Thunderstorm brings in the moths.

Tuesday 20th June 2023.

My second Small Elephant Hawk-moth of the year which was flanked by a couple of Garden Grass Veneer moths.

I was woken up early this morning to the sound of torrential rain outside and when I finally got out of bed at 5am to go and check on my moth box, I could hear thunder, which could be heard outside as the rain belted down outside. Thankfully, I could see a few moths near the moth box, which got my hopes up. Fortunately, the rain had stopped around 6am as the storm headed off north and so I got to work in checking in and around the moth box.

Two new moths for the year. Above, one of two Lackeys this wet morning and below, one of two Light Arches.

As expected, the vast majority of the moths were within the moth box, but I still achieved my highest total of the year so far with 132 moths of 41 species present this morning (still got another micro moth to ID) that included four more moths that were new for the year: Light Arches and Lackey plus two micro moths, Rosy Tabby (Endotricha flammealis) and Pine Marble (Piniphila bifasciana). My second Small Elephant Hawk-moth was present upon one of the egg trays inside the moth box and also my second Variegated Fruit-tree Tortrix of the year was also present.

Left, my first Rosy Tabby of the year with a Common Emerald to the right.

Thankfully, the rain kept off and it took me over 30 minutes to go through the many moths present. 

My first Pine Marble of the year.

Moths present this morning included the following:

• 1 Small Dusty Wave
• 12 Riband Wave
• 2 Dark Arches
• 7 Willow Beauty
• 5 Bright-line Brown-eye
• 18 Pale Mottled Willow
• 9 Common Emerald
• 3 Garden Carpet
• 6 White Ermine
• 1 Buff Ermine
• 3 Lime-speck Pug
• 2 Common Pug
• 1 Freyer’s Pug
• 2 Silver Y
• 2 Lackey (NFY)
• 1 Clay
• 1 White-point
• 1 L-album Wainscot
• 10 Heart & Dart
• 1 Lesser Yellow Underwing
• 2 Light Arches (NFY)
• 1 Vine’s Rustic
• 1 Small Elephant Hawk-moth
• 8 Box Tree Moth
• 2 Common Plume
• 9 Garden Grass Veneer
• 3 Ephestia woodiella
• 1 Meal Moth
• 1 Bud Moth
• 1 Hawthorn Moth
• 2 Endotricha flammealus (NFY)
• 1 Broom Shoot Moth
• 2 Light Brown Apple Moth
• 1 Apple Leaf Miner
• 1 Beautiful Plume
• 2 Anania coronata
• 2 Eudonia mercurella
• 1 Variegated Golden Tortrix
• 1 Bee Moth
• 1 Piniphila bifasciana (NFY)
• 1 Diamond-back Moth