Brighouse canal

Speckled Wood 2

Stainland.

 This is a list of the moths by our door, from 26th July to 4th August 2024.

I've been going through what the Chinese call, "interesting times". The phrase is, "May you live in interesting times." It's said as a wish for someone to have a lot of trouble. I'm certainly having that!

A significant section of my studio ceiling collapsed some weeks ago, the amount of dust and lime wash powder was incredible. Fortunately, most of my equipment was covered in plastic sheets. That's the trouble with Victorian houses, you spend a small fortune over many years, making sure the place is in as good a condition as you can. Then something goes badly wrong without warning. I've been trying to do as much as I can to repair it myself. Unfortunately. The dust has got the better of my, in spite of dust masks. Then my health gave up the fight. I've been quite ill for weeks, I'm recovering now if slowly.  

Anne has been a big help with my moth recording. She and I counted what we had and shared the IDing. There are gaps, where she was too busy and I too ill, to record on those days. Still, l here are our efforts. There are a few moths which need confirmation, or an ID, but not many. Some of these photos are not as good as I 'd have liked. At the moment, I don't trust myself to climb ladders.

Now to the stars of the show...

Thanks to Andy for the corrections. Now if anyone can ID the last moth....

24 to 1^st August 2024 Moths By Door

If some kind person, or people, could ID the moths marked below, I'd be grateful, Thanks.

    24 JULY

14 x Marbled Beauties
1 x Eudonia lacustrata
1x Bee Moth - Female
1 x Small Phoenix
1 x Antler Moth (Unable to get a photo.)
1 x Sycamore
1 x Willow Beauty

Sycamore 

Willow Beauty

    26 July

18 x Marbled Beauties
1 x Common Footman
1 x Bee Moth
1 x Blastobasis lacticolella
1 x Eudonia lacustrata
1 x Riband Wave, none banded
1 x Small Magpie
1 x Single Dotted Wave

Bee Moth

    29 JULY

19 x Marbled Beauties
2 x Common Footman
1 x Riband Wave, none banded
1 x Small Magpie
1 x Garden Pebble

Garden Pebble

    30 JULY 2024

1 x 22 Marbled Beauties (22 of them, it's my personal record. The most I've ever had before, was 13.)
2 x Riband Waves, none banded

1 x Swallowtail
1 x Scalloped Oak (I think this is a lovely moth, with a very graphic design.)

Scalloped Oak

    31 July 2024

20 x Marbled Beauty
1 x Eudonia lacustrata

1 x Scalloped Oak (It had a much lighter band than the above one).

    2 August 2024

19 x Marbled Beauties        
1 x Shuttle-shaped Dart - Female (I despaired of ever seeing one of these. I'm very pleased.)

Shuttle-shaped Dart - Female

        3 Aug. 

9 x Marbled Beauties
1 x Blastobasis lacticolella
1x Rustic or Chestnut TBC (best try)

1x Rustic or Chestnut TBC

4 August.

10 x Marbled Beauties (These have been falling off steadily over a few days.)

OK, I’m up to date with my records, (at last!) Have a nice summer, it's going to be warm again by Tuesday next week.

Shibden Valley

Gatekeeper. Only one 'pupil' in the forewing eye-spot is visible. But the butterfly was clearly smaller than Meadow Brown, and the underside of its hindwing is typical Gatekeeper: in particular Thomas and Lewington (2010) point out that on Gatekeeper its tiny spots are white, whereas on M brown they are black.

Whiteholme

Small white 1

Small tortoiseshell 1

Also: Green-veined white 2, Small heath 1, Ringlet 3.

Dragonflies: Black darter 3, Emperor male 1

Lighthazzles

Black Darter female

Butterflies: Small tortoiseshell 1, Large skipper 1, Ringlet 1

Quite a day.....29th July

Moth trap - not much but this one was a bit special.

Sycamore (at 22mm)

Then, a Purple Hairstreak fluttering around in the oaks at the back of the house. Even managed to get a sight of it in the binoculars as it landed on a leaf. No photo though !

An interesting hour or so on the grassy area of Shroggs landfill. with Small Skippers in abundance (44) but just 1 rather worn Large Skipper, 26 Ringlets, 14 Meadow Brown, 1 Speckled Wood, 2 Large White and 4 Green-veined/Small Whites with just one firm i d of a G-V White.

Just about to leave "whats that" ?? Quick snaps taken thinking it was a Purple Hairstreak but not to be. White-letter Hairstreak as below.

It is the same individual - just the light and my rapid camera re-sets !

Later in the day Swales Moor - looking for Wall Browns - no success there.

Lots of Burnet Mots charging around, took some time before I could find any that landed. Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet Moths - unable to find any Six-spots.

Including this pair 'in cop' with one of them with pale yellow spots

Lighthazzles

2 Common Hawker dragonflies

Pine Hawkmoth

What a beauty , caught in a trap last night in Todmorden by Cath and Jennie..what a great record
 

Ryburn

Meadow Brown 1, Large White 1, Ringlet 1

Ringstone Edge

Large Skipper 1, Ringlet 13

Stainland.

 We've been away for over a week.  We only have:

1 X Marbled Beauty to show for it.

What we missed is anyone's guess.

Lee Mount - 13th July

Not much this morning after a cool night.

Uncertain x 4, Common Rustic agg x 3, Heart and Dart x 1, Marbled Beauty x 1, Clouded Border x 1.

Clouded Border in among the 'Busy Lizzies'

Recent days.....

 Not a lot to report on the butterfly front in recent days - picking the best of some poor days weather-wise.

Mostly Ringlets with a few Meadow Browns other than last Saturday in Withens Clough with one Small Skipper and several Large Skippers, 1 G-v White and 2 Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet Moths buzzing around near the reservoir. Red Admiral at home.

Small Skipper

Large Skipper

Just a few Ringlets at Ogden yesterday

Cold Edge this afternoon, manged to find a single Ringlet, a micro Diamond-back Moth and below this Narrow-winged Pug.

Also trying to catch up after a couple of good moth nights at home !

Lee Mount

 Any thoughts on these two Micros - been puzzling them since both turned up on 26th June?

Maybe Elachista rufocineria ? 

"Suggested Mompha ochraceella"

Not getting anywhere with this one !!

" probable Coleophora sp most of which require dissection"

A nice Green Arches from this morning 7th July

Beacon Hill

 Yellow Shell 1

Ringstone Edge

 Ringlet 1

Stainland.

 This post is a catch up of several days. One of  Anne's family  has had a health issue, which upset things for some time. Fortunately, everything seems to have settled down.'

So the moths I've seen from the 27th of June.

27th June;-

1 x Common OR Brindled pug. TBC It was is a difficult place to get a photo. Sorry it's so poor a shot.

1 x ID Needed (What was left of it's scales, was a bright red /ginger colour).

2 x Marbled Beauties.  Grey type. (1st of the season for me).

Common Pug TBC

ID Needed

From 29th to 30th June:-

3 x Brimstone moths

1 x Marbled Beauty (Brown type)

1 x Small Phoenix (I forgot this one, I added it to this list a few hours later(.almost 9pm.)

1 x Tachystola acroxzantha. (I spent a long time IDing this., I was put off by the small distribution maps on my moth books. I read that it was to be seen in Lancashire. We are close enough the the border, so it could be in West Yorks. I read somewhere that it was a brightly coloured moth. If a yellow band at the edge of it wings made it colourful, the writer must not have seen many brightly coloured moths. *Shrug*  In the end, it was the only moth I found which looked like this one. A first for me.

Tachystola acroxzantha.

 

Lee Mount - 29th June

A nice surprise this morning was a Varied Coronet. Been looking for them recently having just a few Sweet Williams in the garden - a flower they seem to favour. It's a moth that seems to be slowly on the increase locally. My first was in 2016 as well as the three following years. Missed out in 2020 then 3 dates in 2021, none in 2022 then 9 dates in 2023.

Sweet Williams, just a few, with next years crop in the foreground !

Varied Coronet - this mornings was off before I could get a better shot.

Not a lot else this morning other than Dark Arches x 2, Barred Fruit-tree Tortrix  x 1, Heart and Dart x 5 and this fading Green Pug.

Ogden - 26th June

One of those rare nice hot summers days !

Ringlet

Speckled Wood

Nicely marked Yellow Shell

Beacon Hill

 Ringlet 1