Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Hook-tips, Lutestrings and allies (Drepanidae)

HOOK-TIPS, LUTESTRINGS and allies (DREPANIDAE)


Scalloped Hook-tip Falcaria lacertinaria - Singles in the garden trap on 14th July 2019 and 21st May 2020, my first here since 2016.  I had 3 in autumn 2014 just after moving in, one in 2015 and one in 2016.  Elsewhere singles at the meadows on 22nd April and 4th August 2019, 2 at Sculthorpe Moor on 26th April 2019 and one at Bintree Wood on 24th July 2020.

Scalloped Hook-tip, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd April 2019

Scalloped Hook-tip, North Elmham, 21st May 2020

Oak Hook-tip Watsonalla binaria - One caught at home on 3rd August 2019 and 5 here between 18th May and 24th July 2020.  5 represents the best year here so far - I've had between 1-3 before.  Elsewhere one next door, 8 at the meadows (including 5 on 7th August 2020) and 2 at Bintree Wood.

Oak Hook-tip, North Elmham, 3rd August 2019

Oak Hook-tip, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 3rd September 2019

Oak Hook-tip, North Elmham, 18th May 2020

Oak Hook-tip, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 18th July 2020

Spiny Hook-tip Watsonalla uncinula - One to LEDs in Spain in February 2020, the first time I've seen this non-British species that's pretty similar to our Oak Hook-tip.

Spiny Hook-tip, between Sant Vicenc and Torrelles de Llobregat, 23rd February 2020

Dusky Hook-tip Watsonalla cultraria - None.  Away from a few hotspots this species is pretty rare in Norfolk but there are scattered records from quite a lot of the county so perhaps the odds of finding one locally aren't impossibly low.


Pebble Hook-tip Drepana falcataria - Totals of 15 in the garden trap between 16th July and 6th August 2019 and 11 between 21st July and 19th August 2020, totals that are a bit below average.  Elsewhere one next door, 3 at the meadows, one at Bintree Wood, one at Weybourne, a later one at Row Heath (West Runton) on 31st August 2019 and 2 earlier ones at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020.

Pebble Hook-tip, Hills and Holes, 21st May 2020

Pebble Hook-tip, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 18th July 2020

Chinese Character Cilix glaucata - One in the garden and 2 at the meadows between 21st April and 31st May 2019 and then commoner in the summer generation with 16 here between 6th July and 2nd September, and 2 more at the meadows.  I've averaged 33 a year here - this was my worst year so far. 2020 was a little better though still below par - 5 between 18th and 20th May and 34 between 8th July and 3rd September; also 1-2 at the meadows, Whitwell Street, Hills and Holes and Brancaster.

Chinese Character, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 7th July 2019

Chinese Character, North Elmham, 19th May 2020

Peach Blossom Thyatira batis - One at the meadows on 26th July 2019.  2019 and 2020 were my first blank years at home though apart from 4 in 2015 I've only had one per year so the occasional nil return isn't all that surprising.

Peach Blossom, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 26th July 2019

Buff Arches Habrosyne pyritoides - Singles at home on 5th and 6th July 2019 and 26th June 2020, 2 very bad showings for a species that had been averaging 16 a year here.  Also one at Hellesdon on 14th July 2019.

Buff Arches, North Elmham, 26th June 2020

Figure of Eighty Tethea ocularis - None in 2019 - my first blank year here - but one on 28th May 2020.  I only average one a year so a blank year was bound to happen sooner or later.

Figure of Eighty, North Elmham, 28th May 2020

Common Lutestring Ochropacha duplaris - One at Weybourne on 5th July 2019.  North east Norfolk seems to be a bit of a hotspot for this species - my only previous record was of 3 near Selbrigg in 2014.

Common Lutestring, Weybourne, 5th July 2019

Oak Lutestring Cymatophorina diluta - Dave N and I were very grateful to Ben D for arranging access to Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019.  Our main target was this species which is pretty much restricted to this site in Norfolk (there have been just a couple of records elsewhere since the 1800s).  We scored, and we scored well - they were the first moths in and we caught a total of at least 26.

Oak Lutestrings, Swanton Great Wood, 27th August 2019

Frosted Green Polyploca ridens - 9 at home between 6th April and 3rd May.  This was my best year yet though not far ahead of the 8 in 2018.  In contrast just 2 in 2020, on 15th and 21st April - not my worst year as I didn't have any at all in 2017.  Elsewhere 6 at the meadows on 22nd April 2019 and one at Sculthorpe Moor on 26th.

Frosted Green, North Elmham, 20th April 2019

Frosted Green, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd April 2019

Frosted Green, North Elmham, 15th April 2020

Yellow Horned Achlya flavicornis - Singles in the garden trap on 5th March 2019 and 7th March 2020 were only my second and third here following one in 2016.

Yellow Horned, North Elmham, 5th March 2019

Yellow Horned, North Elmham, 7th March 2020

Next page: Lasiocampidae plus

Barred Tooth-striped

On Saturday evening Dave and I headed to the Brecks for our first proper moth-trapping session.  One moth we hoped to see, but didn't really expect to see, was Barred Tooth-striped.  They mainly occur in southern chalk downs with isolated populations in Cumbria and the Norfolk/Suffolk Brecks.  A "Nationally Scarce A" species the sites where it has been recorded in Norfolk are kept confidential, so Dave and I didn't have much clue as to where to look for it.

We set up and quickly attracted the first of 9 Yellow Horneds to the sheet.

Yellow Horned, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

They were nice, but otherwise it was pretty slow to start with.  We notched up a couple of Chestnuts and 3 Common Quakers along with 2 Common Flat-bodies Agonopterix heracliana.  I went for a walk with the headtorch which failed to add any moths but I did find a Common Pill Woodlouse Armadillidium vulgare.  I've seen Pill Woodlice before, and in all likelihood they were this species, but this is the first one I've seen since owning the key so being able to positively identify it to species level.

Common Pill Woodlouse Armadillidium vulgare, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

We added Winter Shades Tortricodes alternella and more surprisingly, a Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella.  The latter is a migrant species and with the southerly airflow coming up from Africa I guess this one was fresh in - quite a few migrant moths have been recorded in the SW of England but not so many this far up and east.

Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

Winter Shades Tortricodes alternella, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

This Twin-spotted Quaker was one of those where the twin spots are reddish not black...

Twin-spotted Quaker, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

If I've remembered the order correctly the first geometer to arrive at the sheet was one of 2 Engraileds.  The next one settled on the sheet quickly where its identity was immediately obvious, and excitement levels for the evening suddenly went up a few notches - it was a Barred Tooth-striped!  I'm not honestly quite sure why site details for this species are kept confidential - I understand there's a risk of collectors taking too many when there's a rare and beautiful species involved, but nationally this one occurs in a few areas and although we thought it was pretty impressive it's not like a Bedstraw Hawkmoth or something like that!  Still, I'm happy to go along with the established practice of not naming the site, which is why all the photos on this page don't have full location details in their captions.

Barred Tooth-striped, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

One of the next moths turned out to be the first of 5 Mottled Greys.  This is quite a thinly-distributed species in Norfolk, though seems to be a bit commoner in the Brecks.  These were not quite new for me as I'd seen one in Scotland, but new for me in Norfolk.

Mottled Greys, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

We were then joined by Keith - nice to meet him at last.  We also picked up Tufted Button Acleris cristana, Water Carpet, 2 Small Quakers and Clouded Drab.

Tufted Button Acleris cristana, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

Water Carpet, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

A couple of quite splendid ground beetles showed differening colours and at first we thought we could make out differences in the way the elytra (wing cases) were sculpted so suspected we might have two different species.  On closer examination later I believe both were in fact Violet Ground Beetles Carabis violaceus.

Violet Ground Beetles Carabis violaceus, Norfolk Brecks, 11th March

There was another much tinier beetle which I am struggling to resolve at the moment.  It appears to be one of the Flea Beetles but I need to do some more work on it before I can fully identify it. I'll report back on it if I manage an ID...

First field trip and another new moth

On Wednesday night the conditions seemed as good for mothing as they have been for ages and better than they looked like they would be for another few days.  So Dave and I headed down to Creaking Gate Lake.  There were a few moths, enough to keep us entertained for a while, though things soon dried up and we packed up quite early.  The clear highlight was a whopping 9 Yellow Horned - a fantastic total for a species that I only saw for the second time earlier this week.  Indeed it was our highest count for any species!

Yellow Horned, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

The others were 4 March Tubics Diurnea fagella, Common Flat-body Agonopterix heracliana, March Moth, 4 Brindled Pugs, Early Thorn, 2 Oak Beauties, 2 Small Quakers, 8 Common Quakers, 2 Hebrew Characters, Satellite and 2 Chestnuts.

mating pair of March Tubics Diurnea fagella, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Brindled Pug, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Chestnut, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Satellite, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Other 'wildlife' included several millipedes which I later identified as White-legged Snake Millipedes Tachypodoiulus niger, the first time I've managed to put a name to a Millipede!

White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Common Earwig, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

Common Toad, Creaking Gate Lake, 23rd March

When I got home I went upstairs and promptly found a Caloptilia on the landing.  It proved to be Pale Red Slender Caloptilia elongella, a new species for me and, amazingly, my 5th moth lifer at home this year.  I suppose with it being an alder-feeder and there being tonnes of alders at Creaking Gate Lake, there has to be a suspicion that I brought it home with me, but the circumstances of finding it - settled upstairs discovered as soon as I went upstairs for the first time after getting home - make it seem relatively unlilely.

Pale Red Slender Caloptilia elongella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 23rd March

Apart from that mothing at home since my last post has been fairly mediocre at best, except for my second Tufted Button Acleris cristana, also on 23rd.

Tufted Button Acleris cristana, 23rd March

The rest were:

• Monday 21st: 2 Common Flat-bodies Agonopterix heracliana, Small Quaker and Hebrew Character;
• Tuesday 22nd: 2 March Tubics Diurnea fagella, Common Flat-body Agonopterix heracliana, March Moth, Small Quaker, 6 Hebrew Characters and Chestnut; 
• Wednesday 23rd: 3 Common Flat-bodies Agonopterix heracliana, March Moth, 2 Small Quakers, Hebrew Character, Early Grey and Chestnut; 
• Thursday 24th: just a single Common Flat-body Agonopterix heracliana at a window - absolutely nothing in the moth trap

March Tubic Diurnea fagella, North Elmham, 22nd March

2-spot Ladybird, North Elmham, 24th March