A 'lifer' moth and a Small Elephant!

Tuesday 6th June 2023.

My first ever Portland Ribbon Wave by my moth box this morning. Not only a Red Date Book species but also a rare immigrant moth from the Continent.

I put the moth box on overnight and I was rewarded not with quantity, but quality (which is rare in my garden!!). My first ever Portland Ribbon Wave moth was found just below the moth box of which I quickly potted to eventually take some better photos of this rare moth. Also, within the moth box, towards the bottom of the box to be exact, sat a beautiful Small Elephant Hawk-moth, my first here for many a year. I do get the much larger Elephant Hawk-moths most years, but the Small variety I could probably count on one hand that has been in my garden.

Above and below, the Small Elephant Hawk-moth with a White Ermine moth.

Along with these two superb moths, there were two micro moths that were new for the year; an Apple Leaf Miner and an Epinotia bilunana moth. In total, there were at least 17 moths of 13 species this morning.

I had two new micro moth species for the year this morning that included an Apple Leaf Miner (above) and Epinotia bilunana (below).

Moths present this morning included the following:

• 3 Willow Beauty
• 1 Green Pug
• 1 Portland Ribbon Wave (LIFER)
• 1 Common Marbled Carpet
• 2 Bright-line Brown-eye
• 1 Vine’s Rustic
• 1 Heart & Dart
• 1 Small Elephant Hawk-moth (NFY)
• 1 White Ermine
• 1 Epinotia bilunana (NFY)
• 1 Apple Leaf Miner (NFY)
• 2 Mompha subbistrigella
• 1 Light Brown Apple Moth

Overhead, at least 6 Swifts were hawking low over the rooftops and when I left to do my first shift, one flew into the nestbox opposite my house. I am hoping to get a few photos soon of these entering their respective boxes to feed their young. The weather looks good for the rest of the week although there is supposed to be thunderstorms coming in towards Friday and the winds to change to southerly and warming the UK considerably. We shall see. 

I placed the Small Elephant Hawk-moth on my hand and as it whirred its wings for about 2 minutes or so, it eventually took off like a rocket and as Bob Mortimer would say 'and awayyyyy'!