photo diary

June I / July I / Home/ email

June II 2004

June 11th and it has been another nice day. Next week we have been promised some hot weather, I hope that they are correct! In spite of a couple of days without updating the site there are only a couple of photos. One is of this rather dark ladybird. keith Edkins on his site tenatively identifies it as a pine ladybird, exochumus quadripustulatus. The other is of another Common Swift moth, they are certainly living up to their name. This one seemed to have got confused and parked itself on the porch window this morning in bright sunlight, hence the clear picture.It certainly beats trying to obtain a good photo by torchlight!

The moth trap proved quite effective although there was not anything really exciting in it last night, I was informed by a fellow moth enthusiast that many people are trapping hawk moths at the moment - no such luck I am afraid! Also most of the moths were on the shed and fence nearby. There were a few that I had not seen before and no doubt would have missed had I not had the trap. This Hawthorn shieldbug, Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale, had also taken up residence on the moth trap, obviously attracted by the light.

Here are the moths that I have identified with some help from Brian Goodey, Essex Moths


Bird's wing, Dypterygia scabriuscula	Dipleurina lacustrata	Grey pine carpet, Thera obeliscata	great oak beauty, Hypomecis roboraria	Male Scorched wing, Plagodis dolabraria


Scoparia subfusca	Shoulder-striped wainscot, Mythimna flammea	Marbled Minor Oligia strigilis	Common Pug, Eupithecia vulgata

We went for a walk along the river and nature reserve this afternoon and managed these photos. There were lots of damselflies and dragonflies but they evaded me.


Small Copper, Lycaena phlaeas (A rather poor specimen)	The Cinnabar, Tyria jacobaeae	Treble Brown Spot, Idaea trigeminata

June 13th and the moth trap produced very few moths last night, but there were a couple of new ones and two cinnabar's, this time in my garden.


The white ermine moth, Spilosoma lubricipeda	Crambus lathoniellus	another view of the bird's wing moth	Flax Tortrix Cnephasia asseclana

I had great difficulty deciding which moth this was but eventually was informed by Ian Kimber of UK moths that it is a Spruce Carpet Thera Britannica. I use his site a great deal to help with identification.

June 14th and the weather continues perfect. The moth trap is producing new moths each night although not in such quantities as I had hoped, could I cope if it did I wonder? Below are today's batch.


Apotomis turbidana	Green Oak Tortrix Tortrix viridana	Heart and dart, Agrotis exclamationis	Middle-barred Minor Oligia fasciuncula	Light Emerald, Campaea margaritata	The Spectacle Abrostola tripartite

Just as I finished updating the site Pete called me outside where he had spotted a new moth in the grass. This is a Yellow Shell Camptogramma bilineata

June 15th and again the weather is hot and sunny. Last night was a good night for moths again, particularly so for me as I was able to see for the first time in real life one of the moths that I have longed to see. Below you will find the moths that I was able to take photos of.


Least Yellow Underwing Noctua interjecta	Buff-tip Phalera bucephala	Crambus lathoniellus	Clouded Silver Lomographa temerata	Green Pug Chloroclystis rectangulata

Poplar Grey Acronicta megacephala

Crambus pascuella
note the subtle difference between this little moth and the carmbus lathoniellus pictured above

And of course fpr me the star of the show was this

Poplar hawkmoth Laothoe populi