A week off...at last

The first break since last autumn and a week I have taken regularly as it covers both my birthday and Em's, and for years has been a remarkably good week weather-wise.  This week just had to be different.  No rain, often cloudy but a week of insistent cold northerly wind kept the temperature well down.  Only two nights of the week were appealing enough to go out trapping, Saturday 28th May and Friday 3rd June; the first at Kilburn was calm but got down to +5 and few moths, while the second at Silton Forest was down to +11 but a stiff cold wind wind kept things rather subdued.

Kilburn, 28th May 2016

49.028  a moth (Syndemis musculana)  1
69.003  Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi)  3
70.049  Garden Carpet (Xanthorhoe fluctuata)  1
70.054  Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata)  1
70.075  May Highflier (Hydriomena impluviata)  1
70.094  Small Phoenix (Ecliptopera silaceata)  5
70.100  Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria)  1
70.183  Common Pug (Eupithecia vulgata)  1
70.207  Clouded Border (Lomaspilis marginata)  1
70.222  Brown Silver-line (Petrophora chlorosata)  3
70.223  Barred Umber (Plagodis pulveraria)  1
70.240  Scalloped Hazel (Odontopera bidentata)  2
70.270  Engrailed (Ectropis crepuscularia)  2
72.015  Pale Tussock (Calliteara pudibunda)  3
73.329  Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta)  1

May Highflyer

Common Pug

 Silton, 3rd June 2016

07.006  a moth (Adela reaumurella)  1

15.008  a moth (Caloptilia alchimiella)  1

18.001  Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella)  3

49.028  a moth (Syndemis musculana)  2

49.254  a moth (Epinotia bilunana)  1

69.003  Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi)  3

69.016  Elephant Hawk-moth (Deilephila elpenor)  1

69.017  Small Elephant Hawk-moth (Deilephila porcellus)  1

70.051  Red Twin-spot Carpet (Xanthorhoe spadicearia)  1

70.075  May Highflier (Hydriomena impluviata)  1

70.086  Broken-barred Carpet (Electrophaes corylata)  1

70.094  Small Phoenix (Ecliptopera silaceata)  1

70.222  Brown Silver-line (Petrophora chlorosata)  4

70.240  Scalloped Hazel (Odontopera bidentata)  5

70.277  Common White Wave (Cabera pusaria)  1

70.280  Clouded Silver (Lomographa temerata)  1

71.012  Iron Prominent (Notodonta dromedarius)  1

71.018  Lesser Swallow Prominent (Pheosia gnoma)  1

72.015  Pale Tussock (Calliteara pudibunda)  5

72.019  Buff Ermine (Spilosoma lutea)  3

72.020  White Ermine (Spilosoma lubricipeda)  4

73.264  Pale-shouldered Brocade (Lacanobia thalassina)  6

73.271  Broom Moth (Ceramica pisi)  1

73.272  Glaucous Shears (Papestra biren)  1

73.329  Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta)  6

73.334  Small Square-spot (Diarsia rubi)  1

Broken-barred Carpet

Small Elephant Hawk-moth

Pale-shouldered Brocade

With such an influx of Diamond-back Moth into the country over the last week it was good to have trapped three at Silton and two more seen at Aldborough during the day today.  I should mention that while driving to Silton last night there were many thousands of small moths seen in the car headlights which may well have been this species but only a few caught in the trap due to the strong breeze?

 

Pilmoor, Friday 6th May 2016

The first full weekend off for ages and actually coinciding with a bit of decent weather.  A night with high cloud and no visible moon, calm and temperature at +12 at 2100 dropping to +7 by 0500.  Not many moths buzzing around but at least the biting midges were not in evidence at all - hooray!

Taxa
0006  Eriocrania subpurpurella  2
1852  Brindled Pug (Eupithecia abbreviata)  4
1881  Early Tooth-striped (Trichopteryx carpinata)  3
1919  Purple Thorn (Selenia tetralunaria)  1
1947x  Engrailed/Small Engrailed (Ectropis bistortata/crepuscularia)  4
1951  Grey Birch (Aethalura punctulata)  12
2006  Lesser Swallow Prominent (Pheosia gnoma)  7
2015  Lunar Marbled Brown (Drymonia ruficornis)  7
2182  Small Quaker (Orthosia cruda)  2
2186  Powdered Quaker (Orthosia gracilis)  1
2187  Common Quaker (Orthosia cerasi)  5
2188  Clouded Drab (Orthosia incerta)  5
2190  Hebrew Character (Orthosia gothica)  11
2243  Early Grey (Xylocampa areola)  1
2258  Chestnut (Conistra vaccinii)  2

Hopefully the start of a few more attempts at mothing, and really must try harder than the last couple of years.

Pilmoor, Sunday 10th April 2016

Far too long since the last post, but here goes.  A bit of sun and blue sky although a chilly breeze. Thought I would try and kick-start the Spring observations at Pilmoor with limited success.  Up to half a dozen Chiffchaffs singing and two distant Willow Warblers were the only migrants, residents included Siskins, Marsh Tit and Great Spotted Woodpecker.  A Peacock and two Brimstone were parading up and down the ride but with very few flowers to attract them; there was a brief view of a probable Orange Underwing but far too quick to confirm as it disappeared over the canopy.    

 

Little other insect activity: a handful of Buff-tailed Bees and a couple of fleeting hoverflies, the only one of which was a Platycheirus sp, which did not offer close enough views to distinguish between albimanus and ambiguus.

Platycheirus sp..

Platycheirus sp..

Such paltry offerings but at least it is a start.  Hopefully more to come.

Pilmoor, Sunday 27 Sep 2015

What a day of contrast, overcast with low cloud and a cool breeze in the morning breaking to a warm and sunny afternoon.  A walk along the old railway line at Pilmoor (VC62) offered a few photographic opportunities and several hours thumbing through identification books trying to put names to some of the species.  As with all the photos on this site, my attempts at identification are subject to correction!

Hoverflies were not particularly numerous, with those seen on a few flowering umbellifers and a small group of purple flowering mint sp..  The L. glaucia were the most numerous by far.

Helophilus pendulus

Leucozona glaucia (females)

One small moth seen was a Nettle-tap and the only butterflies were a Comma, Red Admiral and at least 15 Speckled Woods including several courting pairs.

Nettle-tap

Speckled Wood - courting pair

Staveley Nature Reserve - Sunday 13 Sep

Staveley NR a Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserve is a superb wetland area, recovered from quarrying that finished in the 1980's and has been managed to offer some rare habitat, and the best thing about it is that it is close to home.  

Over the East lagoon I was greeted by a Hobby being chased by a Black-headed Gull.  There were many Chiffchaff and a small number of Blackcap calling, and a Redpoll flew over calling. Dragonflies were about in small numbers: Common Hawkers, a couple of Brown Hawker, 25+ Common Darters and several Coenagrion sp. which were too far away to see properly.

Common Darter  Sympetrum striolatum

A ladybird seen turned out to be a Harlequin Harmonia axyridis, a species that was first recorded in Britain in 2004 and has spread rapidly north and west.  There are a few extra-limital records further north and in Scotland but Yorkshire is currently at the northern edge of the main range.

Harlequin Ladybird   Harmonia axyridis 

As for butterflies, they were attracted to the blueish globe flowers of Field Scabious in the meadow areas, and included just the one Red Admiral, several Peacock, c.20 Small Tortoiseshell, three Speckled Brown and a Small Copper, while moths were represented by two Udea lutealis and eight Silver Y.

Peacock

Red Admiral

Red Admiral

Red Admiral

Small Copper

Continuing on from last week I had a go at photographing some of the hoverflies and associated species.  One big black beastie stood out with large size and black bristles on the thorax, which reminded me of the tachinid of last week, and was found to be Tachina grossa, and looking at the state of its wings it was amazing it could fly; a more complete one was seen nearby.

Tachina grossa

Tachina grossa

Tachina grossa

The number and variety of hoverflies was not as good as last week, but those identified are added here.

Helophilus pendulus

Syrphus sp

Eristalis pertinax

A few hoverflies.....

On such a beautiful Sunday afternoon and spurred on by the excellent field guide by Ball and Morris, Britain's Hoverflies (2nd edition) and the Hoverflies Facebook group I had my first attempt at photographing some of the hoverflies at Pilmoor.  Virtually the only plant in flower were some tall umbellifers and a small stand of purple-flowered mint sp..  I was reasonably happy with the results, hand-held on a day with some breeze, and at least managed to identify most of the species taken.

Eristalis pertinax

Helophilus pendulus

Leucozona glaucia (fem)

Melangyna umbellatarum

Epistrophe grossulariae

There was the odd imposter such as this next one a Tachinid fly that as a larva preys on the larvae of many moths.

Tachina fera

There were a small number of butterflies about, at least two Brimstone, four Comma, several Large White and a couple of Peacock.

Brimstone

Comma

Comma - underside

A night out at Brimham Rocks, VC64, 29 August 2015

Brimham Rocks just north-west of Harrogate is one of my favourite sites and just wish I had trapped there a bit more often in the nine months I lived at Hartwith just down the hill.  The conditions were not looking too favourable in that there was a breeze, clearing skies and a full moon, with the feel that it would go chilly by morning.  As it happened the wind dropped, a veil of high cloud subdued the effects of the moon and the temperature only dropped to +11.  I tried a new spot halfway between the carparks and the visitor centre in an area of mixed woodland, millstone grit rock outcrops and open areas of low scrub including bilberry.  Not big numbers, but at least one new species for me, Grey Mountain Carpet, apparently the first record for the area since the 1980's.

Grey Mountain Carpet

A total of 180 moths of 40-odd species was the final haul with a selection of typical late summer species including Barred Chestnut, Flounced Chestnut and Autumnal Rustic,  A selection of the haul follows:

Argyresthia semifusca

Epinotia ramella  f.costana

Catoptria falsella

Udea lutealis

Barred Chestnut  Diarsia dahlii

Suspected  Parastichtis suspecta

There was a greyish moth which attracted my attention in holding its wings in a slightly tentiform fashion and which did not immediately allow identification.  After some initial excitement in considering species such as Northern Deep-brown Dart, consultation with Charlie Fletcher the County Recorder, we came to the conclusion it was just an odd Flounced Rustic.