Aberporth Small Marbled

 

Surprised and pleased to find this well coloured Small Marbled on the clifftop at Aberporth. Lewington's illustration  doesn't do it justice!

Only had phone to hand hence the quick photo grab. 

Blomer's rivulet

A new species for me in Aberaeron last night. More recently 2-8 records per year in the county but historically 0-2 per year.

Pachyrhabda 0 - Psychoides 1

 Ian Morgan's recent post about Pachyrhabda steropodes prompted me to check the soft shield ferns and others in the garden here.

Alas, so far no sign of steropodes, but plenty of spore eating activity in evidence: some on soft shield fern, a little on male fern, and lots on the Japanese and Chinese fern, Dryopteris uniformis:

Dryopteris uniformis

Dissecting one of the little heaps revealed a larva, which I take to be Psychoides filicivora. I have yet to see an adult. 

Psychoides filicivora, larva

The few hartstongue ferns here are some way off from having mature sporangia. I shall keep checking these and other ferns here.

Third pretty chalk carpet

Last night I had another pretty chalk carpet, my third since 22 June. This one was quite battered and faded. 

Good night in Bontgoch

 Over 50 ssp. of macros last night including Shark, Ghost moth female, Double line, Green arches, 4 Swallowtails and Round-winged Muslin, Small Seraphim and Smoky Wave.

Out now in Carmarthenshire - what about Ceredigion?

 Another little reminder - please keep an eye out for larval workings of Pachyrhabda steropodes. Below is copied and pasted from the Carmarthenshire moth blog. I`m envious of your small marbleds and Welsh clearwing records, by the way!

Laura Moss recently (25/6) sent me an excellent photo of Pachyrhabda steropodes larvae spinnings. Note the two orangey elongated shapes in the photo and that the sporangia are missing = eaten, under soft shield-fern fronds (its food-plant ) at Llangynin (NW of St Clears). Something to look out for.

A second small marbled!

With only two previous records for the county, both on the same day in 2015, a small marbled 2 nights ago was a surprise but a second one last night was quite unexpected! This one has more pronounced markings that the first so posting here for the record. Aberaeron. 

A Clearwin(g)-win situation at Bwlch Corog, Glaspwll. 20/06/2025

 With a renewed determination to search for the Welsh Clearwing and very good mothing conditions in the week running up to the 20th June, a short notice weekend survey was commissioned by Coetir Anian https://www.cambrianwildwood.org/

On a very humid and warm Friday evening, three 15w green phosphor traps were placed out on the peat bog and a 125w MV in the ancient Oak woodland.

105 species were recorded (81 macro and 23 micro) including Waved Carpet, Striped Wainscot and Welsh Wave. 

Waved Carpet. P McGregor

Striped Wainscot. P McGregor

Welsh Wave. P McGregor

Early Saturday morning, with the temperature having not dropped below 14c and sunny intervals developing, lure traps were placed at suitable birches (with possible signs of clearwing activity) and along a wet gulley clad with mature willows, looking for Welsh Clearwing and Lunar Hornet Moth respectively. By 11am, five Welsh Clearwing had been recorded and three Lunar Hornet Moth.

Welsh Clearwing. P McGregor

With much cooler conditions having arrived by Saturday afternoon, a contrasting 48 species were trapped Saturday night, Small Yellow Wave probably being the most notable. A total of 126 separate species were recorded over the two nights.

A very satisfying weekend of moth recording.

Phil.

Another Ceredigion rarity - small marbled

A rare immigrant from my garden in Aberaeron last night. Very small and if I wasn't now checking all micros too (started this year) then I would have ignored this as "just another micro" ☺️

Not sure about previous Ceredigion records but there are none for Ceredigion on iRecord that I can see and not that many for the whole of the UK. 

Lesser cream wave and pretty chalk carpet

Both infrequent in the county from what I gather - the pretty chalk carpet only has single figure records I think. Lesser cream wave from the meadow at Llanerchaeron and the pretty chalk carpet came to a light trap in my garden in Aberaeron. 

Eucosma ??

Got this one yesterday at Llanerchaeron on the meadow. It's not ideal that the rear top of the wing is missing but you can just see a portion of the lighter panel in the wing displayed in E. cana and E. obumbratana. I was leaning towards E. cana. LERC's AI had it down as E. obumbratana but it also has similarity to E. fulvana but I think this would make it a county first. Anyone with a firm thought (just for fun - I am not trying to claim a county first here ☺️).

Pug puzzle

 This small pug was in my trap on 18 June. I took two photographs to try on Obsidentify. One it suggested was Valerian Pug as a 100% certainty; the other it offered Lead-grey Pug at 60%.

I don't think it is Common Pug (central spot absent, white spot on termen appears to be present); we have plenty of red valerian (Centranthus ruber) in the garden, but the nearest Valeriana officinalis I know of is 6 miles away on Tregaron. As for Lead-grey, there is or was cow-wheat less than a mile from here.

Migrants and more

Not many moths in the garden trap last night, but a few migrants was an encouraging sign: Dark Sword-Grass, Silver Y (3) and Diamondback. Later, doing my gardening chores this afternoon, I disturbed a Bordered Straw which had presumably been attracted to the light but avoided the trap.

I visited Cors Ian this morning. Glyphipterix thrasonella in abundance. Highlights were a Scarlet Tiger and several Phiaris micana:

Smell the roses

A short walk (that took a long time!) around the dunes at Ynyslas on Tuesday evening. I was pleased to see Shaded Pug (2), but most noticeable were rose feeders: around 150 Acleris bergmanniana in the slacks and along the side of the golf course, and Notocelia roborana (1) and Hedya ochroleucana (c20). 

Shaded Pug

Acleris bergmanniana

Other highlights included Eucosma campoliliana (c10), Caloptilia stigmatella (1), Crescent Plume (c20), Cydia microgrammana (c10)  and the off-puttingly named Celypha cespitana (1).

Celypha cespitana

More from Llangeitho

 Busy night in the mothing world, last night, and busy for me this morning, going through over 150 moths in and around my home-made LED trap. In all, 51 species, including a Blomer's Rivulet, new for me - and rather surprising, as I am not aware of any elms in the immediate area. A lovely moth.

Others, good to see included Grey Arches, Alder Moth, Beautiful Carpet and Sharp-angled Peacock. Like others, I have had numerous Treble Lines this year, including thirteen on 17 May.

Llangeitho moths waking up

 A mild, damp night (23rd May) gave me a busy morning, with over 140 moths of 44 species coming to my LED trap light. Standouts included Square Spot, Beautiful Snout, Little Emerald, Green Arches, Rivulet and several Peach Blossom. I have the impression that several moths are appearing a little earlier in the season than usual?

Brown Rustic

Little Emerald

Beautiful Snout

Privet hawk and scorched carpet

Had a nice privet hawk moth at Aberaeron yesterday and a what I think is a scorched carpet. When I entered it into the recording spreadsheet it asked for a photo so presumably we don't get many in Ceredigion? It was my first to the garden at least. 

A success for the Privet sector

 Another new Hawkmoth for our Aberystwyth garden last night.

Privet Hawkmoth

Also Lobster, Orange Footman and Vine's Rustic. Not many moths, but good ones.

 Common Heath moth and Micropterix aureatella at Cross Inn forest today.

Whose Lime is it anyway?

A good night for the garden trap, with this Hawkmoth on the outside:

Lime Hawkmoth

A strong supporting cast included Devon Carpet:

Devon Carpet

Also FFY Figure of Eighty, Poplar Grey, Clouded Silver, Buff Ermine, Elephant Hawkmoth, Mottled Pug, Willow Beauty, Peppered Moth (3), and I was pleased to see a Scorched Wing, Peach Blossom, Puss Moth, Common Wave and 3 Buff-tips.

Figure of Eighty

 ObsIdentify says that these are 3rd instar larvae of Emperor Moths. Paul Taylor thinks so too. What do others think?

They are in the turning circle at the end of the forestry track into Cross Inn woods on the south side of the road to Bethania.

Bumper catch at Bontgoch

In 40 years of mothing I have never had a more spectacular catch in my garden as I did last night. Certainly not at the start of May!  43 species and 193 moths plus numerous May bugs filled my MV trap and carpeted the surrounding grass under goat willow and a mixed thorn hedge. 

The pick of the catch were Orange Footman and Barred Umber and it was great to see species like White Ermine and Scorched Wing in double figures. A spring Setaceous Hebrew Character was a first for me as was Grey Pine Carpet.

 

And then they came

Having bemoaned the lack of visitors to my garden trap, last night they came. Knot Grass and Light Knot Grass, Bactra lancealana (3), and Dioryctria abietella. Also first for year Golden-rod Pug, May Highflyer, Swallow Prominent, Heart and Dart, Mottled Rustic, and Azalea Leaf Miner.

May Highflyer

Swallow Prominent

Azalea Leaf Miner

Knot Grass

Dioryctria abietella

A mine that I collected from a tree last November, that I had labelled as Acer sp. but which I now believe to be Oriental Plane, hatched today: I think it is Phyllonorycter platani.

The ox-eye daisies in Aberystwyth cemetery are just starting, and I was pleased to find two Bucculatrix nigricomella and a Dichrorampha acuminatana yesterday evening.  Also c30 Glyphipterix fuscoviridella, Aspilapteryx tringipennella, Monopis laevigella, and the now ubiquitous Tachystola acroxantha.

Bucculatrix nigricomella

And finally, an Ochreous Pug on my walk to work this morning.