Happy New Year all!
Same thread as before but a whole year of moth hunting ahead of us. You don't need lots of expensive equipement to set up light traps, a budget of around £20 should be enough, have a look on the old thread HERE or ask again, there is always (almost) someone who knows. Wendy is our surrogate mum & has a house & shed full of caterpillars & pupas & breeding adults!
The moths are still coming to feed on the rope in the garden. All you need is to dissolve 0,5Kg of sugar in 0,5 litres of wine, by gently heating up & stirring. Then pour the mixture into an old pan & put in a natural fibre rope or cord. (Don't put the ends in as it gets messy). Leave to soak a day & hang in the garden from a tree or bush or between posts. Then go back just after dark & see who's feeding. I tend to pop out about every half hour until bedtime. Then the fun starts as you try to get the camera settings right for the photos. The rope tends to work for about 3 days & then needs redipping during the day before the 4th night. Here are some "library pictures"
My rope is now a lot shorter as I only have 1 tree & just loop it from one low branch, it needs to be about 4ft from the ground. Here is one from 30 December, a Chestnut
Everone is welcome!
Best wishes
Hazel in Southwest France
Seeing good reports of reasonably local ones overnight, must set mine up tonight! Hope LU pupating nicely!
ITM ... much activity here late last night ...
New pairings, four males on the rampage for most of the evening, quite noisy as their wings flick the side of the laundry pot! Lol
Still two more to emerge, wonder what variety they will be??
Might get more of these
moved out of shoebox lid to produce more eggs in an amazing structure
Was quite a challenge to get half-decent pics ... added one more slightly offset layer overnight but don't know if she's done laying yet!
Anyone want some eggs??? Lol
Not sure there are enough hours in the day to add raising some moths to the list!! It's a bit like a chain letter, once you get them you have to send them on to 10 other people! LOL
But I don't know 10 other people H! LOL
I may become overrun here very soon ... transferred the next two female into the 'birthing' house with the first one ... here's the story so far
First one has laid a few more
The other two are trying to catch up fast
The five boys are in the big house at the ready for any female which may happen along ... they still have a bit of a mad flap around during the evening!
Two more to emerge & am hoping they will be male ... for obvious reasons ... but of course I shan't keep all the eggs ... just imagine how many Privet bushes I would have to raid!!!
Still seems such a waste that they don't last for long ... all that beauty (except for the legs which make me think 'Tarantula' every time I see them!! Hahahaha)
They are fabulous Wendy & I'm tempted, but then I look out the window & see my half-dug pond.....no I must resist. Any local schools interested?
Crikey Wendy, are you going into the silk lingerie business?
Alan, that's amazing. I think I can see it - just.
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Tony
My Flickr Photostream
That's amazing Alan, took me a while to spot it !
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Regards, Hazel
WendyBartter said: /quote]Update on this post from 24th Feb ... Big one on left spun cocoon but one of the right was still wandering, last looked at it two days ago (had looked like this for days!) ................. to my complete & utter astonishment I came across this today I had kept it isolated in small container in case of contagion as I thought it was dying ...... fancy pupating without spinning silk cocoon!!!!
/quote]Update on this post from 24th Feb ...
Big one on left spun cocoon but one of the right was still wandering, last looked at it two days ago (had looked like this for days!)
................. to my complete & utter astonishment I came across this today
I had kept it isolated in small container in case of contagion as I thought it was dying ...... fancy pupating without spinning silk cocoon!!!!
Latest amazing news on this very peculiar pupa .......... it emerged late evening yesterday ... gobsmacked!!
It needed a great deal of assistance at first to get it's wings clear of the ground but they never did fully inflate & it seemed to have problems gripping on ...
Mick sellotaped kitchen towel to stick for him to hang clear of floor
Wings slightly more inflated but not as quickly as previous ones
mean stare
Vid footage of various stages of progress leaving proof positive it is a male!!
The five lone males are diintegrating fast now ... Three females seems quite strong, one of them still locked in passionate embrace with previous male, random extra eggs dotted all over the butterfly house, will have a sort out soon as have to ready the house for the next incumbent pupae to emerge at some stage!!!
I guess he decided that despite all his problems, life was worth living after all! LOL
24th March
6th April
HERE WE GO AGAIN!!
Anyone want some larvae? Ll
Another half dozen ... as if I needed any more! Lol