August Moths

I've been meaning to get back into moth-trapping ever since I moved to Dagenham and almost two and a half years later, I finally got around to buying a new trap. Luckily, I'd been saving egg boxes for this very purpose so once it arrived I set it up on the patio and have trapped most nights. For those who know nothing about moth trapping, it's a humane way of recording moths as they're all released afterwards.

I typically spend up to an hour each morning identifying and recording all the moths. I've managed to remember quite a few since I last trapped 15 years ago . Back then I ignored many micros as I didn't have any way of identifying them but with a new field guide and some good apps, it's become a lot easier.

I try and photograph most species and in the two weeks I've been trapping have recorded 67 species.along with a few that can't be identified without dissection or I just haven't managed to get a good enough photo of.

Micros

Box-Tree Moth

The Box-Tree Moth is a recent colonist and can be a pest as the caterpillars eat the leaves of Box; It comes in two colour forms, dark (above) and white with a brown border. I've had both forms in the trap.

Codling Moth

Common Grass-moth

Common Plume Moth

Gold Triangle, trapped on most nights

Light Brown Apple Moth, one of the commonest moths at the moment

Meal Moth

Mint Moth

Mother of Pearl, only trapped the first night

Narrow-winged Grey

Oak Longhorn

Orange Swift, trapped a few times

Rusty-dot Pearl, a regular migrant

Saltmarsh Knot-horn

Tawny-fronted Straw

Macros

Blood-vein

Small Blood-vein

Garden Carpet

Least Carpet

Lime-speck Pug

Wormwood Pug

Satin Wave

Single-dotted Wave

Small Dusty Wave

Yellow Shell

Garden Tiger

The Garden Tiger is a moth I've always wanted to see as it's quite spectacular and it also reminds me of the late Pete Way, the bass player in UFO, who wore an outfit inspired by this moth!

Pete Way (left) in his moth-inspired top

Gypsy Moth, a recent re-colonist

L-album Wainscot

Bright-line Brown-eye

Heart and Club

Heart and Dart, a common moth but only trapped once so the flight season must be over

Shuttle-shaped Dart, one of the commonest moths in my trap this month

Turnip, inedible unlike Baldrick's favourite vegetable

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Large Yellow Underwing, trapped most nights

Straw Underwing

Setaceous Hebrew Character, trapped most nights. Setaceous means hairy which refers to the caterpillar.

White-point, another migrant

Willow Beauty

Clancy's Rustic

Clancy's Rustic was formerly a very rare vagrant with the first UK record being in 2002 but now it's a scarce migrant. I've trapped a few this month.

Flounced Rustic

Mottled Rustic

Square-spot Rustic

Vine's Rustic, another common species trapped most nights

Centre-barred Sallow

Cloaked Minor

Light Emerald

Marbled Beauty

Pale Mottled Willow, currently the commonest moth I'm trapping

Small Mottled Willow, a scarce migrant trapped once

Tree-lichen Beauty, a particularly fresh one