Blood-vein

A nice, pristine one at Cromwell Bottom yesterday morning - they seem to be on the increase in Calderdale?

Lee Mount

Recent ones not sure about ?

 This one looks like Eudonia/Scoparia though a bit baffled why it should look so faded at this time of year - or is it something else ?

 Pug ?

Cabbage Moth from 9th June

Swales Moor

Along Ringby Lane in the hot sunshine this afternoon for an hour.
No sign of any Wall butterflies today unfortunately.
1 Meadow Brown
1 Small Tortoiseshell
10+ Small Heaths in the top field
14 + Large Skippers mostly on clover flowers
2 Timothy Tortrix
1 Silver- ground Carpet
1 Cinnabar

Fri 8th - Copley garden

A nice trapping session that, in the morning, culminated in two little boys running around in their PJs happy release the moths (if a bit rought with one or two of them).

656 Tachystola acroxantha
998 Light Brown apple moth
1728 Garden carpet
1764 Common marble carpet
1906 Brimstone moth (why dso they never stay in the trap until morning?)
1931 Peppered moth x4
1961 Light emerald
1991 Elephant hawkmoth
2089 Heart & dart x 4
2098 Flame
2102 Flame shoulder
2120 Ingrailed clay
2122 Purple clay
2160 Bright-line brown-eye
2450 Spectacle
2492 Small Fan-foot

VC 63 Garden Moths 08th June 2018

Weather Warm preceding days sunny . Still . No Breeze. Dry

MV125 W Robinson

Moth For ID means unknown for identification
Moth TBC  means The embedded image contains a plausible ID TBC

Last nights incoming

69.001 BF1979  Lime Hawk-moth Mimas tiliae  x1

69.017 BF1992  Small Elephant Hawk-moth Deilephila porcellus

70.226 BF1906  Brimstone Moth Opisthograptis luteolata. x5+ 

63.018  BF1378 Elder Pearl Anania coronata

63.025 BF1376  Small Magpie Anania hortulata

73.317 BF2089  Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis x4
73.333 BF2120  Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica

71.012 BF2000  Iron Prominent Notodonta dromedarius

73.113 BF2306  Angle Shades Phlogophora meticulosa

73.015 BF2441  Silver Y Autographa gamma
73.156 BF2326  Clouded-bordered Brindle Apamea crenata

62.001 BF1428  Bee Moth Aphomia sociella

73.329 BF2102  Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta
70.054 BF1727  Silver-ground Carpet Xanthorhoe montana
TBC  Query (end)

Images To Follow

69.001 BF1979  Lime Hawk-moth Mimas tiliae







73.113 BF2306  Angle Shades Phlogophora meticulosa







63.018  BF1378 Elder Pearl Anania coronata







71.012 BF2000  Iron Prominent Notodonta dromedarius






73.333 BF2120 Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica.







62.001 BF1428  Bee Moth Aphomia sociella



73.329 BF2102  Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta



73.015 BF2441  Silver Y Autographa gamma






TBC Confirmation on This One

Stainland.

Hello
I'm out of hospital a day later than expected. I suffered a serious drug reaction with Oxycodone, an opiate used for treating severe pain after major surgery. I was ill for two days with it; convulsions, sickness, confusion, delirium. My whole body was buzzing, and I was wired as if I was on amphetamines, I didn't sleep for two days. I needed to wear an oxygen mask for 12 hours to help me breath. I'm still not free from the side effects. You can have no idea how ill it made me. It would be nice, just once, if someone could come up with a pain drug which didn't not turn me into a basket case. I had the same reaction a few years ago with Tramadol, another opiate drug. How people take these things for kicks is beyond me.

When they call it major surgery, they are not  kidding, I have a 7 inch scar and wonderful bruising the whole length of my leg, it's such FUN! They use a hammer and chisel to just open the shin bone for starters. I hope no one was eating as they read that, sorry.
Spire hospital is wonderful, so are the staff, the food... inedible. I sent the last three days meals back. It's the new, streamlined Gordon. I'm glad to be home, I've just had three and a half hours sleep, and woke looking forward to some pain killers. Pain killer sandwiches are us! I'm off to bed again now, two hours up was enough. I'm worn out. From here, the only way is up!

Thanks for all the good wishes.

Oh, The Knot Grass is still here, along with a pale brown, delta shaped one. It's too high up for ID. WS is about 1 inch, possibly a little more.

Ghost Moths

Had a quick look at the Ghost moths last night and a quick estimate was 50 + males and 3 Females, + 50 Small Magpies and 3 SG Carpets .

Lee Mount - recent micros

Wondering about these..........

 Not doing well with this one ?? not a good photo but quite strong markings

 

 Cherry Bark Tortrix

 

maybe Epinotia bilulana

Northowram

Walk in the sun this afternoon -----
Speckled wood x 4
Orange Tip x 2 (males)
Large White x 2
Small White x 1
Meadow Brown x 1
Small Tortoiseshell x 2

Stainland, Nice Noctuid for ID, Underside of White Ermine

Here is a rushed last post before I set off to hospital, (very soon now). There is a  nice looking Noctuid by there door at the moment. It has some lovely blue and green colours in it's wings. This is a new moth to me, which is always nice. I did spend a while trying to find out what it is, but ran out of time. Could someone ID it please? Thanks.

Also, sadly, the White Ermine that was by the rose bush, was dead on the floor today. I don't know what happened, poor thing. It seemed a bit callous to me, but I thought I should take a photo of it's underside.

Noctuid for ID

Noctuid Detail

White Ermine Underside

Beechwood Park Meadows

A walk through the meadows at Beechwood Park yesterday morning, up to 10 chimney sweepers on the wing and in the grass. Would guess there will be more there when the sun came out later in the afternoon.

Wheatley Valley

Just had an hour on the landfill site adjacent to Shroggs Road this afternoon. The damp grassland area was pretty full of buttercups and flowering grasses.
2 Silver Y’s but no photos of these, they were off !

 Large Skipper - found around 6 of these

 Several of these Orchids

 Plenty of buttercups

Timothy Tortrix

Lee Mount - 5th June

Not a lot in the trap this morning after a cool breezy night
Flame Shoulder x 1
Knot Grass x 1 (well I think I've got the i d correct) !
Angle Shades x 1
Cinnabar x 1
Scalloped Hazel x 1

 Angle Shades

 

Knot Grass

Broadhead Clough - 4th June

With Alan T, we went looking for Woodcock - and we were not disappointed with 3 birds roding together (maybe an adult with young birds (??) plus possibly one other individual. They didn't show till around 9:30 pm then we walked back down - nearly dark.

We were surprised to come across a small colony of Ghost Moths with the males 'dancing' around as if on a piece of string. Maybe 15++ ? perhaps a good few more, though the bats were showing a keen interest with several sorties in among them. It was just after 10 pm by now and really difficult to get any photo's in the dark, even with the flash. But no matter we enjoyed the spectacle all the same.

If anyone goes up then it's on the walk up from Dauber Bridge towards Broadhead Clough in Cragg Vale. With the woodland on the left, continue up the track to where the woodland bears to the left and it's the field on the left just about where the first cattle grid is. The fields up from there also look good with plenty of wild flowers and grasses so there could be a lot more natural surprises there.

Lee Mount - 4th June

Synergetic light from overnight
Garden Carpet x 2
Many-plumed Moth x 1 (some books refer to it as Twenty-plume)
Bee Moth x 2
Light-brown Apple Moth x 1
Common Pug x 1
Brown House-moth x 2
Tachystola acroxantha x 1 (up to 14 of these on 3rd June)
White-shouldered House-moth x 2
Flame Shoulder x 1
Buff-tip x 1 (amazing looking moths)

 Buff-tip

 

 Flame Shoulder

 

Swales Moor - Ringby Lane

A couple more from 3rd June

 Nettle-taps - Anthophila fabriciana on nettles

 

Timothy Tortrix - Aphelia paleana

 

Stainland, White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda.

Anne found a White Ermine sheltering behind a rose bush this morning. The markings are quite variable on these moths. I'd love to find a striated form. The markings on this one are different to the other two I found. It's quite a nice photo, considering the difficulty in getting close enough to take it, so here it is.

White Ermine - Spilosoma lubricipeda

Stainland, Unknown Moth for ID

Hi

I'd assumed I would not get another moth before I went into dry dock on Wed. I was wrong. The moth is a little over 1cm from tip to tail. The only one I found that was a little like it is the Broom Moth. Could someone ID it for me please thanks.

By the Way, I've replied to all your very nice comments in my last post. Thank you all

Broom Moth TBC

Copley meadow on a sunny afternoon

Andy and myself went searching for more Marsh Pugs in amongst the Common Mouse-ear which grows commonly here. No luck with those but surprisingly we did find this pug on the wing - maybe too worn for an ID?

The Common Blues looked in fantastic condition as they posed in the warm sunshine.

Well done Andy for spotting this Small Yellow Underwing - it looked a lot more striking in flight. A first for me.

Latticed Heaths are always a pleasure to find. Never seen them here before.

Micropterix aruncellas were around, as tiny and inconspicuous as ever - I'm sure they're getting smaller :-)

An Epiblema cirsiana type looked unusual as it had it's wings spread apparently sunbathing but eventually posed in normal fashion.

Butterfly update 2018

.

(Copley 04.06.18)

A great start to the year has seen us record 18 species so far. So we now need to keep a look out for the following over the next couple of months ,,,,Small Skipper , Gatekeeper , Ringlet , Purple and White letter Hairstreaks , Dark green Fritillary and if its a good year a Clouded yellow and Dingy Skipper. A great team effort  (if we get to 25 species this must be a record)

Copley garden 3.6.18

Tried the trap for the first time this year and got some nice results including....
656 Tachystola acroxantha
1362 Pyrusta purpuralis
1376 Small magpie
1738 Common carpet
1759 Small phoenix
1762 Dark marbled carpet
1764 Common marbled carpet
1648 Pebble hook tip
1906 Brimstone moth
1931 Peppered moth x3

2061 Buff Ermine
2069 Cinnaber
2089 Heart & Dart x11
2098 Flame x 2
2441 Silver Y

And a few more I am still pondering over.