Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Geometers (Geometridae) - part 8: Pugs III and Seraphims etc. (Eupithecia III to Trichopteryx)

GEOMETERS (GEOMETRIDAE) (continued)


Common Pug Eupithecia vulgata - Totals of 146 in my garden between 15th May and 4th July 2019 and 119 between 26th April and 29th June 2020.  146 is my highest total so far (average is 114).  Elsewhere 15 at the meadows and also recorded at Bintree Wood, Sculthorpe Moor, Hills and Holes, Weybourne, Keswick (Cumbria) and on Mull.  I'm always a bit paranoid about overlooking one of the scarce or rare pugs so tend to check more than I probably really need to, but this approach has got me a few interesting records in the past that I would have overlooked (including one or two of my Satyr Pugs for example).  Worn ones can be particularly confusing and it's not all that unusual for me to get mixed up between even familiar species like Grey Pug.  I've picked fresher examples to show below so these are among the more straightforward ones that I checked, although the third one had me quite puzzled, not that there were any clear candidates for an alternative ID.

male Common Pug, Sculthorpe Moor, 26th April 2019

male Common Pug, North Elmham, 29th May 2019

male Common Pug, North Elmham, 30th May 2019

male and female Common Pugs, North Elmham, 3rd June 2019

female Common Pug, North Elmham, 19th June 2019

male Common Pug, North Elmham, 20th June 2019

male Common Pug, North Elmham, 23rd May 2020

Mottled Pug Eupithecia exiguata - A total of 11 here 19th May and 2nd June 2019 making it just about my worse year here (average about 16) followed by an on-par 16 between 8th May and 1st June 2020.  Elsewhere one at the meadows and 2 at Hills and Holes.

Mottled Pug, North Elmham, 19th May 2019

Mottled Pug, North Elmham, 8th May 2020

Yarrow Pug Eupithecia millefoliata - One in the garden on 23rd July 2019 was a new moth for the garden and only my second adult anywhere.

female Yarrow Pug, North Elmham, 23rd July 2019

Tawny Speckled Pug Eupithecia icterata - Totals of 7 caught in the garden between 25th July and 25th August 2019 and 14 between 8th and 19th August 2020, either side of the average of around 10-11 per year.  Elsewhere one next door and one at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019.


Bordered Pug Eupithecia succenturiata - 4 in the garden between 5th July and 8th August 2019 and 5 between 24th July and 11th August 2020 (the last being my latest ever).  5 was my best annual total but this species is quite erratic with 3-4 in 2016, 2018 and 2019 and none at all in 2015 or 2017.  Elsewhere one at the meadows on 7th July 2019 and one next door on 8th August 2019.

Bordered Pug, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 7th July 2019

Bordered Pug, North Elmham, 8th July 2019

Shaded Pug Eupithecia subumbrata - None.  This is quite scarce in Norfolk away from the Brecks and the coast but I caught one here in my garden in 2016 and 2 together in 2017.


Grey Pug Eupithecia subfuscata - Totals of 12 trapped here between 2nd June and 12th July 2019 and 10 between 21st May and 1st July, which are very average numbers.  Elsewhere 3 at the meadows, one at Hellesdon, one at Hills and Holes (on 21st May 2020, my earliest ever) and 5 on Mull.

male Grey Pug, North Elmham, 3rd June 2019

male Grey Pug, North Elmham, 7th June 2019

female Grey Pug, North Elmham, 10th June 2019

male Grey Pug, North Elmham, 11th June 2020

Treble-bar Aplocera plagiata - An average year in 2019 with 10 trapped here between 2nd June and 30th August then an exceptional 37 between 18th May and 26th August 2020 (my previous best annual total was 15).  Elsewhere one at Row Heath (West Runton) on 31st August 2019 and one at the meadows on 8th September 2020. 

Treble-bar, North Elmham, 18th May 2020

female Treble-bar, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 8th September 2020

Lesser Treble-bar Aplocera efformata - None.  I carefully check each and every Treble-bar I find for Lesser Treble-bar but so far have found absolutely no evidence that they exist.


Streak Chesias legatella - Singles caught in the garden on 17th October 2019, 17th October 2020 and  8th November 2020.  These were my 3rd to 5th records here following singles in November 2014 and November 2015.

Streak, North Elmham, 17th October 2019

Streak, North Elmham, 17th October 2020

Streak, North Elmham, 8th November 2020

Broom-tip Chesias rufata - None.  I've only seen this species in the Brecks which is where the vast majority of recent Norfolk records have been, but there are a couple of recent records from elsewhere in the county and a good spread of older records, and there are some good patches of Broom locally so I'm optimistic that it might be lurking round here somewhere.


Grey Carpet Lithostege griseata - None.  Like Broom-tip, Grey Carpet is mainly found in the Brecks and that's the only place I've seen it.  However unlike Broom-tip, there have been quite a few records of Grey Carpets in mid Norfolk (e.g. Dave Norgate had one in Toftwood in 2018 and David Knight has had one just down the road from here in Worthing) so I reckon I've got more than half a chance of getting one locally sometime.


Seraphim Lobophora halterata - I think this was one of the 2-3 commonest moths that I'd not seen until 2019 but that year it finally gave itself up with one to MV light at the meadows on 25th May, swiftly followed by another to LEDs at a different part of the meadows on 31st May.  Further afield one at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020.

Seraphim, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 25th May 2019

Seraphim, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 31st May 2019

Seraphim, Hills and Holes, 21st May 2020

Small Seraphim Lobophora halterata - Singles trapped in the garden on 11th July 2019 and 24th June 2020.  I've now caught 5 here, until the last one all in odd years.

Small Seraphim, North Elmham, 11th July 2019

Small Seraphim, North Elmham, 24th June 2020

Yellow-barred Brindle Acasis viretata - Just one caught in the garden in 2019, on 8th August.  Numbers of this species fluctuate greatly but this was exceptionally bad - 5 was my previous worst year and in 2016 I caught 38.  2020 was only a bit better with 7 between 5th and 21st August.  Elsewhere one at the meadows on 4th August 2019.

Yellow-barred Brindle, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 4th August 2019

Early Tooth-striped Trichopteryx carpinata - None in 2019 but I added this species to my garden list in 2020 catching one on 22nd April and then a different one on 24th April.  There was only one previous record in this 10km square but having caught one at my last house in Bawdeswell and also one at Bawdeswell Heath, I knew they weren't very far away.

Early Tooth-striped, North Elmham, 22nd April 2020

Early Tooth-striped, North Elmham, 24th April 2020

Orange Underwing Archiearis parthenias - None.  I haven't found this species in North Elmham yet but I've had it not very far away in Bintree Wood (and at Sparham Pools).  I generally don't find many day-flying moths in my garden (although maybe there's a chance as there's a Birch in my front garden and another in the neighbour's garden behind mine) and I don't have much chance at the meadows either as the meadows are quite Birch-depleted.


Next page: more Geometridae

Coleophora City

The most numerous moth in the trap on Sunday 28th May was Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella - there were 20 of them.  Lurking among them was another Coleophora, slightly different in appearance.  This one proved to be Wood-rush Case-bearer Coleophora otidipennella, a new one for the house, and indeed for the 10k square.  There are fewer than 20 records in Norfolk and apart from one at Holme all come from either the Brecks or the Broads, so good to get one well outside its recorded range.

Buff Rush Case-bearer Coleophora caespititiella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 28th May

Wood-rush Case-bearer Coleophora otidipennella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 28th May

The following moths were new for the year here: Skin Moth Monopis laevigella, Yellow-spot Tortrix Pseudargyrotoza conwagana, Crescent Bell Epinotia bilunana, Marsh Grey Eudonia pallida, Small Seraphim, Ingrailed Clay and Setaceous Hebrew Character.

Skin Moth Monopis laevigella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 28th May

Yellow-spot Tortrix Pseudargyrotoza conwagana, North Elmham, 28th May

Crescent Bell Epinotia bilunana, North Elmham, 28th May

Small Seraphim, North Elmham, 28th May

Ingrailed Clay, North Elmham, 28th May

Other moths were Ribwort Slender Aspilapteryx tringipennella, 2 Light Brown Apple Moths Epiphyas postvittana, 2 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, Rush Marble Bactra lancealana, Yellow-faced Bell Notocelia cynosbatella, 2 Triple-blotched Bells Notocelia trimaculana, 2 Hook-streaked Grass-Veneers Crambus lathoniellus, Meadow Grey Scoparia pyralella, Common Grey Scoparia ambigualis, Garden Pebble Evergestis forficalis, 3 Small Magpies Anania hortulata, Bee Moth Aphomia sociella, 2 False Cacao Moths Ephestia unicolorella, Chalk Knot-horn Phycitodes maritima, 5 Common Swifts, Blood-vein, Red Twin-spot Carpet, 6 Silver-ground Carpets, Garden Carpet, Common Marbled Carpet, 7 Green Carpets, 2 Small Rivulets, 3 Mottled Pugs, 3 Common Pugs, Brown Silver-line, 3 Scorched Wings, Pale Oak Beauty, 5 Light Emeralds, Pale Tussock, Orange Footman, White Ermine, 2 Buff Ermines, Shuttle-shaped Dart, Flame Shoulder, Small Square-spot, Nutmeg, Shears, Bright-line Brown-eye, 2 Brown Rustics, 11 Treble Lines, 2 Straw Dots and Small Fan-foot.

dark form of Common Marble Celypha lacunana (male, gen det), North Elmham, 28th May

Shears - also darker than normal (male, gen det), North Elmham, 28th May

Triple-blotched Bell Notocelia trimaculana, North Elmham, 28th May

There was a variety of by-catch too including the Mayflies Pond Olive Cloeon dipterum and Pale Evening Dun Procloeon bifidum, the caddisflies Cyrnus flavidus, Hydropsyche siltalai, Hydropsyche pellucidula (new for the year), Glyphotaelius pellucidus and Limnephilus lunatus (new for the year).   Two beetles too - a Harlequin Ladybird and the soldier beetle Cantharis nigricans, the latter my first positively identified here.

sub-imago Pale Evening Dun Proloeon bifidum, North Elmham, 28th May

Cantharis nigricans, North Elmham, 28th May

Last Wednesday

There were 115 moths of 51 species last Wednesday night, including several new for the year.  Among those were three species that I've not seen very often: Hedge Case-bearer Coleophora striatipennella, Small Seraphim and Pale-shouldered Brocade.

Hedge Case-bearer Coleophora striatipennella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 17th June

Pale-shouldered Brocade, North Elmham, 17th June

Small Seraphim, North Elmham, 17th June

Also new for the year, at least for the garden, were Small Grey Eudonia mercurella, Brown China-mark Elophila nymphaeata, Treble Brown Spot, Scarce Footman, 2 Flames  and Uncertain.

Small Grey Eudonia mercurella, North Elmham, 17th June

Brown China-mark Elophila nymphaeata, North Elmham, 17th June

Treble Brown Spot, North Elmham, 17th June

Scarce Footman, North Elmham, 17th June

Flame, North Elmham, 17th June

Uncertain, North Elmham, 17th June

 

Numbers were provided by 16 Buff Ermines but I was just as impressed with a count of 4 Elephant Hawkmoths.

Elephant Hawkmoth, North Elmham, 17th June

The rest were Little Dwarf Elachista canapennella, Hook-marked Straw Moth Agapeta hamana, 5 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, Plum Tortrix Hedya pruniana, Yellow-faced Bell Notocelia cynosbatella, Hook-streaked Grass-Veneer Crambus lathoniellus, Little Grey Eudonia lacustrata, Bee Moth Aphomia sociella, Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla, 2 Common Swifts, 4 Silver-ground Carpets, Green Carpet, Sandy Carpet, 3 Common Pugs, Brimstone Moth, Peppered Moth, Common White Wave, 4 Light Emeralds, Poplar Hawkmoth, Swallow Prominent, 2 Marbled Browns, 5 Common Footmen, 4 White Ermines, 2 Cinnabars, 6 Heart and Darts, 2 Small Square-spots, 2 Shears, Lychnis, Common Wainscot, Shoulder-striped Wainscot, Rustic Shoulder-knot, 2 Brown Rustics, Middle-barred Minor, Marbled Minor, 4 Treble Lines, 3 Mottled Rustics, Burnished Brass, 2 Spectacles, 8 Straw Dots and 3 Snouts. 

Plum Tortrix Hedya pruniana, North Elmham, 17th June

Little Grey Eudonia lacustrata, North Elmham, 17th June

Sandy Carpet, North Elmham, 17th June

Found this in the house next morning.  Don't like spiders but this was a pan-tick, Larinioides cornutus, I think.

Larinioides cornutus, North Elmham, 18th June

In yesterday's post I forgot to mention this beetle, my first Cantharis pallida if I've identified it correctly.

apparent Cantharis pallida, North Elmham, 16th June