Invasive caterpillar on the move in SE England

As things are a bit quiet at the moment I thought you might be interested on this possible addition to the Ceredigion list sometime in the future!

Box Tree Moth caterpillars on the roam.

Box tree caterpillars (Diaphania perspectalis) feed within webbing and can completely defoliate box (Buxus) plants. 

The moths lay overlapping sheets of pale yellow eggs on the underside of box leaves. Once hatched, the larvae begin chomping their way through their host plant. 

Reaching around 4cm long, they spin webs around leaves and twigs to conceal and protect themselves.

Image copyrightAndrew Halstead

Image captionThis is what a box tree caterpillar grows into

Image copyrightCarol Sheppard

Image caption

The RHS says gardeners can physically remove the caterpillars by hand or use a biological control or insecticide.

While the adult moth was first reported in the UK in 2008, caterpillars were not found in private gardens until 2011. By the end of 2014 the moth had become established in parts of London and surrounding counties.

Experts believe the moth originated in China and either flew across the English Channel or stowed away in containers of imported plants.

Image copyrightRoyal Horticultural Society

Image caption

Pale and Tawny Pinion

I have stitched together the two 'Pinion' photos.  Sarah's very pale Pale and Pete's Tawny.

Garden

The only one new for the garden last night.  Hebrew Characters in the lead; seven to one!

Garden Carpet

Ina and Tony

Scalloped hook-tip

Not a great night on the carr at Cors Fochno, particularly as one light failed to operate. We had 7 macro species in 18 moths. Only one species new for us this year, a Scalloped hook-tip, equalling the earliest county date for this moth.

Interesting that the distribution strongly favours the north and east of the county. This nationally common species feeds on Silver and Downy Birch.

Tony & Ina

Adela cuprella

5 male Adella cuprella found this morning dancing around the top of a Sallow bush on Cors Fochno...and me writing up the notes!!

Least Black Arches - plus

Eighteen species of the larger moths last night at Eglwysfach.
The first Brown Silver-line and Lunar Marbled Brown of the year for us and at least four micro species.

Early Tooth-striped - with green colouration

Red-green Carpet

Least Black Arches

Phyllonorycter quercifoliella

Eriocrania sp

Eriocrania unimaculella

Dyseriocrania subpurpurella

Dyseriocrania subpurpurella

Lunar Marbled Brown & Unusual Common Quaker

We set three traps last night in our garden and adjacent oak woodland.  Despite the minimum temperature of only 2.4°C we were rewarded with 41 moths of 14 different macro species, the most being in the woodland.  Notable for us were our first Lunar Marbled Brown, Shoulder Stripe, Red Chestnut and Early Tooth-striped.  We also found this unusual Common Quaker with confluent oval and kidney marks.  On a quick search of the internet all seemed to have the usual separate discal spots.

Carolyn & Evan

Lunar Marbled Brown

Shoulder Stripe

Red Chestnut

Common Quaker

D. (or E.) subpurpurella

My garden trap (just) reached double figures for this first time this year: 5 Common, 1 Small and 1 Powdered Quaker, Hebrew Character, Chestnut, Common Marbled Carpet (early?), LBAM and this Dyseriocrania (or Eriocrania) Subpurpurella:

The house was also blessed with a Brown House Moth, Mompha divisella and Agonopterix heracliana today, and a melanic Apple Leaf Miner on Tuesday.

Simon

Tawny pinion?

Once more Pete's New Quay trap has produced some good moths. Apart from the earliest (by 3 days) county record for Small phoenix, he had what we think is a Tawny pinion. This is a very rare moth in Ceredigion with only 2 previous records from 1923 and 2010. We decided to go have a look at the moth as we have not seen one before. It is very similar to Pale pinion but the dark tornal spot is a distinctive feature (see John Clifton's photo on the Norfolk moths website). There are plenty of Ash trees in and around his garden. Any other views will be welcome.

Tony & Ina

6w versus 15w Actinic

I know I keep going on about it but I love this 6w bucket!!  Watkins and Doncaster should be sponsoring me!!

In the same habitat last night:  15w = 11 moths of 8 species - 6w = 45 moths of 10 species.
The traps were about 25 meters apart but out of sight of each other.
There are differences, the 6w light sits lower in the funnel and the whole bucked, being white, glows slightly. I am going to try changing the lights over on the traps if possible.  There may be a problem keeping the 15w light on the bucket but... Watch this space!

Anyway, a sample of the 17 Early Tooth-striped on the 6w vanes and a Shoulder Stripe which was new for the year for us.

Ina

Brindled beauty and Streamer

Pete reported these two moths from his New Quay trap last night, both species which we have not had so far this year.

Tony

Ynys-hir (on a colder than promised night)

Seventeen species in total in two slightly different habitats last night.
First for the year there was a Water Carpet in my favourite 6w bucket. It seemed to like the Nasturtiums, even though it was only a seed packet!!

Pale Pinion

Clouded Drab

Water Carpet

Ina and Tony

Variety within Clouded Drabs

Early Grey was the only new moth for my Bont garden last night.

This Clouded Drab shows how extremely variable they are.

Clouded Drab, Bont, 12th April 2016

Here's another one

Another of David's moths has appeared.

Tony

Any ideas

David Woolley has caught these moths at Llawr Cwrt. Their wing length is 16-17mm. What do you think they are?

One of them has been retained for confirmation.
Tony

Penparcau Moth Trap Opening on Saturday 28th May from 10am to 11am, all welcome!

There will be a chance to see some of the Moths of Penparcau (and perhaps further afield!) to which you are all invited:

Saturday 28th May
10am - 11am
Penparcau Community Centre
Penparcau
Aberystwyth
SY23 1RT

The Centre is the old Boxing Club, and is on the park right next to the roundabout at the top of Penparcau Road.  There is parking on the streets nearby, but no parking at the Centre itself.
For a location map please see this link:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/''/Penparcau+SY23+1RT/@52.4005033,-4.0723688,18z/data=!4m8!4m7!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x486f765d1e00dc45:0x68bd549a6530e499!2m2!1d-4.0712728!2d52.400524

This event is open to the community and all are welcome.  I hope it will be a chance for us to show off the beauty and interest of moths to the wider community, and maybe get some new people interested in moths.

I'd be very pleased to see you there.
Best wishes
Chloe Griffiths
The Nature of our Village Project
Penparcau Community Forum

It's all in the name

When posting I will try not to put NFY or NFG as nearly EVERYTHING falls under this criteria. Maybe next year this will have more relevance. Last night apart from the usual fare I had a single faded March Moth, which was indeed a new moth for me.

March Moth, Bont, 6th April 16

Back in the Woods!

We have had little opportunity to trap in our local oak woodland this winter because of  low  night-time temperatures draining the batteries.  We now have a new 8 watt actinic bucket trap to overcome this problem and put it out last night for the first time.  The minimum temperature on this occasion was 6.5°C.  We were rewarded with 61 moths of 13 macro species and one micro - Diurnea fagella.  Small Quaker and Chestnut ran into double figures.  Particularly attractive was this Frosted Green and an Early Grey with a delicate pinkish flush as described in Waring.

We were interested to find out at what time the moths were flying and so set a trap camera to record throughout the night.  The attached photo with a moth in flight was taken at 03:53 hrs.  Numerous other moths were recorded earlier in the night.

Carolyn & Evan

Cors Fochno moths

A couple of actinic lights near birches last night, produced nearly 100 moths. Not all were in side the traps. A quick look at a silver birch trunk revealed nothing, but closer inspection found a Red sword-grass, 3 Engrailed, Early grey, Double-striped pug, Yellow horned and Diurnea flagella. Some of the photos demonstrate this amazing camouflage. We had our first Early tooth-striped for the year, a Herald, Powdered quaker, and Lesser swallow prominent which is the earliest county record by 5 days.


Brindled pug



Early tooth-striped



Engrailed

Herald

Lesser swallow prominent

Powdered quaker

Red sword-grass

Yellow horned

Tony & Ina