A Garden Tiger among a large haul of Moths.

Tuesday 29th July 2025.

A lovely start to the day until the rain came!

There was a bright sunrise this morning as the clouds were tinged with orange overhead. However, it was a lot cooler than normal, around 14 degrees centigrade, but I did have my fleece on while I was in the garden checking out the Moth Box. I noticed that showers were forecast this morning and sure enough, later this morning, it started to rain while I was walking my dogs!

My Moth Box:

My first Garden Tiger of the year.

Finally, my first Garden Tiger of the year was present this morning, nearly hiding away behind the Moth Box, but after a second look in the same place, I was lucky enough to discover it. I can get up to double-figures annually with this species, but it's always good to get my ‘year-tick’. Two more new moths for the year included a Pellitory Beauty, an extremely small micro moth of which one needs a special micro lens to get to grips in taking a photo of it. Obsidentify says it was a Pellitory Beauty (Cosmopterix pulchmirella) and so I shall have to take that as guaranteed for now. The other was also a micro moth, a Common Ridge-back moth (Epermenia chaerophylella), only my second one ever.

Two more micro moths were added to my year total. Above, the tiny Pellitory Beauty and below, a Common Ridge-back moth.

My back bedroom was full of Moths last night that included a White-pont, Cabbage Moth, Turnip Moth and a Double-striped Pug, of which they were all released this morning. Just two Golden Twin-spots were seen this morning, though I had to rescue one from a spider's web. My second Wormwood Pug of the year was sitting on the white sheet and probably the same four Tree-lichen Beauties were present again. A total of 93 moths of 36 species were recorded today.

The Moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
White-point x3	Common Plume x10
Turnip Moth x2	Ruddy Streak x3
Cabbage Moth x3	Rusty-dot Pearl x3
Common Rustic x1	Bramble Shoot Moth x1
Golden Twin-spot x2	Garden Pebble x2
Double-striped Pug x8	Brown Bark Moth x2
Lime-speck Pug x3	Pellitory Beauty x1 *
Wormwood Pug x1	Common Masoner x7
Bright-line Brown-eye x1	Diamond-back Moth x1
Garden Tiger x1 *	Light Brown Apple Moth x11
Shuttle-shaped Dart x4	Pale-backed Detritus Moth x1
Lychnis x1	Common Ridge-back x1
Pale Mottled Willow	Beautiful Plume x1
Garden Carpet x3	Bird-cherry Ermine x3
Brimstone Moth x2	White-shouldered House Moth x1
Tree-lichen Beauty x4	Black-banded Masoner x1
Grey / Dark Dagger x1	Banded Yellowneck x1
Langmaid’s Yellow Underwing x1
Nutmeg x1

While checking the Moth Box, a Cinnamon Sedge Caddis Fly was sitting just inside the Box. There was some birdlife around when I was checking the Moth Box. A Chiffchaff was heard calling in the garden behind ours and it didn't take long for the bird to pop out to reveal itself as it searched my neighbours Holly Tree for a tasty bit of breakfast. Overhead, a Greenfinch and a Swallow flew over and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard calling briefly. Walking the dogs this morning, a Jay flew up from the ground just inside Highland Road Cemetery and perched in a nearby tree before flying off.

I done my weekly check on the Birdguides news website this evening and was absolutely disgusted to read that a license had been granted to cull young Gannets on the Scottish island of Sula Sgeir. OK, I knew nothing about this so-called 'tradition' till Birdguides brought it to my attention and I have to say I am disgusted with NatureScot to allow this monstrosity to carry on. In this day and age of strong 'Conservation' issues for our declining seabird population, that this so-called body of idiots can allow this to happen. If there is a petition I am ready to sign it immediately and will encourage anyone reading my blog to do the same. They are trying to justify this cruel practise to Grouse Shooting of which I am totally opposed to as well along with any form of shooting, which is just weak minded idiots who would be the last ones to sign up for the Army should a war break out! Rant over! Fume!