Prominents help.....

Rishworth Moor

Had a walk up to Dog Hill on Rishworth moor today , not much about but did see a very smart male Emperor flying around ,the odd Common Heath and a couple of Green veined Whites. Lots of small ponds , moss and  and standing water along the outflow of Green Withens which looks very good for Dragonflies ...  This cat was at 435m but looks like LYU ....On my return home the greenhouse held 1 Green veined White , 1Orange tip and 1 Large White......

Stainland.

I walked down to Fall Spring Woods today, I saw:

3 x Small Tortoiseshells.
2 x Speckled Woods. (The first I've seen this year. They were sunbathing side by side.)
1 x Orange Tip, (In our garden).
1 x Large White of some descrition. (It would be nice if they sat still for photos, now and then.)

Also, I heard grouse calling, possibly two of them. A little further in to the wood, I came across two wrens on the floor. I was about six feet from them when we became aware of each other. I don't know who was more surprised. Them I suppose, they got over the wall faster than I could. There were several chaffinches, magpies, hedge sparrows and jackdaws down there too.

Luddenden past few days

very quite here the last few days with two nights with single Brindled Pugs,
last night was a little better with

Shuttle-shaped Dart
Brindled Pug
and this Pale Pinion, only my second record here the first being in 2018

May Butterflies

April was the best April on record for butterfly's with 13 species recorded.  Peacock , Orange Tip and Green Hairstreak had a very good month with large numbers recorded throughout the area and Brimstone records get more widespread each year. Large and Green veined Whites came out early in the great weather ..Red Admiral and Painted lady were both recorded on the 27th so we may be in for an influx in May.
   Other species to look out for are Wall Brown , Small Copper  and Small Heath all should make an appearance by mid month and Common Blue by late May if the fine weather holds ..Green Hairstreak may carry on all month or fizzle out soon ,  will interesting to see what happens ?? . Average number of species recorded in May is 15....many thanks for all information sent in ......

Beetles

Here are a couple of beetles from out local moors that can be seen at the moment..top one is Goldsmiths Beetle C.nitens and bottom one is Green Tiger Beetle ,,Photos from Chris Jepson Brown , BL has recorded them recently in WHiteholme area....thanks

Lee Mount

Pretty dead this week after overnight rain and cool temperatures. 

No moths at all last two nights but a Black Sexton Beetle was a first for me here on 26th April  (Nicrophorus humator ). A pretty big beetle to 30mm could make you jump if it flew by you. That's about the best I can do. !

Rishworth List of Species for 2020 as of (30/04/2020)

In this post there will be two seperate lists, one for moths, one for butterflies they are from since January. Any comments v welcome....

Butterflies
Peacock
Small Tortoiseshell
Small White
Large White
Green-Veined White
Orange Tip
Holly Blue
Speckled Wood


Moths
Chestnut
Pale Brindled Beauty
Tortricodes Alternella
March Moth
Mottled Grey
Satellite
Hebrew Character
Small Quaker
Common Quaker
Yellow Horned
Brindled Pug
Oak Beauty
Clouded Drab
Twin-Spotted Quaker
Water Carpet
Early Grey
Early Tooth Striped
Double Striped Pug
Agonopterix Heracliana
Engrailed
Early Thorn
Angle Shades
Iron Prominent
Purple Thorn
Red Sword Grass
Red Green Carpet
Grey Birch
Horse Chestnut Leaf Miner
Powdered Quaker
Dyseriocrania Subpurpurella
Lesser Swallow Prominent
Shuttle Shaped Dart
Red Chestnut

Stainland.

On my walk today I saw;

6 x Small tortoiseshells.
5 x Orange Tips. (lovely things).
1 X Large White.

Green Hairstreaks

These great  photos were sent in by Paul Bateson (via Nigel) many thanks to both of you...they were taken along Castle Carr road , there have been many reports from this area , Midgley Moor , Walshaw  and Shakleton Knol areas. But today there a was a report of 6 +  form Norland moor which is really great news  , this was the first place I ever saw them locally and its great to know they are still there ,,Many thank Laurence..Also reported today 27th Red Admiral and Painted Lady recorded today ,,thanks Andrew Sladdin and HBB...thanks

Rishworth - Mid-Spring in a Moth Trap!

Had a pretty good night last night, 4 species new for garden was pretty good..... Any comments very welcome ....


Moth Trapping Night 26th April 2020
Did the trap at about 5 this morning the Great Tits keep watching if I do it after dawn!


List of Species
Dyseriocrania Subpurpurella x1 [NFG]
Red Chestnut x1 [NFG]
Lesser Swallow Prominent x1 [NFG]
Shuttle Shaped Dart x4 [NFG]
Early Thorn x2
Engrailed x1
Hebrew Character x2
Clouded Drab x3
Common Quaker x9
Powdered Quaker x2
Brindled Pug x3
Small Quaker x1
Twin Spotted Quaker x1

Not very red Red Chestnut

Luddenden 260420

Surprisingly quite last night

Brindled Pug 4
Oak-tree Pug  1
Clouded Drab 1
Hebrew Character 1
Common Quaker 1
Engrailed 1
Red-green Carpet 1

Red-green Carpet

Engrailed 

Lee Mount - 27th April

The Lesser Swallow Prominent has been around on the fence since 24th. This morning she was in the trap egg laying. I also found 2 other lots of eggs on the fence where she had been previously. 22 eggs in total but so far only saved the ones she laid on the egg box. The others are stuck so rather than damage them I have left them there

Also this morning
Garden Carpet x 1
Shuttle-shaped Dart x 1
Dyseriocrania subpurpurella x 1
Agonopterix heracliana x 1
Brindled Pug x 1
Last nights Lime Hawkmoth has gone.

 Garden Carpet

Shuttle-shaped Dart

Lee Mount - 26th April

This morning
Early Grey x 2
Small Quaker x 1
Brindled Pug x 2
Dyseriocrania subpurpurella x 1

....and then tonight this one turned up

Lime Hawkmoth

Stainland.

Out in the fields today:

8 x Orange Tips.
6 x Small Tortoishells.
5 x Small Whites.
1 x Large White.

Non of the white butterflies would stay still long enough for an ID. It seems to be normal behaviour  for the little dears!

Stainland.

A nice surprise for me this morning:

1 x Double-Striped Pug.
1 x Twenty Plume.

Double-Striped Pug.

 

 

Twenty Plume.

Rishworth - 2 Catch Reports! 3 New for Garden's!

This post may have a fare bit of mothing in it as I have had a few nice finds over the past two days in the moth trap.


While going through the trap this morning (26/04/2020) and trying to check over a Powdered Quaker I spotted a micro near the house wall and headed over, it seemed to be, hovering almost, around the same area so after much cupping of hands and swinging my arms around to catch it I managed to get it into a pot. I got a few (not very good) pictures of it as it wouldn't sit still, I think it is a Horse Chestnut Leaf Miner, anyone else's ideas are welcome in comments.

Click on the picture to enlarge.

I have 2 catch reports from the moth trap to put in this post so those are on here aswell any comments on the moth trapping also welcome.

Moth Trapping Session 24th April 2020

List of Species

Common Quaker x10

Red Green Carpet x1

Brindled Pug x4

Clouded Drab x2

Hebrew Character x8

-------------------------------------

Moth Trapping Session 25th April 2020

List of Species

Grey Birch x1

Powdered Quaker x1

Common Quaker x9

Hebrew Character x6

Brindled Pug x3

Grey Birch above  -- Powdered Quaker below

Lee Mount - 25th April

One for a check please !

Thinking maybe Common Pug...

?

Luddenden this week

Overall its been a little quite this week with the clear skies,
it has however been the best April ever for Early Thorn with 9 so far.
Highlights this week were

Lesser Swallow Prominent
Oak Tree Pug (5th record)
Red Chestnut (7th record)
Powdered Quaker (10th record)

Oak-tree Pug

Red Chestnut

Powdered Quaker

Stainland.

Robber Dodge tthis afternoon:

3 x Orange Tips. -  It seems to be the year for them. Last year was Small Tortoiseshells.
2 x Small Tortoiseshells.
1 x Unspecified White. (Too far away for ID).

Lee Mount - 24th April

A nice surprise this evening with a Lesser Swallow Prominent
Tried to upload photos but it's not playing ball - ah it is now...
Also earlier today
Common Quaker x 2
Clouded Drab x 1
Hebrew Character x 1

 Lesser Swallow Prominent

Stainland.

We were sat in the garden this afternoon, with a glass of wine. An Orange Tip flew past. We think it's the first we;ve ever seen in the garden. We were there for another hour and didn't see anymore butterflies.

Midgley Moor

I counted at least 45 Green Hairstreaks , 50 + Common Heath and Just managed this Emperor before if took flight over the moor.....also around Small Tortoisehell , Speckled Wood , Orange Tip and Small White...Also found this Ruby Tiger this afternoon at home....

Rishworth - 2 Garden Ticks! Update: 3 Garden Ticks!

A quiet(ish) night last night here in Rishworth but a Red Sword Grass and Purple Thorn as new ticks for the garden brightened the scene up!


It has been interesting the past two times I've trapped as the moths seem to be arriving mostly, if not all after 11 or 12 o'clock. COmnents welcome.


I am really pleased with the Red Sword Grass in my first full year trapping. See the list below the pictures. Comments v. welcome. Update: I just found an Iron Prominent (Nice and Early) on the flags next to  where the trap is run.

List of Species
Red Sword Grass x1
Purple Thorn x1
Common Quaker x6
Hebrew Character x3
Twin Spotted Quaker x1
Early Grey x1
Iron Prominent x1

Wood Fall, Shelf

Had the fortune to visit Wood Fall in Shelf yesterday as part of work to look at future management. Bluebells just coming out and sunlight dappling through the new green leaves - and I was getting paid for this!

Quite a few butterflies in the wood but only manage 5 species
Large White
Small White
Orange Tip
Speckled Wood
Peacock

Also had a few bumblebees around as well
Garden Bumblebee
Red Tailed Bumblebee
White Tailed Bumblebee
Gypsy Cuckoo Bee

Todays sightings

Well there have been a lot of Green Hairstreaks recorded today and the next few days look excellent for more , more than 200 + individuals reported today from Midgley moor , Walshaw , Hebden , Todmorden and Castle Carr..last  year we only had  a handful of records ..Brimstone , Small Torts , Comma , Peacocks and Orange Tips...

Calderdale Odonata

Calopteryx splendens	BANDED DEMOISELLE
Lestidae	Emerald Damselflies
Lestes sponsa	EMERALD DAMSELFLY
Coenagrionidae
Pyrrhosoma nymphula	LARGE RED DAMSELFLY
Ischnura elegans	BLUE TAILED DAMSELFLY
Coenagrion puella	AZURE DAMSELFLY
Enallagma cyathigerum	COMMON BLUE DAMSELFLY
ANISOPTERA	Dragonflies
Aeshnidae	Hawkers
Aeshna juncea	COMMON HAWKER
Aeshna mixta	MIGRANT HAWKER
Aeshan cyanea	SOUTHERN HAWKER
Aeshna grandis	BROWN HAWKER
Anax imperator	EMPEROR DRAGONFLY
Codulegastridae
Cordulegaster boltonii	GOLDEN RINGED DRAGONFLY
Libellulidae	Darters, Chasers, Skimmers
Orthetrum cancellatum	BLACK TAILED SKIMMER
Libellula quadrimaculata	FOUR SPOTTED CHASER
Libellula depressa	BROAD BODIED CHASER
Sympetrum striolatum	COMMON DARTER
Sympetrum sanguineum	RUDDY DARTER
Sympetrum danae	BLACK DARTER

Stuff

My two Triple Spot Dwarfs emerged a few days ago from Cromwell Reed Canary Grass. They only spent around two weeks as pupae. 

Yesterday at Copley meadow a Grapholita jungiella was the only lepidoptera seen. They seem to get smaller each year. 

My garden moth survey is in to double figures with a White-shouldered House flying at dusk - No. 11. 

No moths last night, just my night time companion.........be interesting to know if it's male or female but I don't fancy trying to dissect it :-)

Dave Sutcliffe is recording Hedgehog sightings for the Halifax Scientific Society so if anyone sees one (dead or alive) please let him know. 

Lee Mount - 23rd April

In and around the trap this morning
Shuttle-shaped Dart x 1
Early Grey x 1
Brindled Pug x 2 - looking worn now
Common Quaker x 4
Dyseriocrania subpurpurella x 3

 Dyseriocrania subpurpurella

Shuttle-shaped Dart

Rishworth - Last Nights Moths

This morning came to see in the trap.....

10 Common Quakers
2 Hebrew Character
2 Brindled Pug.

Cromwell Bottom

Cromwell Bottom was full of Orange Tips 25 + . Peacocks 20+ , Comma 4 and a few Small Tortoiseshell..

Egg identification anyone?

Found this batch (which looks about ready to hatch) on the Norland Moor heather this morning. Not sure of the species though.

Lee Mount - this morning 22nd April

I did leave the trap on last night despite the pretty cold easterly breeze so wasn't expecting much !
Early Grey x 1
Common Quaker x 1

It's been a bit warmer during the day but still that wind at home
1 Orange-tip
1 Green-veined White
1 Small Tortoiseshell

Shroggs Park woodland this morning
Speckled Wood x 1
Peacock x 1
Orange-tip x 1

Rishworth Butterflies

My first small white of the year along with the usual GV White Small T, Peacock, Orange T

Long tailed Blue in Sussex

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k98mV0w-ww

A great story.......find the foodplant find the species....................

Moth trap

The moth trap has been very poor of late , last night I had one Hebrew Character and 1 Light brown apple moth......the weather looks a bit better later in the week and over the weekend...I did see my first Common Heath yesterday ......

Butterflies of Mytholmroyd

A field in Mytholmroyd is proving very fruitful for butterflies this year. Had my first holly blue and large white yesterday, 2 green hairstreaks, and several each of speckled wood, orange-tip, peacock, small white and small tort

Lee Mount queries !

Struggling with this one from this morning. Thought maybe Clouded Drab but I keep going back to it  with a question mark as the ones I get here are normally really dark grey individuals - any thoughts ?

This small micro too? 5 - 6 mm