22 June 2020

22 June 2020 – Moths and Beethoven

Single-dotted Wave (Idaea dimidiata)

At first I assumed it was a pug.  I was wrong.  The Single-dotted Wave (Idaea dimidiata) is the correct identification despite the fact that there are quite a number of spots on the wings of this moth.  Not a new one for the garden and I see that I made the same mistake when it was first a visitor.  The scientific name refers to one of two mountains with the name ‘Mount Ida’, one in Crete and one in Turkey – the one in Crete was where the gods and goddesses watched the Trojan wars. Dimidiata means to ‘divide into half’.  

Barred Yellow (Cidaria fulvata)

No blending into the background with this brightly coloured moth. Given the name Cideria fulvata by Georg Friedrich Treitschke (1776 – 1842) we can be sure the reference is to Ceres, the goddess who protected agriculture.  Treitschke was a librettist and a translator who revised the opera Fidelio at Beethoven’s request. The moth was named in 1825 and the provenance is certain.  The Barred Yellow feeds, as a larva, on the leaves of Dog-rose and Burnet Rose and probably other roses.

Others moths found on this ‘day-after-the-shortest-night’ included : Poplar Hawkmoth, Burnished Brass, Sandy Carpet, Barred Straw, Buff Ermine, Beautiful Golden Y, Brimstone Marble Minor, Flame Shoulder, Heart and Dart and Silver-ground carpet. Nothing surprising but a fair number of each species for a chilly night.