Some of the new moths of 2024

It’s been an odd year so far for us moth-ers. There was an odd burst of numbers and diversity back in mid-March but that was followed by some very lean lighting-up sessions when it was cold and wet for weeks on end each night. It was only on the 8th May that there was a … Continue reading "Some of the new moths of 2024"

It’s been an odd year so far for us moth-ers. There was an odd burst of numbers and diversity back in mid-March but that was followed by some very lean lighting-up sessions when it was cold and wet for weeks on end each night. It was only on the 8th May that there was a sudden up-tick. We had warmer evenings and on the night of 12th May, I recorded 36 moths of 25 species. 14 of those were new for the year (NFY) and one of them, Grey Pine Carpet, was new for my garden (NFM).

Next session, wasn’t quite as rich, but there were still seven species NFY, including a couple of Pale Tussock, a Maiden’s Blush, Pebble Hook-tip, The Spectacle, and a White Point. Moth names are just as diverse as the moths themselves, in case you hadn’t noticed.

So, as of 13th May, that’s 84 lighting-up sessions in 2024 mainly with a 15W Wemlite UV fluorescent tube on a Skinner (slot) trap. This has replaced my my old 40W U-tube on the Robinson (funnel) trap, which I started with in late July 2018. So far this year, the Wemlite and Skinner has helped me see around 80 species of moth so far this year. The next few weeks will hopefully see diversity and numbers rising still further and, fingers crossed, a few more NFMs and perhaps even some rarities.

I usually see well over 300 species in the garden over the course of the year and a few dozen of those are usually NFM (see definition above). My garden “list” stands at well over 500 species.

So, an update at this point in the year when it seems to be turning seemed timely.

Ephestia is a group of moths that you cannot get a positive ID on from superficial examination. You need to have either raised it from larvae with a positive ID or carried out DNA testing, or have undertaken an examination of the genitalia to distinguish it from other Ephestia species.

The White Point has a rather obvious origin to its English vernacular name. And to be frank, its scientific name, Mythimna albipuncta. It’s in the genus Mythimna and albipuncta simply means white point. The L-album Wainscot is in the same genus and has the scientific name, Mythimna l-album, which refers to the white, L-shaped marking on its wings. I’ve not seen this Wainscot species in our Cambridgeshire garden, but I did record it in Corfe Castle, Dorset in 2022, with the LepiLED and a Heath (small, portable Robinson) trap.

Some of the moth names, such as that of Lymantria dispar, the Gypsy Moth, now known as the Spongy Moth in the USA, have been changed because of evolving social sensitivities. This, it seems, is yet to happen to the Maiden’s Blush. This moth resembles the Blood-vein, but has two patches of rouge, which the early entomologists thought suggestive of facial flushing in a young woman. For their predilection for such matters, particularly marital, or nuptial, allusions, read my article about the Catocala underwing moths. Fancifully, the entomologists saw their brightly coloured underwings as being reminiscent of the bloomers worn by a new bride on her wedding night!

The Knot-grass, more mundanely, is named for its larval foodplant:

The Light Brocade is so-called for an allusion to decorative cloth fashionable at the time the moth was named.

The Marbled Minor, is small and has patterning that one might describe as marbling. This is another aggregated species, one cannot distinguish between the various species without the above-mentioned detailed examination.

Perhaps the stickiest of moths, the Buff-tip, Phalera bucephala, has evolved to resemble a snapped off piece of Silver Birch twig.

Grey Pine Carpet is NFM for 2024 (see above). I had eyes-on on the upperside of its wings to confirm, but could not get it to settle with its wings open to get a photo. So this less-than-diagnostic sideview will have to suffice for the time being, pending another arriving to the lamp in subsequent lighting-up sessions. Read on to find out how I saw the lepidopteral light and how you too might fall in love with the scaly-winged critters.