Day 364 - Brilliantly Positioned - Beautiful Plume Moth

Beautiful Plume Moth (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla)

Hey everyone today's Day 364, just 1 day to go! So, to celebrate I thought I would cover a very nice little Moth that I really like because of its unique shape. This one turned up in my front garden in September, pretty much outside of my front door on some nearby plants. I was on my way out somewhere so my camera was handy and I managed to get a few shots before it flew off.  It is of course, one of the Plume Moths and it is a very beautiful looking one. On that basis, and from my research, this looks like a Moth that is 'what it says on the tin' - the Beautiful Plume Moth.

So, here are the facts:

• There have been records of them across the United Kingdom, but they get rarer the more Northerly you travel.

Got in a bit close

• Well, they are widespread but there are not as many places with sightings in the UK as a lot of Moths I have covered.

• I haven't found anywhere that they are classed as rare as such, but they certainly seem less common than a lot of Moths.

• The good news is that they have been getting more common since the 1990's and are now more often found in gardens - just like this one.

• There are two generations in a year so they are found flying from July and from September onwards, I'm guessing this means until the weather gets too cold and it's time so say goodbye to them!

• When it gets cold the second generation go into hibernation and once they wake will be flying until May.

Got a crazy looking shot when I went in for a bug's eye view

• Their wingspan is between the very specific sizes of 17mm and 23mm. This is one of the smaller non-micro-moths that I have ever covered.

• The larvae feed in June and August on the flowers and young leaves of small plants.

• Some of these plants include Restharrow, Hedge woundwort, Goosefoots and even Heather.

• A lot of other types of Plume Moths feed on these plants too so you should be cautious when you are identifying them from their larvae as they are easy to confuse.

Here are some links to more information:

NatureSpot - Beautiful Plume Moth

UK Moths - Beautiful Plume Moth

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 363 - Simply Stunning Rugged Six Striped Rustic

Six Striped Rustic (Xestia sexstrigata)

Hi everyone - Day 363 and I've found another moth for you from my Nosterfield Open Day Collection.  While it is not the most colourful of moths it is still very beautiful and I managed to get some nice close up shots which show a lot of its features. I struggled with identifying this one, and did get some help, but it was still difficult as it's tricky to tell from the photos. It's probably a Six Striped Rustic so I researched that moth for you today and on the links on the end you can see some pictures of some with clearer markings, this one looks a little bit worn but still amazing.

So what did I find out about this little moth:

You can see the proboscis here 

• Like yesterdays Flame Shouldered Moth these moths are quite widely distributed across the UK, not quite as common in Scotland but they are found there.

• They have a wingspan of 36-38mm

• You are most likely to see these moths flying between July and September. They only have one brood per year.

• They live in habitats like damp woodland and marshy areas like bogs and fens.

• Another similarity to yesterdays moth is that the adults are attracted to Ragwort for nectar. 

• The larvae are around from September to April or May.

And here's the bugs eye view :-)

• They feed by night on a range of herbaceous plants like Plantain, Bramble and Bedstraw.

• In the day the larvae hide out low down on these plants trying to stay out of sight of predators.

• When they are ready to transform into adults they head underground to pupate.

• In case it's not obvious from my photos they get their name from six stripes that go across their wings. 

As promised some links where you can see pictures of this moth with better markings.

Nature Spot - Six Striped Rustic

Lepi Photos - Six Striped Rustic

Habitas - Six Striped Rustic

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 351 - Happy Halloween! - Pammene aurana

Pammene aurana (I think) at Silton Forest

14 Days to go!!

Hey everyone today's Day 351 and the first thing to say is: 'Happy Halloween'! Well, as it's Halloween I thought I would do a Halloween theme post. A while ago, I saw the Agapeta hamana and I gave it the common name of the Smiley Moth as, on its wings, it had a smiley face! Well, a while ago as well, I saw another one that looked like it. But this looked almost exactly like a pumpkin. I thought there and then, even though I saw it in July, "Halloween!".

Now, I've done loads of web research on this moth and had advice from a moth expert but its one that's not easy to identify from a photo. It's definitely the same family as the Agapeta hamana, one of the Tortix family of moths but after that it's hard to tell. The closest match I could find to my photos is the Pammene aurana so that's the one I've researched. No common name so I'll say it's the Halloween Moth.

Enjoying the Hogweed

So, here are the facts:

• They aren't the most common. They are found around England, Wales and Scotland. Not at all in Ireland though.

• In Yorkshire there's been about 300 sightings. The were first recorded in Yorkshire in 1883.

• One reason why they aren't seen might be not seen as much is because they are extremely small! 

• "How small?" you say. Well, they are very small only, on average, 11mm with their forewings! 

This is why it reminded me of Halloween

• They fly most commonly between June and July. This is a very small flight period. The smallest I have seen.

• The adults like to feed on Hogweed and so do the larvae which will spin seeds together, I assume with silk, and will feed on the seeds inside the spinning they have made.

• Around October when the larvae are fully grown they head to the soil and spin a cocoon which they live in over the winter.

• They will then pupate in the cocoon in the spring before emerging as adults.

Can you see now?

• Habitats they like are really anywhere you will find hogweed so hedgerows, woodlands rides and edges and roadside verges

• I bet you're all wondering where 'Jack-O-Lanterns' come from. Well it seems to be a Celtic tradition and Halloween is a mix of Christian and Pagan traditions.

• Originally they were made in Britain out of turnips and on Guy Fawkes night and Halloween turnip lanterns. A man with a lantern used to be known as a Jack-o-lantern and eventually it got applied to the turnip lanterns.

Our Jack-o-lanterns this year

• When Irish settlers went to America they found Pumpkins made better lanterns and so we get the modern tradition.

• There is also a legend about a man called 'Stingy Jack' who was supposed to have tricked the devil - cut a long story short he was made to walk the earth with a turnip lantern not being allowed into heaven on account of being an 'unsavoury character'.

Well here's a few link to more information:

Naturespot - Pammene aurana

UK Moths - Pammene aurana

Urban Legends - Jack-o-lantern

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 349 - Obviously So Magnificent - Orange Swift Moth

Orange Swift Moth (Triodia sylvina)

Hey everyone, today's Day 349 and I went to the Nosterfield Open Day, it was quite a while ago now that I think about it, almost 65 days! When I was there, though, I was granted the great job of helping to man the Moth traps. Specifically, I was told to put one of almost each species of Moth into the jars so people could look at them later. It also helped with me being able to take pictures at the end before I released them again. I learnt a lot about the different species. This lovely Orange Swift Moth turned up in the Moth trap too!

So, here are the facts:

• As in most Moths and Insects I have covered, they are quite common in England and getting less so the further North and West you go.

A side view

• Weirdly, they are found on all of the islands around Britain, such as the Isle of Wight, but not Ireland.

• They apparently fly later in the year than most of the 'Swift' moths. Some examples of these moths are: The Gold Swift and the Common Swift.

• The time that it flies most commonly is from July to September. But of course they may be seen a couple of months either side of this time scale.

• In total they have been seen with wingspans 32mm - 48mm, but, again, there will have been cases where they are bigger.

• Adding on to this fact, they do have a case of sexual dimorphism. The Males are actually smaller than the Females.

• They also have marked sexual dimorphism. In this case the Males are actually more brightly coloured than the Females.

• They inhabit mostly Gardens, Woodlands, Grasslands, Moorlands and even the verges on the side of roads!

• They choose these habitats as the larvae feed on the roots of herbaceous plants like bracken, dock and dandelion amongst others.

• They can spend two winters as larvae before the pupate, which they do underground.

And a bugs eye view :-)

• As adults they don't live long apparently as they have a short proboscis and can't feed - that seems to be a bit of a design flaw!

• There are apparently 500 species of Swift moth family (Hepialidae) in the world but we only get 5 in the UK.

Here are some links to some more information:

NatureSpot - Orange Swift 

UK Moths - Orange Swift 

First Nature - Orange Swift

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 311 - Charmingly Mottled Campion Moths

Campion Moth (Sideridis rivularis)

Hey everyone today's Day 311 and you'll all know by know that I volunteered at the Nosterfiled open day about a moth ago (pun slightly intended). I was put on the Moth counting part as one of my jobs and my job specifically was to put one of each species of moth into a plastic container so people could look at them later. One moth that caught my eye when I was looking for something to do was the Campion Moth and I think that the word 'mottled' describes them quite well.

So, here are a few facts that I found:

• They are relatively common and quite widespread, most common down South, they get less frequent the further up the UK you go. They are frequent in Ireland too.

A bugs eye view

• These lovely marked moths have a wingspan of between 27mm - 30mm. Quite small in comparison to others I have done.

• They are mainly seen flying in May or June but in some areas there is a second generation in August and September.

• On a German site that I found it said that there are sometimes even 3 generations in the lowlands (I presume of central Europe). 

• They lay eggs on the flowers and flower buds. The young caterpillars feed on the developing seeds

• The caterpillars feed mainly in the seed capsules of various Campion plants, I wonder where they get their name from?

• Once they get bigger, they will also eat the leaves of Campion plants. I don't actually think I have come across a name and reason like that yet.

Its wonderful markings make good camouflage

• They are found mainly where the larval foodplant is found. Red Campion is quite widely distributed so you might find them in a lot of different places.

• I couldn't find much detail about the population level about this moth apart from that it is 'common' it may be facing reduction in low land areas due to intense agricultures.

Here are a few links to some more information:

NatureSpot - Campion Moth

UK Moths - Campion Moth

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 298 - Sublimely Super and Beautiful Six-Spot Burnets

Six -Spot Burnet Moth (Zygaena filipendulae)

Hey everyone today's Day 298, getting close to the big 300! Now, today, where I am, was very sunny and it reminded me of my time in Norfolk. So, I thought that I would do a beautiful creature for a beautiful day. This is one I spotted on my walk down to Blakney Point, which was quite hard considering it was completely on shingle! I spotted this on the way back when I had time to poke around the sandy areas. When looking in some Knapweed I managed to find a lovely Six-Spot Burnet!

So, here are the facts:

• I saw this in the bright sunshine around 9 o'clock in the morning. So you might think this is a lovely butterfly, but it's actually a day-flying moth.

It was busy feeding on the Knapweed
so I got some good shots

• This is a very brightly coloured moth, an these bright colours warn potential predators that they are poisonous. Predators need to take this seriously as apparently they contain Cyanide (a very toxic chemical!)

• They are called Six-Spot Burnets, but the number of spots can vary, and sometimes , the spots are fused. This is jolly confusing because there are also Five-Spot Burnets!

• Antennae on this moth are club shaped, which is apparently unusual. They use them for feeling and smelling

• They like to live in grassy areas where they can find the wild-flowers that they and the caterpillars feed on. They like the coast where I found this one but are found inland too.

• The adults have a wingspan of 30mm - 38mm and the caterpillars measure but 22mm.

It was very busy so I got very close

• Adults will take nectar from a range of wildflowers but the larvae are a bit more fussy and tend to feed on Bird's Foor Trefoil, Clover and Kidney Vetch.

• In July of August the adults lay their eggs on the food plants. 

• Caterpillars hatch quickly, in just a few days, and get busy eating! They hibernate as caterpillars.

• As they are growing, they will moult several times, and may even stay as caterpillars for two Winters.

• Once they are fully grown, the caterpillars spin cocoons with silk from a special gland called a spinnaret. In this cocoon, called a pupa, they undergo the transformation to adults.

• Adult Moths emerge in June or July and fly around on sunny days. 

Saw another one on a different plant too

• Sadly the Adults only live for a short time. Once they have mated and the Females lay their eggs, they die.

• They aren't a moth that is threatened at present but the grasslands that they live in are disappearing so they could be in future.
  

Here are a few links to some more information:

Wildlife Trusts - Six-Spot Burnets 

Butterfly Conservation - Six-Spot Burnets 

UK Moths - Six-Spot Burnets 

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 290 - Superly Perfect and Magnificent Swallow Prominent Moth

Lesser Swallow Prominence (Pheosia gnoma)

Hey everyone today's Day 290 and as you know, I was recently at the Nosterfield LNR reserve working as a volunteer. I was put on the morning job of helping with Moth trapping which was quite popular and had quite a good crowd. I loved seeing the amount of Moths and the variety. From the first-for-Nosterfield Feathered Gothic to all of the 284 Yellow Under-Wings. Another of my favourites that I saw was the lovely Swallow Prominent.

View from above of the Lesser.

This post will be about the two similar species, the Lesser Swallow Prominent as well as the Swallow Prominent.

So, here are the facts:

• The Lesser Swallow Prominent is actually more common in England, Scotland and Wales but it is less so in Ireland.

• The Swallow Prominent can range from 40mm - 55mm while the Lesser Swallow Prominent is (of course) Lesser and ranges from 45mm - 50mm.

Swallow Prominence (Pheosia tremula)

• The Lesser Larvae feed, very specifically, on birch. They then overwinter underground in their cocoon.

• The Swallow Prominent larvae eat Poplar and Willow and also overwinter underground, the same as the Lesser.

• They both eat, as Adults, Nectar from most plants.

• They are found in Woodlands, Meadows (where they will find most of their food from), Heathlands, Parks and Gardens.

Hairy head close up

• They were first recorded in 1854 although they will have been around way before that time.

Wings spread

• The way to tell the difference between the two of them is by looking at the white wedge toward the top of their wings. In the Lesser Swallow Prominent it is a chunkier, shorter wedge.

• Both species may well have two broods. They are generally on the wing between May and June and then also again in August.

Here are some links to some more information:

NatureSpot - Swallow Prominent - Lesser Swallow Prominent

UK Safari - Swallow Prominent

Norfolk Moths - Swallow Prominent

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 289 - Gloriously Spectacular Gold Spot Moths

Gold Spot Moth (Plusia festucae)

Hey everyone, it's day 289 in my year of nature hunting. A few days ago I did a post on my time at the open day at Nosterfield. I had a great day volunteering, helping out with various things around the reserve. It was all great but I have to say my favourite activity was the moth trapping and today's species was probably one of the favourite species that was caught. I have to say thanks to Jill Warwick, one of the creators of Nosterfield and Charlie the County Moth Recorder. They are so amazingly knowledgeable about moths and very patient with me asking lots of questions.

A total of 13 of today moth species were caught in the four traps and it was one of the most eye catching. The spots you can see in the photo really were like spots of gold. If I hadn't given it away already I'm talking of course about he Gold Spot Moth!

So, what did I find out when I researched them:

• They are a reasonably large moth with a wingspan of 34-46mm

It has a wonderful tuft on its head

• You can find them in most areas of the UK.

• It likes damp habitats and it favourite places to live are fens, water meadows and river banks.

• The adults are found generally at night between May and September.

• In the south there may be two generations a year but there is only one.

• Its scientific name is Plusia festucae which translates as a rich eater of fescue grass.

• This isn't its only diet though the larvae will eat a range of plants found in the damp habitats they like.

• It is a really colourful moth but it's underwings are quite plain. I didn't get a photo of that though as this one didn't want to move of this stick.

View from above.

Well, for such a nice moth it was hard to find out information about it. Try these sites if you want to see more photos.

Simply Birds and Moths - Gold Spot Moth

UK Moths - Gold Spot Moth

Habitas - Gold Spot Moth

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 287 - Mystically Mythical Magpie Moth

Magpie Moth (Abraxas grossulariata) that flew off
rather than let me photograph it!

Hey everyone today's Day 287 and as you probably know, I went to the Nosterfield open day. When I was there, the morning job that me and my Dad were put on was Moth trapping. This was really fun as it was really good to see all of the different Moths, you do get a bit tired of Yellow Underwings though... Because I saw so many different types of Moths, there was about 60-70 species, I thought I would cover one that I really like. The Magpie!


This one was a bit of a tricky customer, I expected it to sit nicely on a piece of wood for me to photograph it but instead it flew off into the hedgerow. Still I was able to follow it and get a couple of shots. The rest of my moths shots are much better!

So, here are the facts:

• They have what's actually quite a large wingspan. It can be all the way up to 45mm or 4.5cm. That's only 5mm shorter than my little finger!

• Their caterpillars are almost the same colours and patterns as the actual Moth so if you see one of them, there's going to be no confusion!

• It has a White base colour with wavy lines made out of Black spots, there is a small Yellow- Orange stripe down the middle and one in across the middle of its wings.

• Another thing about the caterpillars, their colours, White, Black Yellow and Orange, are actually made to warn of predators.

• They are only commonly found from June to August, this is one of the smallest time periods that I have seen in this blog.

Scuttling into the undergrowth!

• They are found quite a lot in England but not much in Wales. Also, they aren't found in South Scotland at all, but they are found quite commonly in North Scotland. They're found in Ireland.

• They are found in Farmland, Woodland, Heathland, Upland, Towns and Gardens and Grasslands. 

• Adults eat Nectar from most Flowers, caterpillars eat Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Currant and Gooseberry Bushes.

• They over-winter as caterpillars and pupate in May to June.

If you want to find out more about these colourful moths try these sites:

RSPB - Magpie Moths

Wildlife Trust - Magpie Moths

UK Moths - Magpie Moths

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 269 - Beautifully Brilliant and Magnificent Burnished Brass Moth

Burnished Brass Moth (Diachrysia chrysitis)

Hey everyone today's Day 269 and, as you will all most definitely know, I love to go to a place called Silton Forest on the edge of the North York Moors. It is an incredible place full of all different types of wildlife from Moths to Deer, from Birds to Beetles. Today, like a lot of posts recently, I will be covering the Moth side of things. This one was quite hard to see as it was actually camouflaged! I couldn't believe it when I saw this Moth. It's a Burnished Brass Moth, thanks to @jillwarrick for help with the identification. It looks like it's doing a little handstand on the leaf! It was out in the open so its camouflage must have been good enough to hide it from all the birds - but not from my beady-eyed Mum!

So here are the facts:

It was sat on this lighter coloured leaf among all the
darker leaves.

• The Wingspan ranges from 28mm - 35mm and the fore-wing ranges from 16mm  - 18mm.

• As we discovered they are fantastic at camouflaging themselves and their colouring blends in perfectly with leaves as they are brown and green, and have a slightly metallic appearance which is where they get their name from I think. There were lots of darker leaves around but the moth had picked on almost the same colour as it.

• They are found all over the UK though they are less common in Northern Ireland and Wales.

• I have noticed that I have quite a Global Audience so I thought I would write about where they are found around the rest of the World such as in Russia, Siberia, and Europe...

A moths eye view.

• ...including Spain, Southern Italy, The Caucasus Islands, and even in Japan and the Arctic Circle!

• This species lays two broods between June and September most commonly.

• The Larvae feed on plants such as Nettle and Marjoram where their eggs are laid. They can also eat and thrive on Red Valerian, Thistles and Buddleia.

• The Larvae hatch in late Summer, they feed for a while and then hibernate when they are quite small. They usually hibernate in leaf litter around a food-plant.

• Around April, Caterpillars wake up and start eating again. Then in May they will form a cocoon underneath a leaf, folding its edges around it.

It was doing a handstand
- how do their arms or legs not get tired?

• After about 4 weeks the Adult then emerges, this stage is where it eats a bit more, breeds and then the cycle starts again.

Here are some links to some more information:

Wikipedia - Burnished Brass Moth

NatureSpot - Burnished Brass Moth

UK Moths - Burnished Brass Moth

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.

Day 267 - Crackingly Beautiful and Marvellous Clouded Border Moth

Clouded Border Moth (Lomaspilis marginata)

Hey everyone today's Day 267, as you might know by now I go to a lot of Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Reserves around and about North Yorkshire. There are lots of different habitats in the different reserves. One I have only been to once or twice is Askham Bog, which I must go back to soon as I'd like to see how good it is for dragonflies on a nice sunny day. Last time I visited I saw yesterdays species, the Meadow Brown, as well as today's post which is themed around the Moth side of things. In fact, a lot of my posts lately have been so you should be well used to the layout of them by now. This particular moth is one that I really loved looking at and getting pictures of him. From the title and pictures you'll know that I am talking about the Clouded Border Moth.

So, here are the facts:

• They aren't actually that common living mostly in East Anglia but they are common in a diagonal strip across the UK from the South-West to Central East. They are found a bit in Ireland.

I'd disturbed it and it sat nicely on this holly for me

• They fly most commonly between May and July at night. They can be disturbed in the day, like what happened with this one.

• There is some controversy between how big their wingspan is but I will say that they can be up to 38mm.

• They are mainly White with some black markings on the top of their fore-wings and around the rest of their wings.

• In the photos that I saw and one website told me that the black colours on the Moth vary lots. I saw one that looked Brown!

• On top of that there are some rare variations, completely Black or White individuals can be seen, even rarer completely Brown ones as well as an extremely rare diluta form where the black colours are replaced with a yellow or gold colour!

• The larval food-plants are mainly Willow, Sallow and Hazel but they have also been seen on Birch and Poplar.

  

  Askham Bog has great plants too like this Royal Fern
  - Europes largest fern 

• They spend the winter as a pupa and apparently can spend up to four winters in this state.

• The main habitats to see these moths are heaths, bogs and damp woodlands.

Well, that's what I found out about this pretty little species. If you want to find out more, its quite tricky but try these sites:

Habitas.org - Clouded Border Moth

UK Moths - Clouded Border Moth

UK Safari - Clouded Border Moth

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.