FlyinginFordham: 35 species in October is rather insane!

Wow, just wow.

Never have I ever had such a good catch in October here in my garden, and late October as well.

On Thursday night I logged a heady 35 species from my single actinic trap. I worked my trap up until midnight and then rose at 6.30am to go through the trap.

It certainly was a successful migrant night as well, finally coming good, with 9 Udea ferrugalis, 2 Plutella xylostella, 1 Silver Y, 1 Delicate and best of all, two cracking Vestals, one was a bit tatty but the other was a right showstopper.

A good variety of other less common moths were present also, Buttoned Snout made it's first appearance since May, Pine Carpet was rather late and not seen since August.

Four Dark Chestnut showed the variability in this species.

There was also two species of Caloptilia present, Caloptilia elongella was a welcome new for year moth, and a beauty of a purple-sheened chocolate coloured rufipennella was nice to photograph although it would not sit still for long!

Stenoptilia bipunctidactyla was the best moth of the night, a new species for the garden. I have retained the moth just incase it turns out to be zophodactylus.

Moth garden list for 2023 stands at 633 species

19/10/23 - Back Garden - Fordham - East Cambridgeshire - Actinic Trap

Macro Moths

Vestal 2 [NFY]
Angle Shades 1
Barred Sallow 1
Beaded Chestnut 3
Blair's Shoulder-knot 1
Brindled Green 1
Buttoned Snout 1
Chestnut 1
Clancy's Rustic 1
Dark Chestnut 3
Delicate 1
Double-striped Pug 1
Feathered Thorn 1
Green-brindled Crescent 3
Large Wainscot 3
Large Yellow Underwing 2
Lesser Yellow Underwing 1
L-album Wainscot 1
Merveille du Jour 1
Pine Carpet 1
Red-green Carpet 2
Satellite 1
Setaceous Hebrew Character 2
Silver Y 1

Micro Moths

Caloptilia elongella 1 [NFY]
Stenoptilia bipunctidactyla 1 [NFG]
Agonopterix alstromeriana 2
Blastobasis lacticolella 4
Caloptilia rufipennella 1
Cydalima perspectalis 3
Emmelina monodactyla 1
Epiphyas postvittana 5
Musotima nitidalis 1
Plutella xylostella 2
Udea ferrugalis 9