Another reasonable catch of moths & Highland Road Cemetery.

Sunday 25th August 2024.

One of the most beautiful moths for this time of year, the Jasmine Moth.

Clear skies overnight normally produces a low haul of moths to my Moth Box, but I was relatively pleased with this morning's moths present, which included a few nice surprises too. A bright, near cloudless morning was nice to wake up to though it was just 14 degrees, there was hardly any wind.

Above, one of two Rusty-dot Pearls and below, the stunning Canary-shouldered Thorn.

There were at least 61+ moths of 26 species recorded this morning and although there was nothing new for the year, there were a few nice moths to check out including my second Jasmine Moth of the year (one of my favourite moths) and another Canary-shouldered Thorn. The most numerous moth easily was the Common Plume’s with at least 18 present in or near the Moth Box.

Cabbage Moth.

The moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS:

• Garden Carpet
• Garden Tiger 2
• Canary-shouldered Thorn
• Vine’s Rustic 6
• Cabbage Moth
• Pale Mottled Willow 4
• Yellow-barred Brindle
• Double-striped Pug
• Willow Beauty 2
• Large Yellow Underwing
• Square-spotted Rustic
• White-point
• Brimstone Moth 2
• L-album Wainscot
• Common Rustic
• Lime-speck Pug 2

MICRO MOTHS:

• Common Masoner
• Rusty-dot Pearl 2
• Dark-spotted Moss-moth
• Box-tree Moth 2
• Common Plume 18
• Garden Pebble 2
• Chevron Grass-moth 2
• Jasmine Moth
• Light Brown Apple Moth
• Apple Leaf Miner 3

Other interesting insects that were attracted to my Moth Box included a Cinnamon Sedge Caddis Fly; one of our largest Caddis Flies. There were plenty of small Spiders in and around the Moth Box and although not a problem, I always release them, then clean the spiders webs away from the Box.

The Cinnamon Sedge Caddis Fly; a species that is regular around my Moth Box.

Birding pal Geoff Farwell took a walk down Pigeon House Lane, on Portsdown Hill yesterday afternoon, in the brighter weather and recorded the following on his travels: 2 Common Whitethroat, 2 Blackcaps, Firecrest, 2 Yellow Wagtails, 50 Swallows, 30 Herring Gulls, Common Buzzard, 2 Kestrels and a flock of 16 Magpies! Andy Fisher took a walk in the rain around Farlington Marshes earlier in the day with a friend and saw an Avocet and a Marsh Harrier, and a little later, a Kingfisher over Chichester Harbour.

One of my favourite photos this week. A cracking photo of a Nuthatch by Emma Parkes.

I had another walk around Highland Road Cemetery this morning and it actually turned out to be a rather good trip. OK, nothing exceptionally rare there, but a good variety of wildlife to look at. The sun was shining again and with a nice soft breeze blowing from the south-west, it was comfortable conditions to take the dogs for a slow stroll around my local patch. However, I shared the Cemetery with a lot of dog-walkers this morning; some sociable, some miserable, but that's the way it goes here.

Above, the regular sortie of the Spitfire flying over Southsea seen from the Cemetery. Below, a Small False-greenbottle. 

Above, Honey Bees enjoying the Buddleia and below, a Red Admiral was nectaring close by.

Starting with the birds present, the clump of bushes around the south-east corner of the Cemetery held some interesting birds as I spent a good ten minutes here waiting on what would show. Earlier, I was checking out a male Common Blue butterfly when something caught my eye. A pair of juvenile Blackbirds were busy scoffing on the ripe Blackberries within the bushes and were joined by an adult and another juvenile. Then a juvenile Green Woodpecker flew in, though proved too difficult to photograph due to the foliage and a second bird shortly followed. I'm glad to know that they have bred successfully somewhere locally. Also within the same bushes, I was pretty sure a Lesser Whitethroat flew from one bush to another, but that was the last sighting of the bird despite waiting a while for it to reappear. This would have been only the second ever I have seen in the Cemy.

Above, only my second ever sighting of the Dusty-winged Lacewing. Below, one of the juvenile Blackbirds.

Above, another of the juvenile Blackbirds scoffing down the Blackberries and below, the clump of Bushes that seemed to attract a lot of birds of late.

Earlier, I had seen the pair of Jays flying off heading westbound over the rooftops. Fortunately, they returned to the Cemetery and at least one was seen perched distantly on a gravestone near the Mausoleum. The soft ‘hooweet’ of a Willowchiff was heard near the Mausoleum, but there was no sighting of the bird which was calling deep within a bush. Walking the path by the Holm Oak clump, I heard a Firecrest calling deep within cover and although I got brief glimpses of the bird, it did not show fully as it moved on south. I think I see more Firecrests here than Goldcrests! All in all, not a bad selection of birds along with all the common species here.

Above, a lone male House Sparrow was lurking about in the same bushes and below, a Batman Hoverfly was nectaring on this clump of Yarrow.

Above, most unexpected, I found this Meadow Vetchling plant growing near a grave and below, a male Common Blue butterfly also in the south east corner.

On the butterflies front, there were four species seen today that included two species of Blue butterflies: Common Blue and Holly Blue; both males too. At least two Red Admirals were seen and several Small White butterflies scattered around the Cemy. A Jersey Tiger moth was flushed from one of the bushes over in the south-east corner, close to the footpath and a Vapourer Moth spiralled across the gravestones. Another odd insect I found was the Dusty-winged Lacewing; a species I think I have only ever seen once before and similar to a small moth in flight. Though photographing the species was a bit of a challenge.

Above and below, one of the Jays is showing briefly.

Above, this Holly Blue butterfly proved difficult to get a decent photo. Below, a Harlequin Ladybird on Smooth Sow-thistle.

The plants within my local patch were all the usual species although a lot are well passed their sell-by date. However, a lot of Buddleia was still on flower, which can only mean good news for the insects. I did find my first Meadow Vetchling plant for the year; a small sprig growing by one of the graves. I did find it pays to spend some time in the Cemetery as there could be anything flying around or over and could pull a surprise or two.

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