22 May 2013

20 May 2013 – The very least.

Least Black Arches (Nola confusalis)

The Museums at Night moth-trap was a wild and wind-swept event – it rained solidly all evening, night and most of the following day.  The total catch was a single Waved Umber and a Hebrew Character.  Thanks to those who braved the weather.  Last night brought the first Poplar Hawkmoth (Laothoe populi) and this Least Black Arches (Nola confusalis) which is described as ‘local’.

Its name possibly comes from the name of the town of Nola in Campania, Southern Italy.  If this is correct then it is one of the first moths to be named after a geographical location.  The confusalis refers to the uncertainty regarding the moth’s classification.

This evening the temperature is dropping once again – and it is quite chilly.  The wind and the rain don’t encourage a trap and even the cuckoo in Mrs Wiggins’ wood is sounding rather doleful.