Waxwing

Waxwing
"To see a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour."

From "Auguries of Innocence"

by William Blake

Monday 2 May 2011

Heart and Dart makes an Appearance

Summary of Moth Trapping Session Saturday 30th April, 2011

8.30 pm. until dawn
Minimum Temperature 7.1 degrees centigrade

15w Actinic Skinner Trap

3 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
3 x Heart and Dart (New for Year)

Garden Moth Species 2011 = 14

Heart and Dart has appeared earlier than last year when the first one caught was on 20th May.

Heart and Dart



The photos below are of the "mystery" moth I caught on 23rd April. I know the photos are only record shots but if anyone reading has any idea on its id I would love to know as I have spent ages looking at moth books and the internet and are none the wiser. I thought initially it was a species of carpet as it was holding its wings over its back like a butterfly but I can't find a carpet that matches.

The wing span at the base is about 15mm to give you an idea of size and in some light it almost seems to have an greenish tinge. I've included a photo also of the underside of the moth which is quite distinctive. By the way the moth is fine and was released ages ago - it only looks "comatose" because it had been chilled for a few hours in the fridge!





Nest Update

The female blue tit continued to add an egg a day last week up until Saturday when there were six and she started to incubate the eggs yesterday so I am assuming the clutch is complete.

The wren who was building a nest in ivy a few weeks back has been seen entering the nest several times recently so I am hoping she is incubating eggs too.

The male blackbird is continuing to feed one young bird in the garden so at least one of that brood has survived.

The clematis has burst into flower - here's a photo I took with the telephoto zoom lens after I had finished trying to take newt photos.

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