Cullaloe 29/05 - en passant

Found three spp. of moth at Cullaloe yesterday - one in the morning and two at lunchtime - Crambus lathoniellus, Common Carpet and Silver-ground Carpet

Hill of Beath, heath trap, 27/05/2014

Poor night with temperature dropping quickly at sunset. Can't believe I got up at 4:30 in the morning for this! On the other hand, at least I got back to sleep quickly.

Pale-shouldered Brocade (1)
Small Phoenix (1)

Cullaloe random pickups, 23/05/2014

Two Cullaloe LNR drive-bys - first one netted from grass this morning. Second snatched off the top of gorse at lunchtime. Posted so I have easy access to them from my phone. Details to follow (once I figure out what the hell I'm looking at!)

20th May, Hill of Beath, Ochreous Pug

Hill of Beath LNR, Heath Trap, 20/05/2014, 21:30-11:30

Ochreous Pug (1)
Small Phoenix (1)

Adela rufimitrella

Still to be seen plentifully around Cullaloe LNR, especially in the vicinity of Cuckoo-flower. I even netted one today as by-catch while catching a hoverfly

Hawk Moth Heaven - Cullaloe, 19/05/2014

Cullaloe LNR, Heath Trap, 21:30-4:45, Willow/Birch Carr

Mild night to start but cooling and with some mist.

The star of the show was undoubtedly this Poplar Hawk Moth, which will be one of the highlights of my Cullaloe year, mothing or otherwise

Another new one for me was Brown Silverline, of which there were 2

There were two others, both Noctuids, and one of which seems to be Pale-shouldered Brocade, but I know there are other similar species so I am posting them here without ID for the moment (ID now confirmed/established)

Pale-Shouldered Brocade

Knot Grass

The complete list
1722 Flame Carpet (3)
1750 Water Carpet (1)
1759 Small Phoenix (1)
1902 Brown Silver-line (2)
1958 Clouded Silver (1)
1981 Poplar Hawk-moth (1)
2158 Pale-shouldered Brocade (1)
2289 Knot Grass (1)

ID notes: Knot grass: " this moth usually shows a curved white mark near the rear edge of the forewing, even in melanic specimens"

Hill of Beath, Heath Trap, 18/05/2014

Mild evening, overcast but didn't rain.

Since I didn't catch much of anything on the previous outing I didn't feel it would be too disruptive to put the trap out again. Fortunately I decided to get up before sunrise to check the trap as I suspect I would have lost one of the darpets which was resting on the top. I recorded my biggest crop of Hebrew Chars by far, and when I woke up for the second time at about 7 they had all dispersed somewhere in my shed! Lesson learned there. I'll have to open the shed door and hope some of them might leave tonight. I also found my first back garden diving beetle. I would have put it in the pond, only I don't have a pond! Wonder where it was going from/to.

2190 Hebrew Character (6)
1759 Small Phoenix (1)
1728 Garden Carpet (1)

Small Phoenix

Garden Carpet

Diving Beetle