On a recent visit to the reserve, I could hardly escape the signs of the spring migrants and the race for all wildlife on the reserve to prepare for the breeding season. Watching the mind blowing aerobatic feats of the hobbys and the screaming swifts above them reminded me of how reliant some of our best loved nature highlights are on insects being present, both for themselves and their young.
In the Brecks, the insects themselves deserve as much attention as the species that feast on them, with many restricted to the Brecks and relying on the wide variety of habitats found in your local landscape.
Lakenheath Fen clearly shows the divide between the Fen and Brecks border, and a walk along the Brandon Fen trail shows you a glimpse into one of the most unusual and rare habitats in the Brecks: sandy heathland. Brecks heaths are home to a wide range of specialist plants, birds and insects.
Most moths found at the reserve, unsurprisingly, are wetland ones, although a few Breckland specialists do turn up in the traps from time to time. If you visit the reserve from May onwards you may be lucky enough to see the aptly named grey carpet- which is unfortunately as grey as it sounds!
A grey carpet:
Image credit: Katherine Puttick
The lunar yellow underwing may look inconspicuous at rest but if you catch a glimpse of its underwings, you will see where is gets its name from! Once widespread, this species is now mainly restricted to the Brecks and the Suffolk Sandlings. This species is recorded annually on the reserve so you have a good chance of spotting one.
The Brecks is also home to some more specialist moths. You will need to venture further afield than Lakenheath to see these though. The Brecks is the last breeding stronghold of the tawny wave where it can be found along forest rides and heathland, flying from mid June and mid July and then again from mid August to September. The strange looking basil thyme case-bearer is entirely restricted to the Brecks and is closely linked to its food plant the basil thyme.
A tawny wave:
There are many more specialist moths in the Brecks- too many to be named! If you want to find out more you can visit: butterfly-conservation.org/4469/specialist-moths-in-the-brecklands.html
If you are interested in coming to see some of the moths that call the reserve home, you may be interested in coming along to our moth morning on Sunday 21 June. Please follow this link for more information.
We hope to see you soon!