Welcome

Hello and welcome to my moth Blog. I now reside in a small village in East Cambridgeshire called Fordham. My Blog's aim is to promote and encourage others to participate in the wonderful hobby that is Moth-trapping.
Moth records are vital for building a picture of our ecosystem around us, as they really are the bottom of the food chain. They are an excellent early indicator of how healthy a habitat is. I openly encourage people to share their findings via social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
So why do we do it? well for some people it is to get an insight into the world of Moths, for others it is to build a list of species much like 'Twitching' in the Bird world. The reason I do it....you just never know what you might find when you open up that trap! I hope to show what different species inhabit Cambridgeshire and neighbouring counties.
On this Blog you will find up-to-date records and pictures.
I run a trap regularly in my garden and also enjoy doing field trips to various localities over several different counties.
Please also check out the links in the sidebar to the right for other people's Blogs and informative Websites.
Thanks for looking and happy Mothing!

KEY

NFY = New Species For The Year
NFG = New Species For The Garden
NEW! = New Species For My Records

Any Species highlighted in RED signifies a totally new species for my records.

If you have any questions or enquiries then please feel free to email me
Contact Email : bensale@rocketmail.com

My Latest Notables and Rarities

Friday, 23 August 2013

Slowing up but a migrant and a wanderer saved the night!

Well the onslaught of the usual suspects is still going strong, but the amount of species turning up to the trap has really ground to a halt.
I have just listed extras that I got on this night, that did not feature in the previous nights catch, as time is of a premium lately.
Rusty Dot Pearl was new for the garden albeit extremely washed out, and heralds probably the end of migrant activity for now, as we are expecting the wind to swing around from the north.
Another possibly good record would be the micro, Gelechia nigra. It is a scarce moth nationwide and there is only one confirmed record from Hertfordshire in 1890! Labeled as extinct at present.
Unfortunately needs must and the moth has been pinned ready for genitalia dissection, see what you think, I hope I am right.
Another good one for the garden was the Tortrix, Cochylis molliculana. This species is certainly spreading northwards, having first seen it on the coast a few years back, then last year on my parents farm South-East of here.


 Catch Report - 21/08/13 - Back Garden Stevenage - 1x 125w MV Robinson trap
 
Macro Moths

1x Lime-speck Pug [NFY]
1x Oak Hook-tip
2x Marbled Beauty
1x Maple Prominent

Micro Moths

 1x Gelechia nigra???? pending
1x Udea ferrugalis[NFG]
1x Cochylis molliculana [NFG]
1x Clepsis consimilana
1x Catoptria falsella
2x Acleris variegana
1x Carcina quercana
1x Cydia splendana
1x Evergestis forficalis
1x Cacoecimorpha pronubana


Cacoecimorpha pronubana












Cochylis molliculana











Lime-speck Pug










Maple Prominent










Gelechia nigra??










Rusty Dot Pearl







Posted by Bennyboymothman at 19:44

2 comments:

  1. Billy Dykes24 August 2013 at 00:50

    Hi Ben, a confident Gelechia nigra for me. I also had the pleasure of taking the 2nd record of this species for my county a few years back. Do you have aspen nearby?

    Cheers, Bill

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bennyboymothman24 August 2013 at 13:22

    Hi Bill, thanks for your vote of confidence :) I will get it dissected to be 100% sure. Aspen is present sparingly along our bridleway yes.
    Nice! If confirmed mine will be the 2nd for the County since 1890!

    ReplyDelete

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