27th July 2012

The Crescent is an infrequent visitor in the garden and in the past has always been very well marked. This rather plain example took me a long time to work out.

22nd July 2012

At last a run of warm weather makes it feel worthwhile to put the traps out although the huge numbers of midges still being attracted to the light is a bit off-putting. Catches are still nowhere near what I would normally expect at this time of year - 230 moths of 72 species. New for the garden was the distinctive Eana incanana, almost released as an oddly worn Cnephasia.

18th July 2012

Another new moth for the garden in the trap last night and it couldn't be more different to the huge Goat Moth of the previous night - a diminutive Acrolepiopsis assectella or Leek Moth. A rarity in Huntingdonshire, this is just the 4th record, perhaps attracted to the rows of leeks that I'm growing for the first time in the garden!

16th July 2012

A fairly warm, muggy, wet night produced a reasonable crop of moths but also thousands of midges - they formed a layer about half an inch deep at the bottom of the traps. More or less as an afterthought I put the Cos lure inside the MV Robinson trap and pretty well the first moth I found was a large Goat Moth sitting just under the bulb. A first for the garden and a stunning moth. There were a few year firsts amongst the rest of the catch including the second garden record of Large Twin-spot Carpet.

9th July 2012

Another good night with over 350 moths of 82 species. Several new for the year including a beautiful Garden Tiger.

8th July 2012

A good night for micros with several species new for the year including Monochroa lucidella, just the third garden record.

4th July 2012

A warm and humid night resulted in an excellent catch of over 90 species, many new for the year. Cydia fagiglandana is new for the garden and a rarity in Huntingdonshire.

3rd July 2012

With heavier rain and a stronger wind the catch wasn't quite as exciting as the previous night. There were a few new for the year and the third garden record of Nephopterix angustella, last seen here in 2007.

2nd July 2012

With wet but warm weather forecast overnight I very nearly didn't bother trapping - I'm very glad I did. A very smart Rosy Marbled was my reward - not just a first for the garden list but also, I think, for the vice county. There were several new for the year including a very fresh Cydia nigricana, the first here since 2006. There's another warm, wet night forecast for tonight...