Sunday 10 August 2008

A moth on the moon?

No, it's not the moon. It's a greenhouse lampshade. This Large Yellow Underwing is luckier than yesterday's, provided it doesn't drop down the hole in the top of the shade and end up at the bottom of the inside, with all the ungettable-at dust. Seeing it reminded me how regularly moths come to any light at this time of year. You can make your own moth trap just by putting a dustsheet outside and then setting a table lamp on it (though be careful with electricity outdoors and don't do it if there's any danger of rain). Even an hour or two of this on a summer night should bring you something worth looking at or photographing. Housekeeping: my oracle Jax from Yorkshire Butterfly Conservation (see top link) thinks the severe-looking, peeking moth five entries below is an August Thorn.

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