Trapping at Pilmoor, VC62, night of 24th June

Pilmoor at his time of the year is always hard work due to the insects...the biting type!  Armed with my full-strength insect repellent I gave it a go.  There was a stiff breeze from the west so at least the trees either side of the old railway track would offer some protection from the wind.  I had three traps set, the 160w MVB over a white sheet on the main track under the aspen trees, the 125w MV Robinson in the woods and a 2 x 22w Gladiator trap again on the main track.  As it turned out, not a bad night with over 550 moths of at least 86 species being a fairly respectable haul including two new moths for me: a Beautiful Carpet and a Willow Tortrix Epinotia cruciana  The micro barely resembled the illustration in Sterling and Parsons and had me stumped all day but with the powers of the internet within minutes had a reply identifying it.  A trawl of photos of that species confirmed it and it is a very scarce moth in Yorkshire as a whole with possibly just a couple of previous records in VC62. Also of note were my first Four-dotted Footman for five years, just two recorded, but bearing in mind I have had them just into three figures and certainly many dozens on previous occasions in the same area.

This species Ancylis laetana is a real rarity in Yorkshire with only a couple of recent sites and with three trapped there I have now had 12 of them under the aspen trees at Pilmoor.

Ancylis laetana

 This is the Willow Tortrix, again with very few recent records in Yorkshire.

Epinotia cruciana

 For what is just a 'brown' moth this has to be one of the most beautiful.

Scallop Shell

Wormwood Pug

Grey Arches

Clay

Rustic Shoulder-knot

This next photo is either lancealana or lacteana which would require gen.det. to be really sure; a shame as a well marked specimen.

A Bactra sp.

And finally just a record shot of the Beautiful Carpet which made a dash for freedom while trying to photograph it.  I don't often get new macros these days so this was a welcome find, and certainly lives up to its name.

Beautiful Carpet

And finally, I had three female glow-worms trying to compete with my rather bright lights, and indeed attracted at least three flying male glow-worms who must have been highly disappointed on arrival....  I did not get a photo of any of the males but it gives me an opportunity to show a previous female from the same site.

Glow-worm, female