Wednesday 2 April 2014

Mostly chestnuts

I'm in my usual state of muddle over brown moths this morning but nonetheless I will gallantly attempt to identify the following ones. I think the first three are all Red Chestnuts, even though the contrast between the first one, snuggling up to my wedding ring, and the third one is striking.




Here's that last one again with my famous Biro scale to show its size - a definite step up from your average Quaker moth or Hebrew Character, the eggbox staples at this time of the year.  Update: and guess what, it's not a Red Chestnut after all but a Clouded Drab (another...) Many thanks to Ben in Comments.


Talking of which, I fear that the next one is nothing more than an unusually lovely Common Quaker, but maybe one of my expert pals will have more exciting ideas.


And finally, this old chap or chapess looks as though it might have blown in from the Sahara along with the sand which is apparently trickling down on to England from a high-level jetstream which has reached us from Africa. Alas, everything points to that most sadly and unfairly named of Spring moths, the Clouded Drab.


The overall contents of the trap this morning were 26 Common Quakers, 15 Small Quakers, nine Hebrew Characters, nine Clouded Drabs, three Red Chestnut (if my IDs above are correct), two Emmelina monodactyla micros, one Oak Beauty and an Ophion ichneumon wasp.

2 comments:

Bennyboymothman said...

Hi Martin.
Yes first 2 are Red Chestnuts, the next two are both Clouded Drab, agree on all others :) hopefully catch up with Red Chestnut tonight in woodland, I have yet to trap it in my garden....

Martin Wainwright said...

Good luck Ben - and thanks again. I've had the same verdict from Upper Thames Moths - I was misled (apart from my general bumbling) by the colour of one of the Red Chestnuts painted by Lewington in the Moth Bible. All warmest as ever

M