February Moths - at last a break in the weather.

Fourteen species on the edge of woodland last night at Yns-hir.
First Brindled Pugs (5), Oak Beauty (2), Small Quaker (9), Small Brindled Beauty, Engrailed and at the bottom of the bucket the object of my affections at this time of year was one Yellow Horned!
12 macro and 2 micro species, in all 85 individuals.
Ina and Tony

Brindled Pug

Clouded Drab

Dotted Border

Engrailed

March Moth

Oak Beauty

Pale Brindled Beauty

Small Brindled

Small Quaker

Yellow Horned

Yellow Horned

Common Quaker

Our catches this morning included our first Common Quaker for this year, albeit deformed, and this unusually well marked Tortricodes alternella.

Carolyn & Evan

Small Brindled Beauty

… a late addition to our catch yesterday.  We found this recently deceased Small Brindled Beauty - dark form (fl 15mm) in our conservatory today.  We caught our very first one of this species on the third of February last year.

Carolyn & Evan

March Moths

We set two traps last night before Dennis came along and caught our first March appearing moths for this year - March Moth, Early Moth and Mottled Grey in the woodland and a Hebrew Character in the garden.

Carolyn & Evan

March Moth

Early Moth

Mottled Grey

Hebrew Character

Acleris cristana

Just to inspire you into action at this time of year, this little un was found a couple of nights ago by one of Ceredigion's  newer moth-ers in the Llangeitho area.
A Tortrix moth that can be found in most months of the year, the book says not June but in the current climate anything can happen.  Most records for the county are February to April so now would be a good time to look out for them.
Favoured larval foodplant is Prunus spinosa, (Blackthorn) but also on Crataegus (Hawthorn), Malus (Apple) or Sorbus aria (Common Whitebeam).
Good hunting.
Ina

Acleris cristana - photo P.Barnes.

January Moths at Ynys-hir

Seven macro and two micro species last night.  A few photos below but seem to have forgotten the Mottled Umber of which there were 10.
Pale Brindled Beauty 4, including one f.monacharia.
Spring Usher 11.
Chestnut 15.
Dark Chestnut 1.
Winter Moth 3.
Dotted Border 3.
Tortricodes alternella 14.
Acleris ferrugana 1 (m).

Acleris ferrugana

Dark Chestnut - Chestnut.

Dark Chestnut - not the best example as termen is worn.

Dotted Border

Pale Brindled Beauty

Pale Brindled Beauty

Spring Usher

Tortricodes alternella

Winter Moth

First Micro of 2020

Well it quite often is!  Tortricodes alternella.  Other species found last night; Spring Usher, Mottled Umber, Winter Moth, Chestnut.
Some absolutely terrible photos below... a combination of small compact camera, bad light and rubbish photographer, in other words me! 😂
Ina and Tony (Can't blame him for photos)

Chestnut

Mottled Umber

Spring Usher

Tortricodes alternella