Well, the mothtrap (a Skinner-type with actinic tubes, on account of residential location) arrived yesterday in TM0025. In spite of the forecast of rain in the early hours, I fired it up for a few hours to see what would happen (you can’t blame me, can you!). Having heard stories of hundreds of moths in traps in the last few days, I was pleased not to be overwhelmed on the first night. Here are the additions to the list:
299. Common white wave, Cabera pusaria
300. Green oak tortrix, Tortrix viridana
301. Barred fruit-tree tortrix, Pandemis cerasana
302. Bright-line brown-eye, Lacanobia oleracea
303. Rustic, Hoplodrina blanda (I was amazed that this incredibly plain moth revealed subtle but distinct feature when I turned it round - the mystery of moths!)
304. Snout, Hypena proboscidalis
305. White ermine, Spilosoma Lubricipeda
306. Peppered moth, Biston betularia
307. Heart and dart, Agrotis exclamationis
308. Caddisfly Mystacides longicornis (a distinctively marked fly, I have not been able to find images of other Mystacides caddisflies with similar markings, so I think that this ID is safe, unless anyone wishes to disabuse me!)
No photos this time; the quality of the pictures that I took is not brilliant, so that is something that I will have to work on.
One other thing. How do you persuade 100+ caddisflies to leave your trap when you have finished?
Good start Sven. Two points
ReplyDelete1) I think Mystacides longicornis is pretty safe - it's one of the few that you don't need to gen det.
2) Your Rustic might be right, but I tend to find that Uncertain comes along first (and has just emerged with me) followed by Rustic, but with a large degree of overlap in between. These are REALLY difficult (in my opinion anyway) but both are common and as time goes by you will see that there are two broad types (roughly - warmer ones and colder ones). Advice is to add whichever you like for now and expect to build up an appreciation of their jizz over time. They will both be present anyway. Oh, and watch out for Vine's, early in the summer and a second pulse later.
Good work!
That's much appreciated. Thank you.
DeleteLook out for Mottled Rustic too, that one can look very plain in some light and quite obviously makred at other times.
ReplyDeleteMy moth traps are home made and based on a large plastic box, so very easy to empty by simply dumping it face down onto the borders from height!
Ditto!
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