Field Trip - Hexton Chalk Pit - 29/08/17

Below is the report from Colin Plant on our night at Hexton Chalk Pit last Tuesday night. 

It was great to record two new species for me, namely Hedge Rustic and Mompha sturnipennella (Which looks good for that species but will need to be dissected). 

REPORT: 29^th August 2017: Hexton Chalk Pit N. R., Herts.

Our impromptu  trip to the Herts & Middx Wildlife Trust’s nature reserve at Hexton Chalk Pit last Tuesday aimed to plug a 9-week time gap in the moth records for the site. Unfortunately, and in spite of the warm and humid day, the weather chose to “break” that evening. Ben set out 4 lights and I set out two, one being the vertical sheet, but almost immediately the wind picked up. Within an hour, said sheet was billowing like the topsail of a fully rigged Man o’ War and moths were having difficulties getting to the lights! We struggled on to the witching hour, but as midnight approached we decided it was no longer worth the effort and we packed up.

However, we did tick off a couple of goodies. We already knew that Agonopterix pallorella was present here, so it was good to see this Nationally Scarce species of chalk grassland again, but the big surprise was good numbers of Hedge Rustic – Tholera cespitis (including females that have laid hundreds of eggs). This is another Nationally Scarce species, but it is also one of those that has drastically declined in the last 50 years. It used to be widespread and numerous in Herts, but more or less vanished in the 1990s before reappearing in the period 2008 – 2016 with sparse reports of low numbers (interestingly, mostly in chalk-based habitats). In many parts of the south-east we were worried that Hedge Rustic might be on the way out, but the Hexton moths probably support the alternative idea that it is just at the lowest point in its natural, cyclical population.  We also caught a probable Mompha sturnipennella, another noteworthy species (it is associated with Rosebay Willow-herb), but in the interests of accuracy, until we have confirmed this ID by dissection I have left it off the list.

The full list is below. Many thanks to the Herts & Middx Wildlife Trust for their continuing support for recording moths on their properties.

Hepialidae

0015  Hepialus sylvina (Linnaeus, 1761)                                          Orange Swift

Gracillariidae

0321  Phyllonorycter messaniella (Zeller, 1846)                              

Oecophoridae

0658  Carcina quercana (Fabricius, 1775)                                       

Depressariidae

0697  Agonopterix arenella ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)       

0700  Agonopterix pallorella (Zeller, 1839)                                      

0709  Agonopterix liturosa (Haworth, 1811)                                   

Blastobasidae

0873  Blastobasis adustella Walsingham, 1894                              

Tortricidae

0936  Cochylimorpha straminea (Haworth, 1811)                         

0965  Cochylis hybridella (Hübner, 1813)                                        

0969  Pandemis corylana (Fabricius, 1794)                                      Chequered Fruit-tree Tortrix

0998  Epiphyas postvittana (Walker, 1863)                                     Light Brown Apple Moth

1076  Celypha lacunana ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)           

1138  Epinotia nisella (Clerck, 1759)                                                 

1260  Cydia splendana (Hübner, 1799)                                            

Crambidae

1309  Agriphila geniculea (Haworth, 1811)                                      

1336  Eudonia pallida (Curtis, 1827)                                                 

1344  Eudonia mercurella (Linnaeus, 1758)                                    

1348  Parapoynx stratiotata (Linnaeus, 1758)                                 Ringed China-mark

1395  Udea ferrugalis (Hübner, 1796)                                                Rusty-dot Pearl

Pyralidae

1462  Pempeliella dilutella ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)         *not yet dissected – so possibly “inscriptella”.

Geometridae

1724  Xanthorhoe spadicearia ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)  Red Twin-spot Carpet

1732  Scotopteryx chenopodiata (Linnaeus, 1758)                        Shaded Broad-bar

1738  Epirrhoe alternata (Müller, 1764)                                             Common Carpet

1739  Epirrhoe rivata (Hübner, 1813)                                                Wood Carpet

1742  Camptogramma bilineata (Linnaeus, 1758)                         Yellow Shell

1752  Cosmorhoe ocellata (Linnaeus, 1758)                                    Purple Bar

1759  Ecliptopera silaceata ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)        Small Phoenix

1764  Chloroclysta truncata (Hufnagel, 1767)                                 Common Marbled Carpet

1776  Colostygia pectinataria (Knoch, 1781)                                   Green Carpet

1782  Horisme tersata ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)                 Fern

1838  Eupithecia icterata (Villers, 1789)                                            Tawny Speckled Pug

1906  Opisthograptis luteolata (Linnaeus, 1758)                             Brimstone Moth

1914  Ennomos fuscantaria (Haworth, 1809)                                  Dusky Thorn

1961  Campaea margaritata (Linnaeus, 1767)                                Light Emerald

Lymantriidae

2026  Orgyia antiqua (Linnaeus, 1758)                                             Vapourer

Noctuidae

2087  Agrotis segetum ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)                 Turnip Moth

2102  Ochropleura plecta (Linnaeus, 1761)                                      Flame Shoulder

2107  Noctua pronuba Linnaeus, 1758                                             Large Yellow Underwing

2109  Noctua comes Hübner, 1813                                                    Lesser Yellow Underwing

2110  Noctua fimbriata (Schreber, 1759)                                          Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

2111  Noctua janthe Borkhausen, 1792                                            Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

2123  Diarsia rubi (Vieweg, 1790)                                                       Small Square-spot

2126  Xestia c-nigrum (Linnaeus, 1758)                                            Setaceous Hebrew Character

2131  Xestia rhomboidea (Esper, 1790)                                             Square-spotted Clay

2133  Xestia sexstrigata (Haworth, 1809)                                         Six-striped Rustic

2134  Xestia xanthographa ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)       Square-spot Rustic

2177  Tholera cespitis ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)                 Hedge Rustic

2178  Tholera decimalis (Poda, 1761)                                                Feathered Gothic

2199  Mythimna pallens (Linnaeus, 1758)                                       Common Wainscot

2297  Amphipyra pyramidea (Linnaeus, 1758)                               Copper Underwing

2299  Amphipyra tragopoginis (Clerck, 1759)                                  Mouse Moth

2306  Phlogophora meticulosa (Linnaeus, 1758)                             Angle Shades

2477  Hypena proboscidalis (Linnaeus, 1758)                                 Snout

Delplanqueia dilutella

Eudonia pallida

Hedge Rustic

Mompha sturnipennella

Udea ferrugalis