Moth-ing to see here!

Here's Sarah White with some information on some (alternative) amazing winged creatures found at Loch Garten! 

Due to our recent spell of warm weather the insects of the forest are out in force. We get a huge number and variety of insects on the reserve from beetles and butterflies to the slightly irritating (bit of understatement?) but no doubt under-appreciated midge!

Last Thursday evening, our lovely Community Ranger Alison and the very knowledgeable Pete Moore (RSPB Warden at Insh Marshes) set up 3 moth traps in Mallachie Car Park, the start of our "Two Lochs Trail".  This was part of Moth Night, an annual event run by Butterfly Conservation to celebrate moths in all their glory. So, on Friday morning we arrived at work bright and early to see what treasures had been caught.

Before I reveal the exciting contents of the traps, I want to talk a bit about how awesome moths are! To many people they are seen as dull, brown and slightly frantic. However, what many people do not know is that here in the UK we are blessed with an incredible variety of moth species. We have over 800 species of macro (or large) moth regularly seen across the UK and thousands of micro (small) moths, in contrast to just 60 species of butterfly. And the contents of our moth traps are a perfect illustration of just how exciting and colourful moths can be!

We had an incredible haul of moths from the traps, with over 22 species of macro-moths and many more micros. I won’t include an exhaustive list, but the highlights included some of the most fantastically named species I have heard of (a fact we have the romantic Victorian naturalists to thank for). These included: Broken-Barred Carpet (a first for the season), Saxon Seraphim, Nut-tree Tussock and Scalloped Hook Tip.

 A species which was numerous in the traps and perfectly illustrates the beauty of moths is the  vibrantly coloured Brimstone (Opisthograptis luteolata).

Brimstone Moth (credit: Alison Greggans)

The clear highlight of the event (for me anyway) was the monster of the moth world, The Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi), a big bruising moth which flashes the red tops of its underwings when irritated.

Poplar Hawk Moth (credit: Alison Greggans)

We also caught Bordered White (Bupalus piniaria). One (or two!) of the first things you probably notice about this moth are the impressive feathered antennae which tell us this is a male. The antennae are an incredible sensory organ, which allow the males to follow the faint pheromone trail left in the air by the females. This species is a bit of a pest in the pine forest and without the help of the Scottish wood ant keeping its population in check would thoroughly defoliate many of the pine trees. A great example of the role insects can play in keeping the forest ecosystem balanced!)

Bordered White (Credit. Steve Everett)

For more photos of the moths caught you can check out Alison’s facebook post. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=843692045736880&id=615842298521857

As for an update on our lovely birds, the chicks are growing at an astonishing rate. They have now well and truly passed the reptilian- dinosaur-esque phase and are now looking like beautiful mini Ospreys! It's amazing to think that in just another 4 or 5 weeks the chicks will be flying! Come and see them while you still have the chance. EJ is still being a devoted mum and answering their persistent requests to be fed (a fantastic sign of healthy chicks) and Odin is demonstrating with fantastic ease his superior fishing skills. For the past few days he has managed to relax for over 12 hours (whilst the centre is open), chilling on a perch, before delivering up to 5 fish out of hours, Thanks Odin!