Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: smaller Black Arches, Silver-lines, Nycteoline and allies (Nolidae)

SMALLER BLACK ARCHES, SILVER-LINES, NYCTEOLINE and allies (NOLIDAE)


Kent Black Arches Meganola albula - One at Weybourne on 5th July 2019.  I've not recorded this species locally but that's not very surprising as it's predominantly coastal in Norfolk (although there are widespread inland records so it wouldn't be altogether surprising to catch one here).

Kent Black Arches, Weybourne, 5th July 2019

Short-cloaked Moth Nola cucullatella - Totals of 14 caught in my garden between 29th June and 17th July 2019 and 9 between 24th June and 11th July 2020.  2019 was my best year yet (average 9 a year).  4 on 8th July 2019 was my highest count so far and the one on 17th July my latest ever.  Elsewhere one at the meadows, one at Weybourne and 3 at Brancaster.

Short-cloaked Moth, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 7th July 2019

Least Black Arches Nola confusalis - Singles at home on 21st and 27th May 2020 but none here in 2019.  I don't get many here - 2-3 a year is typical (8 in 2016) but 2019 was my first blank year.  Elsewhere one at the meadows on 22nd April 2019, one on Mull on 13th June 2019 and one at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020.

Least Black Arches, North Elmham Cathedral Meaodws, 22nd April 2019

Least Black Arches, North Elmham, 27th May 2020

Scarce Silver-lines Bena bicolorana - None.  I caught 3 of these in my garden in July 2016 but haven't had any others in the 6 summers I've lived here.


Green Silver-lines Pseudoips prasinana - One caught in the garden on 23rd June 2019.  Hard to beat these - if you press me to tell you my favourite moth I may well give you this as my answer.  I don't get many here - none in 2018 or 2020 and only 9 here in 5 years.

Green Silver-lines, North Elmham, 23rd June 2019

Oak Nycteoline Nycteola revayana - One trapped in the garden on 24th July 2019 was only my 3rd record here.  Also found at the Cathedral Meadows on 22nd April and 26th July 2019 and my only record in 2020 was one at Cranwich Heath on 14th March.

Oak Nycteoline, North Elmham Cathedral Meaodws, 22nd April 2019

Oak Nycteoline, North Elmham, 24th July 2019

Oak Nycteoline, North Elmham Cathedral Meaodws, 26th July 2019

Oak Nycteoline, Cranwich Heath, 14th March 2020

Cream-bordered Green Pea Earias clorana - One in the garden trap on 31st July 2020 but 2019 was my first blank year here (though I never see more than 3 a year here).  Elsewehere one at the meadows on 25th May 2019 and 18th July 2020, one at Weybourne on 5th July 2019, one at Hellesdon on 14th July 2019 and one at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020 (my earliest ever). 

Cream-bordered Green Pea, North Elmham Cathedral Meaodws, 25th May 2019

Cream-bordered Green Pea, Hills and Holes, 21st May 2020

Cream-bordered Green Pea, North Elmham Cathedral Meaodws, 18th July 2020

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