Tuesday 12 July 2016

Garden trapping over the last month - Still very poor.

It's been sadly lacking in any noteable species so far compared to last year.

I've trapped as much as able over the last month and had nothing to post about really. I wonder if we will have an Indian summer with a mass influx.

Best of the bunch including some new to garden however - Eucosma cana, Blue-borderd Carpet, Ancylis achatana, Green Arches, Rhyacionia pinivorana, Common Lutestring, Marbled White Spot, Lozotaeniodes formosana, Coronet and Seraphim.

Usual Hawks, Eyed, Poplar, Elephant, Lime - no Small Elephant this year or migrants. I've noticed a large amount of bees and bumble bees this year, along with another Large white butterfly in the trap. Cockchafer are still coming in numbers although have dropped off now.

It looks as if I have a Miller Colony along with a Vapourer  here in the Garden. I'm getting Miller's every time I run the trap with five or more usual and I've found dozens of Vapourer larvae, females on the hazel tree with a male or two in the trap most nights.

Heart and dart have been in far lower numbers and same can be said for Dark Arches.


Hopefully weather will continue to improve over the course of the next few months.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Stephen

    Not sure where in Cardiff you are, but here in Creigiau it has been a very poor year with regards to the number of moths trapped but the species count is very similar to last year. For the year to 10 July I have managed to ID (with help) approx 170 moth species and for the same period in 2015 I had approx 175. Not all the same species as I have had quite a number of new moths this year.

    I'd love to have some of your hawk-moths though ... I get regular visits from Elephant Hawk-moth and occasional visits from Poplar but nothing else.

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  2. Evening Howard,

    I'm across Llandaff Bridge from Mr Tordoff, in Llandaff village.

    Most of the Hawks were in singles this year, but Elephant's, seem to be still quite prevalent at the moment, had three last night and by far the commonest in my garden trap. There are rows of mature Common Lime, along Western Avenue, nearby and I can recall seing droves of lime Hawk full grown larvae all over the pavement in my youth. The trees are all still there but it's now the one Hawk I get the least of. A sad decline.

    I've not counted the species for the garden, but I have had a few new for the year so far also.

    Cheers




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