Nutmeg added to moth year list.

Sunday 2nd July 2023.

My first Nutmeg moth of the year this morning.

The moth box was back on last night and though I never checked the weather forecast, it turned out to be a dry night. Up at the crack of dawn this morning (4.30am), I staggered bleary eyed again down the stairs, made a quick coffee and then into a rather cool garden (as in temperature!). Swifts were screaming overhead and our local House Sparrows were ‘chirruping’ loudly in the neighbouring trees. I quickly put out the meal worms on the feeders and it didn't take long for them and a Starling to come down to tuck into their free breakfast.

A Common Rustic agg. This species can only be reliably told apart from a couple of other forms of Rustic by dissection.

Back to the moths. Not as many as earlier in the week, but a reasonable variety including my first Nutmeg of the year. I did notice, though, that some parasitic moth catcher had been in the moth box due to the fact that I found several wings of moths, notably the Box Tree Moth. Some will say ‘Good’, as they are deemed a pest. But live and let live I say, as it's all part of the big picture of nature. There were 57 moths of 34 species at least this morning (still got a few micros in pots at present), well down from earlier this week, but a good variety though. As well as the Nutmeg that was new for the year, the micro moth, Blastobasis vittata, was my first of the year too. Apparently, this micro, which is still scarce in the southern half of England, was probably accidentally introduced to the UK from the island of Madeira, where it is a native species. 

This Purple Emperor butterfly was seen in Whiteley Woods yesterday. Photo by Ollie Crabbe.

Because of yesterday's rain shower, I had to rescue a few moths on the rain guard that were floating on the tiniest bit of water! 

The moths present this morning included the following:

• 1 Nutmeg (NFY)
• 1 Single-dotted Wave
• 1 Common Rustic
• 1 Heart & Dart
• 2 Lackey
• 4 Riband Wave
• 1 Willow Beauty
• 5 Pale Mottled Willow
• 1 L-album Wainscot
• 2 White Ermine
• 1 Bright-line Brown-eye
• 1 Lesser Yellow Underwing
• 3 Double-striped Pug
• 1 Common Footman
• 1 Dark Arches
• 2 Common Emerald
• 1 Lime-speck Pug
• 3 Common Plume 
• 3 Light Brown Apple Moth
• 6 Ruddy Streak
• 1 Brown House Moth
• 1 Bud Moth
• 2 Garden Mompha
• 1 Beautiful Plume
• 1 Barred Marble
• 1 Blastobasis vittata (NFY)
• 2 Blastobasis lacticolella
• 1 Blastobasis adustella
• 1 Yellow Oak Button
• 1 Bee Moth
• 1 Garden Grass-veneer
• 1 Small Grey
• 2 Box Tree Moth
• 1 Meal Moth

Yesterday, me and the guys bumped into fellow ‘Lazee Birder’ Ollie Crabbe, who was also in search of the elusive Purple Emperor butterfly and fortunately for him, he came across one and took a superb photo of the butterfly (see photo). Sadly, the Wood Sandpiper must have departed on Friday evening, but fellow 'Lazee Birder' Andy Tew connected with it that day and took a good photo of the bird (see below). Wader migration must be on its way as a total of 8 Common Sandpipers were seen at Lower Test Marshes yesterday. 

The Wood Sandpiper in front of the Tern Hide at Blashford Lakes on Friday. Photo by Andy Tew.