More Pammene giganteana....

I did a `whistle-stop` tour of four more local sites around Llanelli today: all were in SN40 and SN50 and were chosen due to the known presence of oak trees - not a difficult issue in Carmarthenshire. Pammene giganteana was attracted to lures at all of the localities and I suspect that this species will prove to be widespread wherever there are oak trees in the county and, indeed, in the rest of SW Wales. Hitherto (generally, at a UK level), it was considered to be a very scarce and local species, but the use of pheromone lures has changed that perception.

1. Stradey Woods - 7 attracted within 5 minutes of hanging up the trap; 2. N. of Cencoed-bach - just one (but I did n`t wait for long, as I merely wanted to establish presence. There were also council workers nearby and I could n`t be bothered to engage in conversation!); 3. Llangennech - 3 quickly attracted to the lure and finally, at the car parking area at Troserch Woods (N. of Llangennech) - 6 attracted. Sites 1 & 3 involved c 5 mins walk, whilst at sites 2 and 4 I merely hung up the lure close to the parked car. All localities were visited from c 11.00 am to 12.30 pm.

                                          Above: a couple of pics from Site 1 (Stradey Woods).

Given Adam`s decent catch, I may well trap at home tonight. Brimstone butterflies are out - I had a female near Furnace (Llanelli) on Saturday and a male at Stradey Woods today.