Here in Langport the catch in the trap was poor despite an overnight temperature of 10˚C. 3 new species for the year - Red Twinspot Carpet, Common White Wave and Waved Umber. The only Noctuids were Hebrew Character and Common Quaker.

A better night night last night before the sea mist rolled in. 21 species including Pale Mottled Willow, Flame Shoulder, Nut-tree Tussock, Oak-tree Pug, Waved Umber, Muslin Moth and V-Pug. It must have been a pug night as I had 17 pugs in the trap, the most I have ever had here, out of a total of 56 moths.

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min temp 11 degrees

It was also a better night here with 48 moths of 20 species including four new for the year here - Purple Thorn, Coxcomb Prominent, Lesser Swallow Prominent and a Twenty-plume Moth. As I write this the forecast rain has just arrived.

A better night last night with a number of new species for the year. These included two possible migrants in Silver Y and Dark Sword Grass as well as Brindled Pug and Lesser Swallow Prominent both of which I failed to record last year.

After a number of very poor nights i did think of declaring Westonzoyland a Moth Free Zone however last night was a little bit better with 1 Chocolate-tip 2 Clouded Drab 1 Double -striped Pug 1 Early Grey 2 Hebrew Characters and 1 Lime Hawk-moth.

Still lower numbers than I was expecting last night but with two firsts for the year, Muslin Moth and Shuttle Shaped Dart.

Last night (Saturday) was a huge improvement on Friday night with a minimum temperature of 7˚C in the garden. New species for the year were Garden Carpet, Shoulder-stripe, Brimstone Moth, Swallow Prominent, Nut-tree Tussock and Spectacle.

Today I found 10 Scarlet Tiger larvae basking and feeding in the sun (around 1015 am) in Curry Rivel. 5 were on Comfrey and 5 on Stinging Nettle. Later, on the allotment, I was driven into the greenhouse by a heavy shower and found 3 Drinker larvae feeding on Couch Grass - the greenhouse has been closed all winter so they must be thirsty!

Scarlet Tiger larva feeding on Stinging Nettle


Drinker Moth larva feeding on Couch Grass

Very poor night for moths. Only 3 moths (all Hebrew Characters) in the trap at midnight and a total of 4 species and 20 moths for the whole night. Bright moonlight and cool temperatures!

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 11 degrees

With the warmer night we had 35 moths of 16 species including the following firsts for 2010 - Waved Umber, Pebble Prominent, Brindled Pug, Pale Pinion and Red Twin-spot Carpet.

I was hoping for a better night last night but the catch remained disapointing with no new species for the year and only a scattering of the usual suspects.

A generally poor catch here last night - bright moonlight and 0˚C min temp. However there were 2 new species for the year - Muslin Moth and Knot-grass.

Muslin 1
Knot-grass 1
Hebrew Character 4
Clouded Drab 2
Common Quaker 2
Small Quaker 1

The forecast is better for the next few nights - possibly a southerly wind in the middle of the week. One can only hope!

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 2 degrees

Warm days but cold nights and last night we had only 19 moths of 7 species but they included a Great Prominent only the second we have had in eleven years trapping here.  Summer is coming - our House Martins have returned !

I found a Scarlet Tiger larva in the process of pupation this evening, towards the base of a leaf of comfrey, head down and having attached itself to the leaf by the tail.

Robin Clatworthy and Mike Ridge had a good night's trapping at Wych Lodge on 9 April, with 489 individuals of 32 species in 5 traps (3 mv, 2 actinic).

Frosted Green 12, March Moth 8, Shoulder Stripe 4, Water Carpet 11, Brindled Pug 18, Early Tooth-striped 24, Early Thorn 11, Brindled Beauty 50, Engrailed 22, Early Moth 1, Red Chestnut 2, Dotted Border 1, Streamer 2, Oak Beauty 2, Dotted Chestnut 2, Chestnut 6, White-marked 7, Satellite 1, Lunar Marbled Brown 1, Great Prominent 1, Nut-tree Tussock 1, Small Quaker 55, Blossom Underwing 2, Clouded Drab 71, Twinspot Quaker 10, Common Quaker 100, Powdered Quaker 1, Hebrew Character 33, Early Grey 10, Tawny Pinion 1, Herald 1.


1927 Brindled Beauty (male)


2169 Powdered quaker


2243 Early Grey


2260 Dotted Chestnut

Mike Ridge's first public moth night is on May 7th at Cothelstone Hill ST185366 19.30 Meet at car park.
More details on the Somerset Moth Group and BC events page on this website.

A fairly quiet season so far at Merriott, with the only species of note a Red Swordgrass on 27th March.

I have amended my blog - it now reads refrigerator.

I found a Dotted Border while out walking the dog this morning and had my first Small White butterfly in the garden this afternoon.

A Lunar Marbled Brown was my 30th macro species of the year last night. Although the season has seemed slow this year with many cold nights I am finding that my catches are holding up well. It was only in 2007 that I have had appreciably more species by this time and that ended up as the worst year for some time. I have been suprised to find that I have caught more Hebrew Characters and Common Quakers this year than I have ever caught before at the same stage.
However the most talked about item on the blog in our household recently was John's comment that he kept some December Moth eggs in the 'fridge. Opinions have been heated and divided as to whether the apostrophe was necessary!

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 3 degrees

Also 10 species including two firsts for 2010 - Swallow Prominent and Frosted Green.

10 species last night including first Frosted Green of the year

The moth trap has been dire recently - nothing new for a couple of weeks. However spring butterflies are emerging - we have had Orange-tip in the garden (last Monday & Tuesday, yesterday) and around the hedgerows on the High Ham range (yesterday) where we also saw Green-veined White. First Speckled Wood of the year above Combe Lane yesterday.

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 2 degrees

Two firsts in the trap for 2010 here - Muslin Moth and Early Tooth-striped and yesterday in Curry Rivel we saw our first Orange Tip.

First reasonable catch of the year. 67 moths, 11 species including the first Herald for my garden.

I had a female December Moth before Christmas and there were eggs in the trap, so I kept a few in the refrigerator. They started to hatch on 10th. This one is on Hawthorn.

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 5 degrees

A dull little moth at an actinic light in a window, a Mottled Grey, which we have only had once before here, in March 2000, when we had five records.

Unusual numbers of garden moths here - 5 tonight (2 Early Thorn, Early Grey, Common Quaker, Clouded Drab) and 3 on the 6th.  Nothing odd it would seem, but in 3 previous years of trapping here I have never recorded more than a single moth in a night in April before.

Cockles Fields SWT reserve, ST64
10 Common Quaker
2 Small Quaker
7 Twin-spotted Quaker
1 Hebrew Character
1 Powdered Quaker
7 Clouded Drab
2 Chestnut
4 Brindled Beauty
1 Early Tooth-striped
6 March Moth
2 Diurnea fagella
1 Emmelina monodactyla

Also found a melanic Diurnea fagella on the window at home this evening.

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 6 degrees

Suddenly its Spring !.  Last night we had many more of the "usual suspects" and five firsts for 2010 - Brindled Beauty, Water Carpet, Nut-tree Tussock, Lunar Marbled Brown and an Angle-shades

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 4 degrees

A delightful little green Tortrix in the trap - Acleris literana and by day our first spring butterfly a Small White.

Whitefield, Wiveliscombe - Min Temp 3 degrees

In the trap we had a very fresh Red Chestnut and at an actinic light in a window a Diurnea fagella.

There have been a few better nights recently and the moths are starting to appear. First for the year last night were Early Thorn, Double Striped Pug and Tawny Pinion. This is the third year in a row that I have now recorded Tawny Pinion after first seeing it in 2008.

First night of the year exceeding 100 moths at Weston woods. 116 in all recorded on night of 1st/2nd including 40 March Moth, 25 Hebrew Character, 30 Small Quaker and 8 Diurnea fagella. Most notable absentee in the last month has been Oak Beauty.