Green Carpet Colostygia pectinataria - A total of 8 caught here between 20th May and 1st June 2019 and then 12 between 22nd August and 18th September 2019. 20 in all is easily the worst year so far - I average 76 a year. 2020 was much better with 43 between 8th May and 23rd June and 60 betewen 11th August and 16th September. Elsewhere 30 at the meadows, 3 at Bintree Wood, 2 at Swanton Great Wood, 30 at Whitwell Street, 2 at Frost's Common, 8 at Hills and Holes, 2 at Row Heath (West Runton) and 2 on Mull.
Green Carpet, North Elmham, 24th May 2019
Green Carpet, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 17th May 2020
Mottled Grey Colostygia multistrigaria - One in my garden trap on 14th March 2019 was a welcome new addition to the garden list. This species is hard to find in Norfolk away from the Brecks, where 7 caught at Cranwich Heath on 14th March 2020.
Mottled Grey, North Elmham, 14th March 2019
Mottled Greys, Cranwich Heath, 14th March 2020
Water Carpet Lampropteryx suffumata - After a blank year at home in 2019, 2 here on 24th March 2020. 2019 was my second nil return for the garden though I've had up to 5 in other years. Elsewhere singles at the meadows on 22nd April 2019 and 5th April 2020 and one at Sculthorpe Moor on 26th April 2019 and one at Lynford on 14th March 2020.
Water Carpet, Lynford, 14th March 2020
Water Carpets, North Elmham, 24th March 2020
Northern Winter Moth Operophtera fagata - None. I've never found this species but with a scattering of recent records around the county it must only be a matter of time before one comes to me.
Winter Moth Operophtera brumata - A total of 6 in the first week of 2019 and then another 11 after 18th November. I average 21 a year so this was a little below par. 2020 was a better with one on 1st January and 26 after 24th November. Elsewhere 13 at the meadows including 10 on 4th January 2020.
Winter Moth, North Elmham, 18th November 2019
Winter Moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 4th January 2020
Winter Moth, North Elmham, 28th November 2020
November Moth Epirrita dilutata - Totals of 42 males between 19th October and 26th November 2019, a little below the average of 51, and 61 between 10th October and 11th November 2020, my equal-best year. 26th November was my latest in Norfolk by 11 days (and latest anywhere by a week). Elsewhere 4 at the meadows.
male November Moth, North Elmham, 19th October 2019
male November Moths, North Elmham, 23rd October 2019
male November Moths, North Elmham, 23rd October 2019
male November Moth, North Elmham, 24th October 2019
male November Moth, North Elmham, 20th October 2020
male November Moth, North Elmham, 23rd October 2020
male November Moth, North Elmham, 24th October 2020
male November Moths, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 8th November 2020
Pale November Moth Epirrita chrysti - Totals of 17 males between 23rd October and 15th November 2019 and 30 between 18th October and 18th November 2020, both short of the 46 in 2018 but more than in other years.
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 25th October 2019
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 1st November 2019
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 4th November 2019
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 8th November 2019
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 22nd October 2020
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 2nd November 2020
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 8th November 2020
male Pale November Moth, North Elmham, 12th November 2020
Autumnal Moth Epirrita autumnata - None. This is very much the rarer of the 3 November Moth aggs. in North Elmham with just 3 records in 6 years (2014 and 2016).
November Moth agg. Epirrita sp. - Surprisingly few females this year - just 4 between 1st and 26th November. The fact that 2 of these (24th and 26th November) were well past my latest dates of all but one of my male November Moth aggs. suggests that in common with many other lepidoptera species, females of these species fly later than males. The following chart shows the flight times of all male November Moth aggs. that I've identified here since moving in in 2014. If you're keen to confirm different species at a site but don't want to check more than a handful of individuals then you might do well to pick individuals in mid October to look for November Moth and the first half of November to look for Pale November Moth, but if my North Elmham garden is typical of other sites then be prepared to check quite a few before finding any Autumnal Moths.
Small White Wave Asthena albulata - None. I've not caught this species at home but have found it reasonably locally, at Rawhall Wood (where it landed on my car in day-time) in 2014.
Dingy Shell Euchoeca nebulata - 2 caught in my garden, my first ever records here - on 7th July and 26th August 2019. Also one at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019 and 2 at the meadows on 7th August 2020.
Dingy Shell, North Elmham, 7th July 2019
Dingy Shell, North Elmham, 26th August 2019
Dingy Shell, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 7th August 2020
Small Yellow Wave Hydrelia flammeolaria - A total of 10 here between 8th and 26th July 2019, my equal best year but followed by a big fat zero here in 2020 which was not only my first nil return but my first year with less than 6. Elsewhere one at Weybourne on 5th July 2019, one at Frost's Common on 21st May 2020 and one at the meadows on 18th July 2020.
Small Yellow Wave, North Elmham, 8th July 2019
Small Yellow Wave, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 18th July 2020
Brown Scallop Philereme vetulata - Singles in my garden trap on 4th and 7th July 2019 and 28th June 2020. I've managed to record this species here every year since 2015 but never more than 2 in a year.
Brown Scallop, North Elmham, 4th July 2019
Brown Scallop, North Elmham, 28th June 2020
Dark Umber Philereme transversata - Singles in my garden trap on 12th and 31st July 2019 and 17th July 2020. Like the previous species this is just about annual, marginally commoner with an average of 2-3 a year. Fresh examples of this species seem to be especially hard to come by (something else it has in common with the previous species). Elsewhere one at Bintree Wood on 24th July 2020.
Dark Umber, North Elmham, 12th July 2019
Dark Umber, North Elmham, 31st July 2019
Dark Umber, North Elmham, 17th July 2020
Dark Umber, Bintree Wood, 24th July 2020
Argent & Sable Rheumaptera hastata - 3 on Mull on 10th June, 2 at Glen More (Craig) and one near Tiroran. This species is not found in Norfolk (one old record) and these are my first records (though I'm pretty sure I saw and identified it decades ago before I was keeping proper records of anything that wasn't avian).
Argent & Sable, Glen More (Mull), 10th June 2019
Argent & Sable, west of Tiroran (Mull), 10th June 2019
Scallop Shell Rheumaptera undulata - One in the garden trap on 11th July 2019 and one on 25th June 2020. I didn't record this species here until 2017 but it's been annual since then and I caught 5 in 2018. Still an exciting moth for me! Also one at the meadows on 26th July 2019 and one at Bintree Wood on 24th July 2020.
Scallop Shell, North Elmham, 11th July 2019
Scallop Shell, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 26th July 2019
Scallop Shell, North Elmham, 25th June 2020
Tissue Tiphosa dubitata - None. I'm still looking forward to my first ever Tissue but it's a very scarce moth in mid Norfolk so I may have to wait a while. Probably more chance of seeing this than Scarce Tissue Rheumaptera cervinalis which I'm also yet to see anywhere.
Small Waved Umber Horisme vitalbata - None. I've recorded this species at home 3 times (2017 and 2018).
Fern Horisme tersata -None. I've never seen this species but with several records from the Dereham/Barnham Broom area I'm optimistic that one might wander my way sooner or later.
Pretty Chalk Carpet Melanthia procellata - None. I recorded 3 of these at Bawdeswell when I lived there but so far here hasn't been a single record in this (adjacent) 10km square. One day...
Chimney Sweeper Odezia atrata - On Mull 3 along the footpath between Carsaig and Rubha Dubh on 10th June 2019. These were my first since 1996 - the species hasn't been recorded in Norfolk during my lifetime.
Chimney Sweepers, between Carsaig and Rubha Dubh (Mull), 10th June
Next page: more Geometridae
No comments:
Post a Comment