June

Tenthredo livida, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 15th June