Garden Birdwatch - Week Starting 4/8/2013

Blackbird 1
Goldfinch 4
House Sparrow 10
Greenfinch 3
Chaffinch 1
Starling 7
Feral Pigeon 1
Blue Tit 4
Coal Tit 1
Great Tit 1

Food: Sunflower Hearts, Seed, Peanuts and Fat Balls
Water

Mammals: Wood Mouse, Squirrel and Hedgehog
Insects: Buff-tailed Bumblebee, Common Carder Bee, Red-tailed Bumblebee & Early Bumblebee

Butterflies:
4/8/13 - 1 Small Tortoiseshell, 4 Peacock & 14 Large White
6/8/13 - 24 Small White, 1 Peacock, 1 Small Tortoiseshell
7/8/13 - 1 Speckled Wood, 2 Peacock & 2 Small Tortoiseshell

Brown Hares at Wilton

After a long day at work, it is a pleasure to drive past 7 or 8 Brown Hares, eating and relaxing on the grass around the car park. It had obviously been a long warm day for this one!

Garden Moth Update - 10/8/2013

A quick summary of Saturday night's catch.

Taxa
0424 Bird-cherry Ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella) 4
0425x Yponomeuta padella/malinellus 3
0462 Ypsolopha sequella 1 new moth for me and the garden
0464 Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella) 5
0647 Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella) 2
0972 Dark Fruit-tree Tortrix (Pandemis heparana) 1
1036 Acleris forsskaleana 1
1209 Pine Bud Moth (Pseudococcyx turionella) 1
1304 Agriphila straminella 9
1305 Agriphila tristella 7
1338 Dipleurina lacustrata 3
1388 Udea lutealis 2
1439 Trachycera advenella 2
1524 Emmelina monodactyla 3
1713 Riband Wave (Idaea aversata) 1
1713 Riband Wave [non-banded form] (Idaea aversata ab. remutata) 2
1728 Garden Carpet (Xanthorhoe fluctuata) 5
1764 Common Marbled Carpet (Chloroclysta truncata)  1
1816 Toadflax Pug (Eupithecia linariata) 2
1839 Bordered Pug (Eupithecia succenturiata) 1
1937 Willow Beauty (Peribatodes rhomboidaria) 9
2026 Vapourer (Orgyia antiqua) 1 new for the garden
2089 Heart and Dart (Agrotis exclamationis) 1
2092 Shuttle-shaped Dart (Agrotis puta) 3
2107 Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba) 47
2109 Lesser Yellow Underwing (Noctua comes) 2
2111 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing (Noctua janthe) 3
2133 Six-striped Rustic (Xestia sexstrigata) 1
2134 Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa) 2
2284x Dark Dagger / Grey Dagger (Acronicta tridens/psi) 1
2293 Marbled Beauty (Cryphia domestica) 1
2321 Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) 8
2343x Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.) 14
2353 Flounced Rustic (Luperina testacea) 1
2441 Silver Y (Autographa gamma) 1
2477 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis) 1

Total: 146 individuals of 36 species

Trachycera advenella

Toadflax Pug

Vapourer

Pine Bud Moth

Ypsolopha sequella 

Garden Moth Update - 9/8/13

Week 24 of the Garden Moth Scheme with an overnight low temperature of 11.0°C

Taxa

0464 Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella) 3

0644 Borkhausenia fuscescens 1 new moth for me and the garden

0647 Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella) 1

0972 Dark Fruit-tree Tortrix (Pandemis heparana) 1

0998 Light Brown Apple Moth (Epiphyas postvittana) 1

1304 Agriphila straminella 4

1305 Agriphila tristella 1

1316 Catoptria falsella 1 new moth for me and the garden

1338 Dipleurina lacustrata 1

1388 Udea lutealis 3

1524 Emmelina monodactyla 1

1713 Riband Wave (Idaea aversata) 1

1713 Riband Wave [non-banded form] (Idaea aversata ab. remutata) 1

1728 Garden Carpet (Xanthorhoe fluctuata) 1

1937 Willow Beauty (Peribatodes rhomboidaria) 3

2089 Heart and Dart (Agrotis exclamationis) 1

2107 Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba) 27

2109 Lesser Yellow Underwing (Noctua comes) 5

2111 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing (Noctua janthe) 27

2130 Dotted Clay (Xestia baja) 1 new moth for me and the garden

2133 Six-striped Rustic (Xestia sexstrigata) 1

2134 Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa) 1

2198 Smoky Wainscot (Mythimna impura) 1 new moth for me and the garden

2321 Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) 6

2343x Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.) 13

2361 Rosy Rustic (Hydraecia micacea) 1

2441 Silver Y (Autographa gamma) 1

2477 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis) 4

Total: 113 indivduals of 28 species

Silver Y

Garden Carpet

Six-stripped Rustic

Catoptria falsella

Painted Lady

On Sunday morning, a Painted Lady butterfly visited our Buddleia.

Wildlife Camera Trap

Watch for super mouse!



Ok, so it maybe time to confess - we have a Hedgehog addicted to peanuts, a wood mouse trying to out smart a Hedgehog and pinch the food. Plus a wise Grey Squirrel who picked the only day the Hedgehog didn't visit and I didn't have the camera switched on to help itself to a whole tray of food. There is never a dull moment watching wildlife.

Aspilapteryx tringipennella



Bee-tastic Lavender

Buff-tailed Bumblebee

Common Carder Bee

New Species - Early Bumblebee (1 of 2 bees to visit, first seen on Sunday 4th August 2013)

Big Butterfly Count - 4/8/2013

On Sunday afternoon, I stood in the garden and counted the visiting butterflies for the nationwide Big Butterfly Count.

The Lavender & Budelia plants were the main focus for the butterflies.

1 Small White
4 Peacock
14 Large White

Garden Birdwatch - Week Starting 28/7/2013

Goldfinch 6
Feral Pigeon 2
House Sparrow 8
Dunnock 2
Coal Tit 1
Blue Tit 1
Greenfinch 1
Starling 20
Blackbird 1
Collared Dove 2

Food: Sunflower Hearts, Seed, Peanuts & Fat Balls.
Water

Mammals: Wood Mouse & Hedgehog
Insects: Red-tailed Bumblebee, Buff-tailed Bumblebee & Common Carder Bee
Amphibian: Common Frog

Butterflies:
28/7/2013 - 1 Red Admiral, 5 Large White & 2 Small Tortoiseshell
30/7/2013 - 4 Small White
1/8/2013 - 2 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Large White
2/8/2013 - 9 Large White & 2 Small Tortoiseshell
3/8/2013 - 3 Peacock, 1 Red Admiral, 6 Small Tortoiseshell, 4 Large White & 5 Small White

Garden Moth Update - 2/8/2013

A quick summary of the catch on Friday with a minimum overnight temperature of 14.2°C

Taxa
0015 Orange Swift (Hepialus sylvina) 1
0138 Lampronia fuscatella 1
0263 Apple Leaf Miner (Lyonetia clerkella) 1
0424 Bird-cherry Ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella) 7
0453 Honeysuckle Moth (Ypsolopha dentella) 1
0464 Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella) 18
0647 Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella) 4
0873 Blastobasis adustella 1
0892 Mompha subbistrigella 2
0994 Clepsis consimilana 2
1001 Lozotaeniodes formosanus 2
1010 Red-barred Tortrix (Ditula angustiorana) 4
1293 Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella) 11
1304 Agriphila straminella 2
1305 Agriphila tristella 3
1338 Dipleurina lacustrata 5
1388 Udea lutealis 2
1405 Mother of Pearl (Pleuroptya ruralis) 1
1524 Emmelina monodactyla 3
1702 Small Fan-footed Wave (Idaea biselata) 1
1713 Riband Wave (Idaea aversata) 1
1713 Riband Wave [non-banded form] (Idaea aversata ab. remutata) 9
1726 Large Twin-spot Carpet (Xanthorhoe quadrifasiata) 1
1742 Yellow Shell (Camptogramma bilineata) 1
1754 Phoenix (Eulithis prunata) 1
1835 White-spotted Pug (Eupithecia tripunctaria) 1
1837 Bordered Pug (Eupithecia succenturiata) 1
1906 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) 4
1917 Early Thorn (Selenia dentaria) 2
1937 Willow Beauty (Peribatodes rhomboidaria) 18
2050 Common Footman (Eilema lurideola) 1
2077 Short-cloaked Moth (Nola cucullatella) 1
2092 Shuttle-shaped Dart (Agrotis puta) 1
2107 Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba) 26
2109 Lesser Yellow Underwing (Noctua comes) 2
2111 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing (Noctua janthe) 21
2128 Double Square-spot (Xestia triangulum) 1
2130 Dotted Clay (Xestia baja) 1
2154 Cabbage Moth (Mamestra brassicae) 1
2199 Common Wainscot (Mythimna pallens) 1
2284x Grey / Dark Dagger (Acronicta psi agg) 1
2318 Dun-bar (Cosmia trapezina) 1
2321 Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) 14
2337x Marbled Minor agg. (Oligia strigilis agg.) 4
2343x Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.) 14
2381 Uncertain (Hoplodrina alsines) 3
2434 Burnished Brass (Diachrysia chrysitis) 6
2441 Silver Y (Autographa gamma) 2
2477 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis) 2

I have a few still to identify....

Orange Swift

Yellow Shell

Apple Leaf Miner

Honeysuckle Moth

Bordered Pug

Wildlife Camera Trap

After losing out on Friday night's food, the Hedgehog came early on Saturday night and ate all the food in one sitting.

Now the dish is empty, but he has left a tiny morsel for a mouse?

No!

Wildlife Camera Trap

On Friday night I put out the Hedgehog food as per usual at 10 pm and returned to the house. I watched through the window waiting for the Hedgehog to limbo under the garden gate, head down the path, across the grass to the water dish. Then go to the food for the first snack of the night.

This is a regular route taken everynight since his daily visits started in June 2013. However, the night sky was lit up with fireworks from the Stockton International Riverside Festival and the louds bangs could be heard over the 1.5 mile distance.

Usually by 10:40 pm, the Hedgehog has been and gone, but on Friday he was late. Whether the celebrations delayed his visit, but I as watching the gate the food dish suddenly tipped up vertically and then fell back to his original position. Had I missed his arrival?

After looking through some binoculars I found the following garden visitor and a thief..............

Would they be any food left for the Hedgehog?

The answer was NO and the little thief came back once more to double-check the dish was empty.

Next question - would the Hedgehog learn?

Butterflies at South Gare

During my lunchtime yesterday, I drove to South Gare near Redcar to enjoy the sunshine and look for Butterflies. Pulling-in along the road, I decided to do a 15 minute Big Butterfly Count.

Summary of count.....

Large White 18
Common Blue 15
Meadow Brown 8
Grayling 5
Large Skipper 3
Green-veined White 1
Peacock 1
Small White 1

I drove on further stopping closeby a large group of flowering plants hoping to take a few photographs. There were a few Grayling butterflies present, but they spent much the time resting on me, so I couldn't take their photographs.

Peacock

Small Copper