Early October

 Some great moths about in early October , Grey Shoulder Knot ,Streak ,  Merville du Jour , Barred Sallow , Green - brindled Cresent , Dark sword grass , Large Wainscot , Feathered Thorn ,Red and Yellow lined Quakers and a very late Golden rod Pug

Cold Edge

Red Admiral:  3 SW 

Byron Edge

Red Admiral: 2 south

Byron Edge

Red Admiral: 1 flying south

Stainland.

 Sorry, I'm having a longish, troublesome, health issue. I don't think I'll be able to put whatever moths I found in September. on the blog. I'll be bouncing back at some point.

Gordon,

Lee Mount - 27th Sep

 Puzzling over this one - thought at first I was on for a new Species for here in Dark Chestnut but I'm leaning now towards a dark looking Chestnut - but I'm not sure at all. 

Any thoughts ?

Lee Mount

Last few days, not much doing at all. Actinic 22w does not seem to have pulled many in other than a 2 Mouse Moths, 2 Common Marbled Carpets, 2 Silver Y's, 1 Large Yellow Underwing, 1 Lesser Yellow Underwing, 1 Copper Underwing agg, 1 Red-green Carpet and a couple of Black Rustics. 

Micros Ypsolopha sylvella x 2 and Tachystola acroxantha x 2

Best of the bunch was this Barred Sallow

Setaceous Hebrew Character

 Always been a  regarded as a common moth in most of Yorkshire but never in Calderdale I have recorded 53 since 2003 and no records at all between  2000 - 2002 .... till this year with over 115 so far,??

Numbers to Northowram Moth trap......

21st Aug ...1

31st Aug ..2 

3rd Sept ...4

7th Sept ..21

8th Sept ..15 

9th Sept ..22 

10th Sept ...16

13th Sept ....12

20th Sept ...2

Delicate

 

  Another excellent moth The Delicate recorded by Anthony Arak at his Barkisland trap ,another migrant to add to  Calderdales growing list ...Astonishing the number of migrant moths that make it to the Pennine hills .....

Lee Mount - last few days...

 Not a lot doing at all and with all the rain I knocked the trap off. Back on again for a short while tonight 19th and see what the weather is going to do after today's full day of rain.

Been puzzling this micro since 9th Sept but couldn't work it out - even with it's rather strange stance. 

CF confirmed identification soon after I thought of drawing a blank over it !

Zelleria hepariella (NFS)

Just a Common Marbled Carpet on a window and a Silver Y each evening just on dusk - nectering on Verbena bonariensis.

Red Admiral and a Speckled Wood at Ogden yesterday.

Clifden Nonpareil at Clock Face quarry

One to light in Anthony Arak's trap yesterday!

Enough to put a smile on anyone's face on a dull and damp autumn morning!

Beacon Hill

Small Copper 1,  Red Admiral 1,  Speckled Wood 3

Copper Underwing - differences !

A good few Copper Underwing to the trap in recent weeks with a max of  9 at any one time. I always log these as Copper Underwing agg as the differences are, I find, pretty tricky to differentiate between the two similar species. Even more difficult to check live moths !!

In the local church tower last week I found some recently dead ones so selected the best two and decided it might be worth checking the underside of the underwings to see if this was, as advised, the best way of separating the two species. I think I was just lucky as the two I looked at were different.

Copper Underwing

and below Svenssson's Copper Underwing

Early September

Quick summary 150 +  moths of 30 + species most nights in early September, 1st - 12th

 Setaceous Heberew Character x 22 ,9th Sept (dont think I've had that many in the last 10 years..!!)

Black Rustic x 17 on the 11th 

Silve Y x 18 on the 11th 

Ruby Tiger x 1 ,,,,,,,,,7th September

Vines Rustic x 2 7th 

Dusky Thorn ..x 1 ...3rd

Vestal x 1... 8th 

Wax Moth x 1 8th

Red Green , Flame , Green , Spruce , Grey Pine ,  Common Marbled , Common , Garden Carpets ....7th

Brown Spot Pinion , Beaded Chestnut , Black Rustic , Angle Striped Sallow , Barred Sallow , Frosted Orange   and Autumnal Rustic...

Copper Underwing agg.....20 + ....

Still getting 60 + LYU....

Small Autumnal Moth x 1 

Light Emerald on the 10th 

Speckled Woods Stainland.

 We have been away for  while. We got home to a computer / Internet connection problem, which took several days to resolve. THEN, I came down with a bug of some sort. Life can be so very varied and interesting. I have a few days of moths to report, I'll make a start on them tomorrow, 

For now, here is the butterfly count which I collected On Carr Hall Lane yesterday.

1 x Wall Brown

1 x Large White

35 x Speckled Woods, something of a record for me.

]

Speckled Woods

Bank Top 1,  Beacon Hill 5

Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey

WCBS - managed to find a decent day for this survey covering part of Cold Edge and Ovenden Moor - 24c but there was quite a breeze.

38 from 7 species. Surprisingly the most common butterfly was Wall Brown x 17, then Red Admiral x 9, Speckled Wood x 4, Peacock x 3, Small Copper x 3, Small Tortoiseshell x 1 Small White x 1

Lee Mount

Last few days - not a great deal doing other than a continuing stream of Large yellow Underwings and afew Lesser Yellow Underwings, Mouse Moths, Square-spot Rustics etc and last night Copper Underwing agg x 8.

At dusk there has been 2 Silver Y's nectering on Verbena but they 'leg it' as soon as I get the camera on them. They don't seem to come when it's totally dark either.

Otherwise the best of the bunch has been these four........

Purple Bar

Acleris emargana

 

Buff Footman - only 5th record for here

Stenolechia gemmella

New Bank

Painted Lady 1,  Red Admiral 4 

Red Admirals

New Bank 2,  Listers Road 1

Langfield 27 08 23

 Cooler Temperatures ,still did okay though,fresh Small Autumnal Moth,Heath Rustic,Anomalous the picks.ps thought the Small Autumnal Moth was a Grey Mountain Carpet ( a target species ) until it opened its wings,still a nice record though.

Lee Mount etc...-23rd August

 This moth is always a bit special. Just the 4th record for here.

Purple Bar

Most others 'run of the mill' this morning including Mouse Moth x 3 and one each Riband Wave, Shuttle-shapped Dart and a Willow Beauty etc.

Fewer butterfly's the last few days but  a Holly Blue still at home and on Hunter Hill this afternoon (SE058297) just two species -- Wall Brown x 3 and Green-veined Whites x 5

Wall Brown

Lee Mount - 21st August

Another Yellow-barred Brindle - certainly a different one from 17th - lovely moth.

Large Yellow Underwing still in good numbers with 38 this morning

Spectacle x 1

+ a few other bits...

Hummingbird Hawmoth paid us a visit this afternoon - they don't stay long - photo best I could do !

Still got a Holly Blue and Speckled Woods.

Spectacle

Hummingbird Hawkmoth on Verbena bonariensis

Tawny Speckled pug

 First  Tawny Speckled Pug for a while , Flounced Rustics , Campion ,Yellow barred Brindle ,  Orange Swift , first Vines Rustic of the year , and 75 LYU..........

Lee Mount - 20th August

 A scarce one for me this morning with only five previous records here and the first since Sep 2019

Rosy Rustic

Also

Mouse Moth x 1, Small Phoenix x 1 along with several other expected species and still a good turnout of 63 Large Yellow Underwing.

Holly Blue still doing the rounds this afternoon.

Hebden Bridge

 Holly Blue female 1.  Thomas and Lewington say that 2nd brood females have broad black margins on the upperwings. The first photo shows a segment of this margin.

Lee Mount and Hag Lane

Quite a day in the garden late morning into early afternoon. Not many butterflies about in the blustery wind but the sun was hot in the shelter of the tree line.

Purple Hairstreak - just the one, around and resting on a cluster of leaves for several minutes on one of the big oaks at the back. Got the bins on it several times then tried with the scope but that was hopeless not being able to find the spot among the many oak leaves - not a good idea !

1 Peacock, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Large White, 2 Speckled Wood and 2 Holly Blues. The latter just seem to fly around a circuit, hardly ever landing.

Hag Lane - on the east side of the hill in the shelter from the wind on a flowering heather slope with a background of big holly's produced 2 Holly Blue, 1 Gatekeeper, 3 Small Copper, 2 Speckled Wood and a Peacock.

Not been able to find a Common Blue yet this year !

Bank Top

 Small Copper 1

Cunnery Wood

 Speckled Wood 1  (and Ladybird)

Lee Mount - 17th August

 Best of the last few days has been these two..

Pretty sure this is a Chevron though the markings are well faded

Yellow-barred Brindle (only the 3rd record for here)

Plenty of Yellow Underwings - the five usual sp.

Copper Underwings agg have also started to appear with 3 last night

News from Langfield Common ,

 Brian has been running a small trap on the Cliff face at langfield Common for the last few weeks .

Drinker x 5 , Neglected Rustic (red form below) , Tissue , Lime Speck Pug , Confused , Anomalous 20 + and a few Yellow Underwings...

Stainland.

 In spite of the rain last night, there are a few here this morning;

3 x Marbled Beauties

1 x Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

1 x Brimstone (My first this year)

Stainland.

 Here are two days worth of moth reports. Life got in my way, which is why they are late.

Moth Count 10 & 11 Aug 2023 (Combined Count)

4 x Marbled Beauties

4 x Blastobasis lacustrata

5 x Blastobasis adustella

2 Light Brown Apple

1 x Small Fan-footed wave TBC

3 x Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

The moth below is quite worn. I can't tell if it originally had two spots on each side, or just one spot each side. Could someone give me an ID for it please.

Small Fan-footed wave TBC

 

Also on the 11th Aug. I had a walk down Carr Hall Lane. It was quite windy, but a few butterflies risked it.

6 x Speckled Wood

5 x Small White

1 x Small Tortoiseshell

1 x Gatekeeper

1 x 1 x Large White - Pieris brassicae

1 x Small blue, spotted by Anne in the village she didn't get a good view. She wasn't able to tell which it type it was.

Cold Edge

Peacock 6

Lee Mount - 10th August

 What a haul......

These Large Yellow Underwings were what was left in the trap after I emptied the egg boxes. I was counting them as I emptied the boxes and of course many escaped. I lost count at 190 so there were in excess of 200. Never had so many of these previously. Perfect warm, muggy night. Quite overwhelming and not easy looking for other species in amongs them !

27 species in total with the best of the rest including one each of ... Six-striped Rustic, Phoenix, Small Phoenix, Yellow Shell, Willow Beauty, Common Carpet, Lesser Yellow Underwing and Small Fan-footed Wave.

Also Mouse Moth x 3, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing x 3, Acrobasis advenella x 4.

Stainland.

 Not much today.

1 x Eudonia lacustrata

5  x Marbled Beauties

Cold Edge

Speckled Wood 2

Plenty Butterflies.......

Hard to keep up with them last few days

Cold Edge (Moorlands Farm - SE043304 ) overgrown garden was buzzing yesterday (7th). Despite the rather breezy day the shelter in the garden certainly improved the numbers - especially the blackberry bushes with....Large Skipper x 1, Small Skipper x 7, Ringlet x 2, Gatekeeper x 2, Small Heath x 1, Small Copper x 1, 3 sp. of 'Whites, along with M Browns, Small Torts and a Red Ad.

At home we had 10 species on Sunday 6th including 2 Holly Blue flying together. Later in the afternoon 2 Wall Browns were on the hillside walls on Hag Lane near Bradford Old Road. 

A Small Copper today was a first at home for the year and we found another Small Copper in St George's Church graveyard this morning. 

This really dark Small Skipper had me fooled for a while at The Withens this afternoon thinking maybe 'Essex' - it did have orange underside to the antenna which took some seeing in a windy spot.

Small Skipper on ragwort

Cold Edge

 Small Skipper 1

Peacock 2

Also: Green-veined White 1, Meadow Brown 1, Small Tortoiseshell 3, Red Admiral 1

Stainland.

 A little warmer and  a few moths came out.

1 x Eudonia lacustrata

1 x Marbled Beauty

1 x Small Magpie (Find of the season, so far).

Small Magpie 

Lee Mount - 7th August

Pug giving me a bit of struggle....20mm wingspan

Maybe Slender, Currant (or Wormwood but no black band on abdomen) maybe not any of these??

Golden-rod Pug  (CF)

Cold Edge

 Gatekeeper 1 male

Also, Green-veined White 2

Sunshine after the rain !

 Lots of butterflies about today

Carrs Beck and Stodfold this morning. A lot of Meadow Browns but most looking very worn now. One each Small Skipper and a Ringlet. A few Large and Small Whites though Green-veined Whites were the commoner of the three.

Lee Mount. Holly Blue x 2 flying together, Gatekeeper x 1, Red Admiral x 3, Small Tortoiseshell x 3, Meadow Brown x 1, Comma x 2, Speckled Wood x 1 along with a few Large and Small Whites

Gatekeeper - reluctant to show upper-wing

Baitings

?? Water Veneer

Also: Green-veined White 1, Small Tortoiseshell 1