The feel of migrants seemed to have reduced in the atmosphere this evening as Tony and I did a quick half hour check of the ivy along Alton Hall Lane before 8 o'clock. Just 13 moths of six species and six of those were Angle Shades.
After a meeting of the village community woodland project, we headed down Lower Street. There was the merest hint of a south-westerly, but nothing significant to put the moths off performing. Vestals were absent, but in 45 minutes we recorded 61 moths of 17 species. We start at either end of the 200m-long hedgerow and meet in the middle. By the time we did, Tony was double-filling his pots. Two new species for the season were Rush Veneer (a migrant) and a Copper Underwing agg. (I don't have the knowledge to separate Svensonn's).
In order of abundance, those 61 moths comprised:
Chestnut - 13
Angle Shades - 10
Large Yellow Underwing - 8
Dark Sword-grass - 7
L-album Wainscot - 5
Barred Sallow - 4
Lunar Underwing - 2
Setaceous Hebrew Character - 2
Rush Veneer - 2
...with singles of Copper Underwing agg., White-Point, Green-brindled Crescent, Brick, Common Marbled Carpet, Lesser Yellow Underwing, Yellow-line Quaker and Emmelina monodactyla.
Monday 7 October 2013
Sunday 6 October 2013
Which is more addictive: moths or morphine?
As I am 'on' both at the moment, I can speak from experience. After a disappointing check of the ivy around the village last night and hearing that it would be cool again, I thought I wouldn't bother trying again tonight. However, after putting the kids to bed and seeing there was sod all on the box, I thought I may as well give it a go. A great decision.
As I got round to Alton Hall Lane, I could see Tony's torchlight in the road. His first words were "I've got five in pots, and seven more in the fridge." A very positive start. Four were Dark Sword-grass, but the stand out was a Tawny Pinion, a new one for me and a first for the village to the best of my knowledge. Temperature-wise, it was a notch or two higher on the mercury than the previous night and dead calm. A trip to Lower Street was therefore in order.
A Large Yellow Underwing was first up, followed by another Dark Sword-grass. So that was five of these beasts already and that got me thinking we were due something special. Of course, a Crimson Speckled would be nice (there was one at Bawdsey, not a million miles away, last week), but I would settle for a....Vestal!! There it was, fresh as anything, with it's schnozz in an ivy-flower. A full-fat, high-quality migrant moth. Tony was working his way up from the other end of the hedge and was as pleased as punch when he set eyes on it. He described an interesting moth that had eluded him, so we went to have another look. He was a few steps ahead of me and called out that he had another one. As I approached, a flimsy looking geometrid flew past me, I netted it and it was a third! It seemed like they were falling out of the sky.
In a little under two hours we recorded 17 species. Seven off our best effort on the 20 September, but for sheer excitement, it pipped that evening.
Here is the list in full:
Angle Shades - 17
L-album Wainscot - 3
Dark Sword-grass - 11
Green-brindled Crescent - 1
Emmelina monodactyla - 2
Yellow-line Quaker - 5
Large Yellow Underwing - 8
TAWNY PINION - 1
Turnip - 1
VESTAL - 3
Orange Sallow - 1
Setaceous Hebrew Character - 2
Brick 3
Lunar Underwing - 2
Chestnut - 3
Brindled Green 1
White-Point - 1
We also had a Mallow, but this was sat on hawthorn, so in the spirit of the entirely unofficial Ivy League, does not get on the list.
There is no doubt what the answer to the question I posed is.
As I got round to Alton Hall Lane, I could see Tony's torchlight in the road. His first words were "I've got five in pots, and seven more in the fridge." A very positive start. Four were Dark Sword-grass, but the stand out was a Tawny Pinion, a new one for me and a first for the village to the best of my knowledge. Temperature-wise, it was a notch or two higher on the mercury than the previous night and dead calm. A trip to Lower Street was therefore in order.
A Large Yellow Underwing was first up, followed by another Dark Sword-grass. So that was five of these beasts already and that got me thinking we were due something special. Of course, a Crimson Speckled would be nice (there was one at Bawdsey, not a million miles away, last week), but I would settle for a....Vestal!! There it was, fresh as anything, with it's schnozz in an ivy-flower. A full-fat, high-quality migrant moth. Tony was working his way up from the other end of the hedge and was as pleased as punch when he set eyes on it. He described an interesting moth that had eluded him, so we went to have another look. He was a few steps ahead of me and called out that he had another one. As I approached, a flimsy looking geometrid flew past me, I netted it and it was a third! It seemed like they were falling out of the sky.
In a little under two hours we recorded 17 species. Seven off our best effort on the 20 September, but for sheer excitement, it pipped that evening.
Here is the list in full:
Angle Shades - 17
L-album Wainscot - 3
Dark Sword-grass - 11
Green-brindled Crescent - 1
Emmelina monodactyla - 2
Yellow-line Quaker - 5
Large Yellow Underwing - 8
TAWNY PINION - 1
Turnip - 1
VESTAL - 3
Orange Sallow - 1
Setaceous Hebrew Character - 2
Brick 3
Lunar Underwing - 2
Chestnut - 3
Brindled Green 1
White-Point - 1
We also had a Mallow, but this was sat on hawthorn, so in the spirit of the entirely unofficial Ivy League, does not get on the list.
There is no doubt what the answer to the question I posed is.
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