Caught in a Trap

Been gradually catching up on records that have been sat on pages of my notebook since mid-May. I've been able to update my PSL, adding c18 species and I still have a couple pending confirmation. I need to update my garden lists, and of course my square list. I fully expect to be back up to date and ready before we hopefully see another upturn in conditions.

In the meantime, here's some mothy stuff from the garden:

First up, a couple of luring successes. I've hung clearwing lures up in the garden before, but only for an hour or so whilst I loitered watching out in vain. Having now got a proper lure trap, I've tried a couple of lures left out in the day. Nothing to MYO (targeting Red-belted) and nothing to FOR (targeting Red-tipped). But the TIP lure left out whilst I was at work on 15th June came up with a solitary Currant Clearwing - the first clearwing on the garden list:

I also hung out the SKI lure on 13/06/2021 in the hope that I'd get Grapholita lobarzewskii on the garden year list (the first for VC55 was from my garden in 2018 but was completely knackered and unidentifiable on externals). Nothing to the lure all day, then just 15 minutes or so before it was getting dark and suddenly there were four in the trap. Really good to see a recognisable one!

One that I will have to await confirmation, but I am pretty confident about is this non-descript looking Gelechiid that came to the garden light trap on 13/06/2021:

It is pretty worn and plain looking, but those basal spots and the small distinct discal spot - along with general shape and what is left of colouration - look absolutely spot on for Platyedra subcinerea. This species overwinters as an adult and flies again in the late spring, so you'd expect one to be pretty shabby by now. Moreover, it should be a lot further south and is perhaps declining - so needless to say that if confirmed it will be new for me, the garden and VC55.

Otherwise the garden trap has been starting to tick over with a good few NFY species in the last week or so. Here's a selection of Noctuids, and a couple of others lazily snapped at the trap:

Clouded-bordered Brindle ab combusta

Broad-barred White

Ingrailed Clay

Heart and Club

Clouded Brindle

Common Swift

Water Veneer

Bucculatrix albedinella

Pull out the Pin

Not much about the garden today. Warm during sunny spells, nippy during cloudy spells, and constantly blustery. Whilst out on a phone call though I noticed what appeared to be a small (c5mm) male hoverfly sitting doing nothing. I went in to grab a pot and refound it in the same area but now on a buttercup flower. Whilst it looked distinctly like a hoverfly, it wasn't acting like one and potting it was easy. No distinct markings as far as I could see, though it resolutely sat with wings folded over the abdomen. A quick flick through the guide make it clear that it wasn't going to get an ID without close scrutiny. Sorry fly.

I managed to pin it badly with a D3 when an A1 would have been better. No way of pulling out the pin and starting again, but still I could now check it out and seek confirmation on the facebook group. Wing venation, antennal structure and bits all looked at.

I reckoned it was Pipizella viduata, which is new for me, and Roger Morris agreed. I need to practise opening up the genital capsule and pinning it to dry in the future, but this was just about good enough.

No moth trap last night, but here's a selection from Saturday night's bumper catch - 84 of 34sp across the two traps (125W MV trap 33 of 23sp, synergetic/actinic combo trap 51 of 19sp) including 15sp NFY.

Gold Spot

Broad-barred White

Nutmeg

Knot Grass

Lime Hawk-moth

Pale Prominent

Scalloped Hazel

Seraphim

Spruce Carpet

Grey Pine Carpet

My traps are not usually bothered by the birds until there are fledgling Blackbirds and Robins knocking about. We've got at least three pairs of Blackbirds nesting somewhere nearby, and a couple of pairs of Robins, but until today no sign of any early fledglings. One of the Blackbird pairs were mating repeatedly yesterday, as they were about a month ago. I wondered if the nests have been predated, but today came the familiar squeeks and squawks of fledgling Blackbirds and at least two were in and out of the garden. Any trapping from now until later in the summer will mean extra egg-boxes around the outside and early mornings.

From the garden trap, 30/05/2010

Today was mainly spent involved with the BioBlitz at Watermead Country Park South, but I'll update on all of that tomorrow. First I'll clear up the garden trapping from Sunday night and a couple of other bits.

The garden traps last night were reasonably productive despite the strong wind that prevailed until well after midnight. The total catch was 101 of 31sp. (125W MV 52 of 25, 80W actinic 49 of 21).

First for year in garden:
1083 Marbled Orchard Tortrix (Hedya nubiferana) 1
2011 Pale Prominent (Pterostoma palpina) 1
2098 Flame (Axylia putris) 1
2164 Broad-barred White (Hecatera bicolorata) 1

Highest counts:
0409a Argyresthia trifasciata 13
2089 Heart and Dart (Agrotis exclamationis) 13
1819 Mottled Pug (Eupithecia exiguata) 11
1834 Common Pug (Eupithecia vulgata) 11
1835 White-spotted Pug (Eupithecia tripunctaria) 5
2092 Shuttle-shaped Dart (Agrotis puta) 5
2102 Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta) 5

Other highlights:
1778 May Highflyer (Hydriomena impluviata) 4

Marbled Orchard Tortrix

Broad-barred White

Flame

Also later in the day, I found the first garden Esperia sulpurella of the year:

After posting the Copper Underwing caterpillar photo yesterday, I had a request from Keith Tailby as to whether he could nab it for some photos for his collection. No problem of course, but just before sorting it out I noticed it was in the characteristic resting posture for this species and couldn't resist another shot before letting it go.

Copper Underwing - meditating

One of the things that new moth recorders often get hung-up on is the potential for 're-traps' and a desire to keep the trap lists pure. You soon get to learn that this is largely a non-issue as the catches vary quite a bit day-to-day irrespective of how much effort you put into the release of the catch. One thing I always do though is dislodge any moths from bushes and the fence by the trap, but today before I had done this one of the other garden inhabitants had made sure that at least one May Highflyer was not going to be re-trapped ....

I had a couple more rearing successes today. A pupa that I found at Narborough Bog on 25/04/2010 in a loose cocoon on the soil surface underneath a piece of bark (that I was collecting as a photographic prop)emerged - a nice Clouded Brindle. The other emergence was the Pistol Case-bearer collected on hawthorn on 11/05/2010.