Mostly Moths

Have to dust off my brain cell to get round all those fancy names H!  Think we'll just have to call your fabulous DHHM 'hissing Sid' Lol!

Thanks for bringing us up to date!

lovely update Hazel and that Death's Head Hawkmoth is a stunning specimen;   they do have such lovely markings and I have a new appreication for moths since you started your thread;  thanks for updating.  

I put the trap out last night & had 3 moths around the outside in eggboxes & one on the ground, all quite big. I went to have my breakfast before putting them in the shed for the night & the naughty wren came down & next thing he was eating the one on the ground! I checked the egg-boxes later & they were empty too, so did it scoff the lot? Naughty Hazel for leaving them out! LOL

I've been out having a lot of fun lately with my new moth trap, but first of all here are the rest of the new moths from the end of last year & the start of 2016,

a Red-headed Chestnut at the start of November

a pretty little micro moth "Acleris ferrugana"

Merveille du Jour, which is really it's English name, must come from the French, means Wonder of the Day,

& a "Cryopega aerugaria" not in the UK,

& a Scarce Umber to end November

& just in time, a December moth, a real beauty to see,

& after no new moths for ages a Mottled Grey in February

& since the end of February, on the occasional warmish night, I've been out in various woods & reserves with my "new" kit,

It's a 125W Mercury vapour bulb + ballast which runs from a 12V 100Ah Battery (pressie from Father Xmas) & a 12V/240V invertor (early birthday pressie). The bulb is supported on an old parasol holder so it's lovely & stable. The upright sheet is supported on a clothes rack thingy that is fixed firmly to the ground by tent pags as the sheet acts as a sail in a slight wind. I start at dusk & go on for 3 hours, checking rgularly for new arrivals. I reckon I get at least twice as many moths as with the old trap. Last Saturday was the best yet, around 60 moths & 36 species, which was fantastic for the 2 April. I can't wait for a few more warmer nights!!  

A couple of new ones from Saturday, a Marbled Pug

& a Square Spot

Thanks for looking

Hi H & everyone, any idea what this little beauty is, about threequarters of an inch long & such a beautiful colour in the light ... removed silk cocoon from my neighbours ornamental leylandii spires the other day as she thought it might house a giant spider, put it in butterfly house in shed & it hatched into this (wish I'd had it indoors now!)

Hi Wendy this is a Ruby Tiger, nice Moth. We had a few in our friends Moth trap last summer.

Well done Wendy, another beauty hatched in your basket! Yes it's definately a Ruby tiger, not had one yet this year but due any day now. I had a couple of beauties last night on a local reserve, Emperor moths,

So lovely to see. I wanted to get some nicer shots when they settled but it got a bit cold (4°C) & dewy so I packed up & went home instead!!

Many thanks DO & H, did you see that Aiki also thought so after I posted on Identify this thread also ... was anxious to find out if day or night flier to decide best time to let it go free!  Well. today it's lovely here with lightish winds, sunny & warm so, after a further photoshoot & a trip in a little pot to show the neighbour whose garden it was from, I placed it on some lesser Celandine & it went on it's way a short time later!

Such a lovely surprise & was sorry to have missed seeing it emerge

pics in a mo!

BTW H, I want an Emperor Moth or three!

That Emperor moth is a stunner, Noisette.