Out There

On Saturday night I was able to enjoy some out in the field mothing; a major step in my recovery both in terms of driving distance and physicality, though I have to be honest and say that I was completely knackered the following morning. I joined a group session at Rutland Water organised by Tim Sexton, based in and around the Lyndon Center on the south shore. I had Graham Calow along for company, and amongst the participants were Pete Leonard, Graham Finch and Margaret McLoughlin along with Lyndon regulars Pete Bennett and Martin Grimes, plus a handful of other recorders. As it happened Pete headed in the same direction as me and we set out out lights throughout a section of woodland known as Berrybut Spinney adjacent to the Rutland Water Golf Course, using my sheet as a gathering point. There were additional lights running in Gibbet Gorse, around the center and Graham & Margaret heading the other way towards Waderscrape Hide. So all in all good coverage and decent potential for a great combined list.

The two cyan squares are the two halves of Berrybut Spinney, yellow square is Gibbet Gorse, green square is the Lyndon center and the red square is Waderscrape Hide.

It's been a while since my sedate family car got abused off-road like this.

Pete (left) and Graham (right) ahead of lighting up.

The brown wooden box next to my chair is the old catch box that Adrian made the best part of 30 years ago, and it is great being able to use it and give it some more service. I think he'd approve.

The hope of great things waned after lighting up, when it became clear quite early on that we were not going to be inundated with moths at the sheet. No idea why really, but it was a lot quieter across all the traps than I think we anticipated. Still, my sheet and x2 125W MV traps alone brought in 54sp. and Pete's x2 MV + x3 actinic traps managed a healthy 66sp. We await the combined list, but perhaps c100sp. will be achieved. Either way it was great to be out at all, and all the better to be out on a group event.

Best of the bunch on our side was in one of Pete's traps, a worn Agonopterix purpurea. Otherwise the best micro in my traps was a worn Psoricoptera gibbosella, whilst macro highlights were my first VC55 worn White-point, a couple of worn Square-spotted Clay and a worn Dark Sword-grass. You'll notice that these all share a common characteristic!

Agonopterix purpurea

Psoricoptera gibbosella

White-point

Square-spotted Clay

Dark Sword-grass

The garden trap delivered another first last night ....

Neocochylis molliculana. VC55 first was in 2015, but there has been a distinct increase since 2019 so perhaps only a matter of time before it popped up.

Also noteworthy were ....

A knackered Ypsolopha horridella - second garden records after one in 2020.

.... and the third Nephopterix angustella so far this year.

And the second Arhopalus rusticus this month ....