Still Around

Not had a chance to do much lately; busy at work, back into hospital for another op (last one I hope) and then some indifferent weather. So not a lot to report, but I have managed to pull in some new for garden moths ... although only one of them looked nice!

Tree-lichen Beauty - 29/07/2019

Still a good rarity in VC55, first was recorded last year and there was one this year prior to mine in Rutland. First time I've recorded it anywhere, though I have seen one before when we trapped in Suffolk and one was taken up the road.

Also a couple of NFG micros, but neither were very attractive!

A moribund Small China-mark - 16/07/2019

A worn Eana incanana - 16/07/2019, with one even less well marked the night before

Aside from running the moth trap, I've been attracting a range of species to rotting fruit and sugar, as well as to my pathetically small garden buddleija. But mainly I've been luring Old Ladies.

17/07/2019

22/07/2019

03/08/2019

A walk down the lane on Sunday brought a few expected larvae, and an unexpected orthopterid .....

Various instar Small Ranunculus on Prickly Lettuce

A load of Cinnabar on one Common Ragwort plant that they'd stripped

Never seen Roesel's Bush-cricket anywhere near here before

Aside from all that I've been setting up and getting to grips with a new family PC, almost exactly nine years since the last time I went through this. Of course that means having to accept the inevitable Windows 10, but so far all good and I've got all my software working (including MapMate, a new version of Photoshop Elements, my USB microscope, and I've got all my music and synth software working). It's not the best on the market but the best for a reasonable price; 2.9GHz hex-core 9th gen i5 chip, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 2TB HDD, more USB ports than I know what to do with. Should last the best part of another decade ..... perhaps!

Anyway. I'm back up to full physical functionality just in time for a beer n balti night at the T20 blast cricket tomorrow and the start of the Premier League at the weekend.

Micro Larval Life

My rearing tubs have not been too successful this year, must be getting on for 70% parasitised. Great if you want to rear the parasites, but I was more interested in getting the larvae up to an identifiable instar. Anyway, I have more including a number of micro larvae from Burrow Wood on Sunday. More for ease than aesthetics, I pointed the USB microscope at them.

This one is certainly Eana incanana - feeding in spinnings on bluebell flowers.

This one is probably Epinotia brunnichana - feeding in a leaf-roll on hazel

Nah, absolutely no idea

Again, no idea. Actually this one may even be an early instar macro

Coleophorid sp. that I found feeding on oak, though here it had moved onto a birch leaf. I'm sure it must be either C. lutipennella or C. flavipennella

Also from Burrow Wood, I brought home a tenanted Eriocrania type leaf mine on birch, though by the time I got home the larva had vacated the mine. Through a process of elimination I've identified it as Heringocrania unimaculella: large blotch mine from edge of leaf with no linear gallery (so not salopiella or sparmannella), larva not grey (so not sangii), larva without swollen thoracic segments (so not cicatricella), protrusions from head-capsule visible through thoracic plate (so not semipurpurella).

Heringocrania unimaculella (=Eriocrania unimaculella)