Blotched Emerald - Rockbeare 2007
I've been looking back fondly through my old moth photos today. I haven't run my trap for over five years because we're not ideally situated for shining a powerful ultraviolet light in the garden of this house. It's currently on loan to my good friend Martin Wolinski who is getting some great catches. I feel very rusty with regards identifying moths but I'm sure I'll get back into it at some point. It is an utterly absorbing and addictive hobby but time-consuming and certainly not easy to fit in alongside work, family life and birding. The rich variety of moths out there never ceases to amaze me and I would strongly recommend anyone with an interest in wildlife to give it a go - it's fantastic. Below are some of my favorite species. Note the variety of shapes and colours as well as the fantastic names of some species.
Pine Beauty - Rockbeare 2008
Peach Blossom - Rockbeare 2008
Privet Hawkmoth - Rockbeare 2008
Cream-bordered Green Pea - Topsham 2008
Swallow-tailed Moth - Rockbeare 2007
Rosy Footman - Rockbeare 2007
Sprawler - Rockbeare 2006
Merveille du Jour - Rockbeare 2006
Large Wainscot - Topsham 2006 - not sure why but I love the wainscots and I've still got quite a few to see
Cosmopolitan - Rockbeare 2006
Scarce Bordered Straw - Rockbeare 2006
Burnished Brass (f juncta) - Rockbeare 2006
Gold Spot - Rockbeare 2009
Bordered Beauty - Rockbeare 2006
Lappet - Rockbeare 2006 - what a moth!
Scarce Silverlines - Rockbeare 2006
Green Silverlines - Rockbeare 2006
Square-spot Rustic - this is what this species should look like - square and unremarkable kidney marks on each forewing but look at the aberrant specimen below.......
..........complete with gold stars on my daughter's first day at school- surely a good sign!!
Chocolate-tip - Rockbeare 2007
Rosy Rustic - Rockbeare 2006 - a subtle but beautiful species
Oleander Hawkmoth - an incredible moth unlikely to be caught in this country - this one was hand-reared by John Gale
All the moths below were found just by checking lights when we were on camping holidays in the south of France. I used to check the wash blocks first thing in the morning, which got me some funny looks, and some powerful lights that illuminated a little village church on a nearby hillside. I probably recorded in excess of one hundred species this way including some absolute crackers.......
Spurge Hawkmoth - France 2006
Striped Hawkmoth - France 2006
Ni moth - France 2009
Small Chocolate-tip - France 2008
Zygaena Occitanica - France 2008 - this one was rescued from a swimming pool by my mother-in-law!
Bird's Wing - France 2008
Pale-shouldered Cloud - France 2008
Dorset Cream Wave - France 2008
Calophasia Opalina - France 2008
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