And that's how it was at Cwmllwyd this morning. I'm fairly sure that escapees fleeing from the carnage would have taken the total much closer to 400, had they not been so disturbed. There were 86 species recorded, with 21 FFY, including the Eggars. Others included Double-striped and Narrow-winged Pugs, Slender Brindle x9, Black Arches x2, Magpie x5, a single Figure of Eighty:
And several rather pretty micros:
Willow Ermine Yponomeuta rorrella x4
Mompha propinquella
Mompha raschkiella
Acrobasis advenella
While taking a break for lunch, a Humming-bird Hawk-moth was seen feeding on Buddleia.
Great stuff Steve, but these Oak Eggars, they were females weren't they? I had several Fox Moths in the trap earlier in the year, but they were quite docile, and I would have thought the Eggars would be too. Maybe the LYUs and Dark Arches wound them up! PS did they lay any eggs?
ReplyDeleteHi Chris. Yes, all females. I may have over-egged the cake - they weren't all rampant: poetic licence! I did not save any eggs.
ReplyDeleteI hatched out some Fox Moth eggs and put the larvae on a bramble which I cultivate in the polytunnel for this purpose (not true, I can't get rid of the bl**dy thing!). I haven't seen any since so I don't know whether they're surviving, I need to check it out but it's a painful job - very prickly!
DeleteFigure of eighty is a nice moth....I used to get them in my other garden until I cut down the tall aspen tree (and dug up the roots and suckers!). Good photos as always, Steve.
ReplyDelete