Shandy Hall Moths
13 March 2017
13 March 2017 – The Buds of March
Crab Apple buds There was a frost last night. Today the temperature is forecast to rise to 14 degrees. Yesterday our writer-in-residence, Craig Dworkin, saw an adder basking in the sunshine near Levisham and I heard and saw toads croaking in East Cowton, near Northallerton. Things are stirring. The garden – the source of life […]
7 December 2016
7 December 2016 – And the days grow short
Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata) November has gone and December is here – and just one moth to show for it? And which species is it that has appeared at the kitchen window? Driving home from York gives a fair indication of whether there is any moth activity, but each time a few fluttering ghosts […]
5 October 2016
5 October 2016 – Flying Tonight
Flying tonight Another clear sky and another overnight drop in temperature. Hopes were not high for last night’s trap, especially as I realised at 9.30 that I had forgotten to set it. The head-torch battery had run down to produce barely a glimmer but, as I thought I knew my way around the garden and […]
19 September 2016
19 September 2016 – Lights and Shades
Angle Shades (Phlogophora meticulosa) Lights have been a problem over the last couple of weeks. The mercury vapour light has been positioned in three different spots in the garden and on each occasion the result has been the same – wasps, crane flies, sexton beetles all in abundance, but very few moths. The actinic lamp […]
7 September 2016
7 September 2016 – Seized with a Vapourer
The Vapourer (Orgyia antiqua) The Vapourer (Orgyia antiqua) has been identified in the quarry garden at Shandy Hall. A male of the species was found clinging to the outside of last night’s trap and was immediately identifiable even though I had only seen illustrations before. The two bright white spots on the fore-wings stand out […]
3 September 2016
3 September 2016 – Bittersweet and Strawberry Leaves
Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa) Wasps and more wasps. There seem to be hardly any places in the gardens where wasps aren’t nesting and yesterday morning there were over 50 wandering aimlessly around the egg-boxes in the trap. Add half-a-dozen sexton beetles, crane flies (of five or six varieties) and caddis flies (ditto), then mix in […]
15 August 2016
14 August 2016 – 400th Species at Shandy Hall
Nettle-tap (Anthophila fabriciana) This trap is the first since Tung Chau, our UPenn student, left after her stay as intern at Shandy Hall. She would have recognised all of the different species that came to the light apart from two, the first of which is shown above – a Nettle-tap. This small micro moth can […]
1 August 2016
1 August 2016 – Old Lady in Earth Closet
Old Lady (Mormo maura) Tung Chau, our University of Pennsylvania student, has now finished her time at Shandy Hall. Over the last two months she has managed to identify 25 new species of moths for the gardens – a fine contribution to the total list of 398. I looked through the list on the Yorkshire […]
31 July 2016
31 July 2016 – China Clay
Double-striped Pug (Gymnoscelis rufifasciata) My final, farewell trap of the summer attracted a great number of species, some of which have enjoyed a steady presence since my very first week (Diamond Back, Poplar Hawk-moth, Snout, Flame Shoulder), while others have come and gone (Smoky Wainscot, White Ermine, Double Square-spot). It is hard to believe that […]
29 July 2016
29 July 2016 – La Plume de mon Jardin
Brown Plume Moth (Stenoptilia pterodactyla) This magnificent plume moth from the trap on 13 July was confirmed as a Stenoptilia pterodactyla, a new species (number 397) for Shandy Hall. The wings on this moth, so sculptural at rest it is hard to fathom how they are able to beat in the air, are held at […]
28 July 2016
28 July 2016 – Pleasant-Looking Pod Lover
(Caryocolum blandella) Another uncommon moth found! The Caryocolum blandella, despite its distinct appearance, took a long time to identify because it did not appear in the sources I normally consult. A black ‘seatbelt’ wraps around its basal part; it dilates towards the tornus and is interrupted in the middle by the white ground color. The […]
27 July 2016
27 July 2016 – A Moth Like Agate
(Ancylis achatana) The moth above, Ancylis achatana discovered on 21 July, has been confirmed by Charlie Fletcher and is also new to the gardens at Shandy Hall. So many of our new species are found outside the trap, on the plastic guard that holds the light. If not there then on the white sheet that the […]
Recent Moths
- Rise of the AI Naturalist
- Best Moths for a Haunted Abbey
- The Real and Fake Deaths of Moths
- The Colonizers of Yorkshire
- Glamour in the Dark: Two Newcomers Arrive at Shandy Hall
- 25 July 2023 – Collective Noun for Hawkmoths
- MOTH LIST to August 2023 with links
- 28 July 2023 – TRIPLE New Species Alert!
- 18 July 2023 – A Golden…Plusia!
- 13 July 2023 – Arts and Sciences
- 10 July 2023 – Rise of the Yellow Underwings
- 4 July 2023 – Cold-weather Catch
