31st July 2020

As it was one of the warmest nights of the year, the trap was predictable busy. A return of 131 species was one my highest ever although with the exception of Water Veneer (100+) and Horse Chestnut Leaf Miner (60+) numbers of the commoner species were fairly low. The quality was extremely high though with an amazing five new for the garden:

[602] Phyllocnistis unipunctella

[603] Scythris limbella

[604] Merrifieldia baliodactlylus

[605] Clavigesta purdeyi

[606] Lesser Spotted Pinion

The main event was the striking micro Scythris limbella which has the rather great vernacular name Goosefoot Owlet. This is a proposed Red Data Book species and doesn't appear to be regular anywhere. It is also the first modern day record for VC29. 

Scythris limbella

Just a few days after recording my first Phyllocnistis species, I caught another. This one has a distinct dark wing markings indicative of P. unipunctella:

Phyllocnistis unipunctella

A small distinctive looking small plume turned out to be Dingy White Plume Merrifieldia baliodactlylus. A nationally scarce species than in the vice county is pretty much restricted to a handful of records at Wicken and Chippenham Fens:

Dingy White Plume Merrifieldia baliodactlylus

A species that I had seen before was Clavigesta purdeyi, a pine feeding tortrix that turned up at Corbett Street in 2014:

Clavigesta purdeyi 

Finally, a Lesser Spotted Pinion was great to trap after grilling several Lunar Spotted over the years:

Lesser Spotted Pinion Cosmia affinis

There many other moths new for the year including my second record of Eudemis profudana:

Eudemis profundana

While there were two of the superb Stathmopoda pedella:

Stathmopoda pedella

And the smartest Eucosma campoliliana I have caught:

Eucosma campoliliana

Caloptilia semifascia