Second Small Marbled Moth of the year.

Friday 15th August 2025.

Small Marbled moth. My second of the year of this rare immigrant moth.

A clear blue sky first thing this morning and again, not a drop of wind with temperatures around the 18 degree centigrade mark. It looks like another warm day again and it should be getting up into the mid 70’s today.

My Moth Box:

My first Common Slender moth of the year.

Back to the Moths again this morning and at 5.45am, I was up and running checking all around the Moth Box and then into the Moth Box itself. Another relatively warm evening produced 91 Moths of 44 species this morning and pick of the large bunch was my second Small Marbled moth of the year. This rare immigrant moth has been picked up all over the UK by Moth enthusiasts, but still very uncommon here on the south coast.

Currant Pug. The first for some time.

Other immigrant Moths included a Golden Twin-spot, Silver Y and 3 Rusty-dot Pearls. The Large Thorn shows no sign of moving on as it was in exactly the same spot as yesterday, but only four Garden Tigers were in my garden this morning and no Jersey Tigers this time. The only new moth for the year was the micro moth, Common Slender; a smart looking moth and quite striking in appearance and posture. A Currant Pug was my first for some time and my second Horse Chestnut Leafminer moth of the year was on the top of the Box.

Square-spot Rustic.

Other insects within my Moth Box included a Batman Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) of which I carefully potted it and released it near the garden plants. Two Harlequin Ladybirds got the same treatment.

Batman Hoverfly.

The following Moths were present this morning:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Large Thorn x1	Garden Pebble x1
Double-striped Pug x8	Hawthorn Moth x1
Currant Pug x1	Common Slender x1 *
Lime-speck Pug x4	Bramble Shoot Moth x1
Garden Carpet x2	House Moss-moth x1
Cabbage Moth x1	Dark Moss-moth x1
Square-spot Rustic x1	Barred Marble x4
Marbled Beauty x2	Elderberry Pearl x1
Brimstone Moth x3	Brown House Moth x2
Bright-line Brown-eye x2	Light Brown Apple Moth x6
Garden Tiger x4	Copper-fringed Drab x2
L-album Wainscot x4	Chevron Grass-moth x2
Heart & Dart x1	Rusty-dot Pearl x3
Setaceous Hebrew Character x1	Small Marbled x1
Shuttle-shaped Dart x7	Common Masoner x1
Common Rustic x1	Apple Leaf Miner x1
Yellow-barred Brindle x2	Ruddy Streak x2
Large Yellow Underwing x1	Box Tree Moth x1
Golden Twin-spot x1	Horse Chestnut Leafminer x1
Vine’s Rustic x2	Common Plume x2
Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing x4	White-shouldered House Moth x1
Silver Y x1
Willow Beauty x1

While checking the Moth Box, overhead, I heard the distinctive chatter of Swallows and sure enough, a small flock of three birds were seen flying very high and heading westbound. A Willowchiff called quietly at the back of the garden and I even heard a House Sparrow calling some distance away in a garden (getting uncommon around here now!).

This evening, while watering the garden, I found a couple more interesting moths that included an Angle Shades and a Single-dotted Wave to add to today's total. Overhead, a flock of 15+ Swallows flew high and headed westbound calling in doing so. They were all probably off to roost and joining them was a lone Swift.

Matt & Emma’s Moth Box:

One of two Oak Hook-tip moths this morning in their garden.

Meanwhile, over in Fareham, the guys had 7 Jersey Tigers and two Oak Hook-tips this morning and new for them today were a Wormwood Pug and a Cabbage Moth.

Another moth for my Moth Life List.

Thursday 14th August 2025.

Another grey morning that was so still, I could hear a pair of Sandwich Terns flying over Southsea, somewhere south of my garden. It was still around 18 degrees first thing this morning as I went about checking around the Moth Box. There was another large haul of Moths again this morning and among them was another ‘Lifer’.

My Moth Box:

This Holly Tortrix was a new moth for my Moth Life List today.

A good total of 89 moths of 36 species were recorded this morning, though only one was new for the year and in fact, it was another ‘Lifer’; the micro moth Holly Tortrix (Rhopobota naevana). Apparently, they are a common moth of hedgerows and gardens, but it's taken decades for one to finally arrive in my garden. Better late than never! Yesterday’s Large Thorn was still present by the Moth Box and both Garden and Jersey Tiger were still present. Immigrant moths this morning included 2 Golden Twin-spots, a Turnip Moth, Silver Y, Langmaid’s Yellow Underwing and 4 Rusty-dot Pearl.

Above, one of two Golden Twin-spots and below, the Large Thorn was still present.

The Moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Large Thorn x1	Holly Tortrix x1
Garden Tiger x2	Common Plume x2
Jersey Tiger x1	Rusty-dot Pearl x4
Double-striped Pug x8	Ruddy Streak x3
Lime-speck Pug x6	Meal Moth x1
Small Dusty Wave x3	Barred Yellowneck x1
Willow Beauty x2	Barred Marble x1
Pale Mottled Willow x3	Light Brown Apple Moth x7
Common Rustic x2	Garden Pebble x2
Marbled Green x1	Chevron Grass-moth x2
Bright-line Brown-eye x1	White-shouldered House Moth x1
L-album Wainscot x3	Hawthorn Moth x1
Marbled Beauty x3
Shuttle-shaped Dart x9
Yellow-barred Brindle x1
Brimstone Moth x4
Golden Twin-spot 2
Silver Y x1
Garden Carpet x1
Turnip Moth x1
Setaceous Hebrew Character x1
Langmaid’s Yellow Underwing x1
Vine’s Rustic

As well as the Sandwich Terns, I watched a Swift flying high over the house heading west and a Chiffchaff was calling within the trees behind my house. After breakfast, the dogs got their early morning walk and just around the corner from where I live, I watched a Hummingbird Hawk-moth flying around the rooftops until flying off south.

Matt & Emma’s Moth Box, Fareham:

The guys had four new moths this morning to their Moth Trap: a White-point, Straw Dot and two I would love to see, Vestal and a Webb’s Wainscot. They certainly do get some half decent moths to their garden. 

I found this Ruby Tiger moth caterpillar yesterday on someone's driveway and so carefully picked it up and placed it somewhere safe.

A pair of Thorns today.

Wednesday 13th August 2025.

A Large Thorn meets a Canary-shouldered Thorn.

I missed the Meteor shower last night due to the fact it was overcast in Southsea, but my first Large Thorn moth of the year was sitting on the white sheet behind the Moth Box along with a Canary-shouldered Thorn. The size difference was amazing, for this was only the second Large Thorn I have ever seen and most definitely the first one in my garden. The temperature was still around 20 degrees and remained that way throughout the night. What a restless sleep I had. Fume!!!

My Moth Box:

The Large Thorn. Only my second ever.

I had potted both the Large and Canary-shouldered Thorn from last night and released them both early this morning; two cracking looking Moths. Three Jersey Tigers and a single Garden Tiger were present and another new moth for the year was a micro moth, a Cherry Bark Tortrix. An Iron Prominent was still present from yesterday and a Tree-lichen Beauty was another good moth for the month.  Migrant moths included four Jasmine Moths and a White-point today.

Above, the Iron Prominent moth and below, my first Cherry Bark Tortrix of the year.

The Moths recorded this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Large Thorn x1*	Cherry Bark Tortrix x1*
Canary-shouldered Thorn x1	Common Plume x2
Garden Tiger x1	Beautiful Plume x1
Jersey Tiger x3	White-shouldered House Moth x1
Lime-speck Pug x6	Rusty-dot Pearl x7
Double-stripe Pug x14	Ruddy Streak x5
Yellow-barred Brindle x2	Pale-backed Detritus Moth x1
Brimstone Moth x2	Light Brown Apple Moth x6
Common Rustic x1	Meal Moth x1
Bright-line Brown-eye x1	Jasmine Moth x4
Vine’s Rustic x2	Dark Moss-moth x2
Tree-lichen Beauty x1	House Moss-moth x1
Small Dusty Wave x1	Bird-cherry Ermine x1
Large Yellow Underwing x2
Shuttle-shaped Dart x1
White-point x1
Iron Prominent x1
L-album Wainscot x2
Marbled Beauty x1

Matt & Emma’s Moth Box:

This Portland Ribbon Wave is always a stunning moth to get. I have had one this year in my garden and hopefully, more to come.

The guys had their Moth Box on last night again and today new for the year for them included an Angle Shades, Portland Ribbon Wave, Yellow-barred Brindle and one species I have yet to see, a Golden-rod Pug.

Golden-rod Pug.

In Hampshire today:

There was a small scattering of interesting birds around the County today, despite the inclement weather this afternoon (thunder & lightning), of which the strangest was a Scarlet Ibis (no doubt, an escape from somewhere) over Fishlake Meadows. Three Black Terns were off Gunners Point, Hayling Island and a report of a Wryneck in someone's garden in Chandlers Ford. The long-staying Lesser Yellowlegs was back on Keyhaven Marshes and a scattering of Whinchats around the County. A Ruff was on the Lake at Farlington Marshes this morning, a Yellow Wagtail and a Cattle Egret in the Hayfield and an immature Spoonbill on the Stream.