Autumn e-newsletter September 2019
Photos Welcome to our Autumn Newsletter
Scotch Argus by Jessie Wormell Painted Lady by Shona Greig Merveille du Jour by John Knowler Small Tortoiseshell by Fiona Govan
Contributions to our INSIDE THIS ISSUE newsletters are always Dates for your Diary & Autumn Work Parties………………………………….2-3 welcome. Please use the contact details New - Small Grants Scheme to create Pollinator Habitat……………..………3 below to get in touch! Meadow making/Small Skippers on the Move………………………………….4 Saving Northern Brown Argus in the Scottish Borders……….…...…………..5
Munching Caterpillars Scotland..………………………………..………….……6 If you do not wish to receive The Magic of High Summer Mothing…………………………………………..7-8 our newsletter in the future, simply reply to this message Reedbed Adventures………………………………………………..………….9-10 with the word ’unsubscribe’ in Oak Processionary Moth in Scotland - an unwelcome visitor?.…….……11-12 the title - thank you. Big Butterfly Count 2019 - Scotland’s Results.…………………………...…...13
Contact Details: Butterfly Conservation Scotland t: 01786 447753
Balallan House e: [email protected] Allan Park w: www.butterfly-conservation.org/scotland Stirling FK8 2QG
Dates for your Diary
Moth Night 2019 - 26th to 28th September Moth Night 2019 will take place between 26th and 28th September 2019. The themes for the event will be Clifden Nonpareil and migrants, and of course it will be an opportunity to celebrate the 20th Moth Night since the launch of the event in 1998. For more information go to https://www.mothnight.info/
Scottish Members’ Day – Saturday, 5th October 2019 Our annual Scottish Members’ Day will be held at the Battleby Conference Centre, by Perth on Saturday, 5th October 2019. This is a day-long event for our Scottish members with an exciting programme of butterfly and moth talks and an extended lunchbreak with display stands and activities. S&W Scotland Branch will have on their stand a selection of specimen pots available for purchase. Morning and afternoon refreshments will be provided as well as a delicious light lunch. The cost of the day is £15 and can be booked online https://butterfly-conservation.org/SMD
Autumn Work Parties: Northern Brown Argus Work Party - Sunday 6th October 2019 A work party to cut gorse at Carrick Foreshore, Dumfries & Galloway to help butterflies and moths and especially, the Northern Brown Argus. If you are planning to come, please contact Jim Asher [email protected] and mobile 07968 134681. For more info go to https://butterfly-conservation.org/events/south-west-scotland
Northern Brown Argus Work Party - Wednesday 9th October 2019 A work party to cut gorse at Carrick Foreshore, Dumfries & Galloway to help butterflies and moths and especially, the Northern Brown Argus. If you are planning to come, please contact Jim Asher [email protected] and mobile 07968 134681. For more info go to https://butterfly-conservation.org/events/south-west-scotland-0
Bog Squad Work Party – Saturday, 12th October 2019 Bog Squad work party at Wester Moss, near Stirling to clear scrub to help the Large Heath butterfly. For more info go to http://bogsquad.weebly.com/work-parties.html
Beautiful Snout Work Party - Sunday 20th October 2019 A volunteer work party to clear rhododendron and spruce from a beautiful oak wood near Aberfoyle that is home to the rare Beautiful Snout moth. Dun Dubh Woods, Aberfoyle. For more info go to https://butterfly-conservation.org/events/scotland-save-our-beautiful-snout -volunteer-work-party-0
Bog Squad Work Party - Saturday 2nd November 2019 The Bog Squad will be removing invasive scrub at Kirkconnell Flow near Dumfries in order to protect its valuable peatland habitat and help the Large Heath butterfly. For more info go to http://bogsquad.weebly.com/work-parties.html
Northern Brown Argus Work Party - Wednesday 8th January 2020 A work party to cut gorse at Carrick Foreshore, Dumfries & Galloway to help butterflies and moths and especially, the Northern Brown Argus. If you are planning to come, please contact Jim Asher [email protected] and mobile 07968 134681. For more info go to https://butterfly-conservation.org/events/south-west-scotland-1
2 Dates for your Diary/Branch News
Scottish Recorders’ Gathering - Saturday, 14th March 2020 The date for 2020’s Scottish Recorders’ Gathering is Saturday, 14th March and will be held at Battleby Conference Centre. More information to follow.
BC events in Scotland Don’t forget to check out our website at www.butterfly-conservation.org/scotland as well as your local Branch website for up-to-date lists of fieldtrips, events etc: Highlands & Islands – http://butterfly-conservation.org/313/highlands-and-islands-branch.html South West Scotland – http://butterfly-conservation.org/311/glasgow--sw-scotland-branch.html East Scotland – http://butterfly-conservation.org/312/east-scotland-branch.html And of course Branch Facebook and Twitter pages too! ______NEW - Grants to create Pollinator Habitat Butterfly Conservation’s East Scotland Branch has launched a new small grants scheme. They will be awarding five grants of up to £200 each to assist the creation of pollinator habitat. The grants could be used to purchase seeds, plants, compost, raised beds etc. Successful applicants will be matched with the nearest committee member who will offer advice and support. For more details and to apply follow this link https://butterfly- conservation.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/Grant%20application.pdf Please note, the deadline for applications is 31st January 2020.
______S&W Branch There is a new caterpillar field guide coming out in the Spring https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/field-guide-to-the-caterpillars-of-great-britain-and-ireland- 9781472933584/
Could we please ask people if there would be any interest in us arranging a group buy? As per usual we would aim to be no dearer than anybody else (hopefully cheaper) & any profits would go to the Branch/BCS. If interested please contact Scott Donaldson at [email protected]
3 Project Updates
Make meadows with us in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Hamilton. Wildflower meadows in parks can be havens for insects, and butterflies and moths are no exception. Most parks have tightly-mown grass, but this autumn we will be beginning to carry out work to improve these spaces for butterflies. If you’re interested in hearing more, please contact Anthony on [email protected]
Small Skipper on the move The Small Skipper is one of the species expanding into Scotland. Over the past few years it has steadily made its way up both the East and West coasts, and is now even found in greenspaces throughout Edinburgh. Fortunately for the butterfly, the plants its caterpillars feed upon are fairly common grasses including Yorkshire-fog, Cock’s-foot, Meadow Foxtail and Timothy. What’s unusual about the Small Skipper though is that the female lays her eggs inside a leaf sheath on the plant – between the Small Skipper by Mairi McIntosh - Holyrood July2019 stem and the leaf. Each caterpillar eats its egg on hatching, and immediately spins a dense silk cocoon around itself. It remains inside the cocoon, surrounded by its siblings, until the following spring. In Spring the caterpillars disperse from the sheath and spin silken tubes on grass leaves, from which they feed. Eventually they pupate at the base of the plant, and adults are mostly seen in July and August. This life cycle means that when we go to manage meadows, we need to consider leaving long grass intact in some parts over winter. Most meadows are managed by an annual cut of all areas to Small Skipper by Mairi McIntosh - Holyrood July 2019 allow wildflowers to flourish. But leaving a portion – say one third of the site – unmown in autumn will allow Small Skipper and other species which rely on intact vegetation over winter to persist. If you want to become involved in managing meadows in central Scotland, email Anthony on [email protected] Anthony McCluskey Conservation Officer
4 Project Updates
Saving the Northern Brown Argus in the Scottish Borders
The Saving the Northern Brown Argus in the Scottish Borders project aims to secure a better future for one of Scotland’s most beautiful butterflies. The Scottish range of the Northern Brown Argus is largely eastern, with colonies found along coasts and further inland where it is associated with unimproved grasslands. The Scottish Borders area is one of the most important for the butterfly in the UK with many typically small colonies found throughout the region.
Over the last three years a team of local Butterfly Conservation volunteers has been undertaking detailed surveys of Northern Brown Argus colonies in the Borders, determining the status of many sites and assessing threats. Unfortunately, changing agricultural practices and new tree-planting schemes threaten key habitat for Northern Brown Argus in the Borders. Many sites are being invaded by bracken and gorse following removal of grazing stock and good quality unimproved grassland has been lost to new forestry plantations.
The new project will build on survey data knowledge to target areas for conservation work. Much focus will be on raising awareness of the loss of species-rich grasslands and highlighting the area’s importance for the Northern Brown Argus.
During the project, work will be carried out to improve habitat for the butterfly on at least five sites. Two workshops will also be held during the 2020 flight season to encourage further surveys and interest in the butterfly. For further information about the project please contact David Hill at [email protected] The Saving the Northern Brown Argus in the Scottish Borders project is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Butterfly Conservation East Branch members.
5 Project Updates Munching Caterpillars Scotland These last couple of months have mainly been a time for recruitment and preparation for the second year of the schools’ programme. After the first year there has inevitably been a series of tweaks that have also needed to be worked into the school programme. This academic year we are working in the following four local authorities: Edinburgh City Council, Glasgow City Council, North Lanarkshire and West Lothian at a total of 16 schools. Visits are already taking place at five schools between now and December. When not working on the schools’ programme, Munching Caterpillars Scotland has been to a series of community events in the Central Belt; visiting community gardens, greenspaces and the Glasgow Museum Resource Centre. Collaboration with BC volunteers has really helped the success of these events.
Munching Caterpillars Event at Kelvingrove Museum
Additionally two training workshops have been delivered at the Falls of Clyde Nature Reserve to Scottish Wildlife Trust WATCH leaders to help them have more confidence to run butterfly and moth activity workshops with their youth groups.
If you would like more information about Munching Caterpillars Scotland please get in touch with Polly Phillpot [email protected]
6 Conservation News
The Magic of High Summer Mothing The best of the summer weather and consequent moth trapping was concertinaed into a heady week or so of action at the end of July. Following a successful long weekend on Speyside, and with many migrant species arriving further south in the UK, conditions seemed perfect to trap on the Fife-shire coast and, on the 31st July, I headed out to Kincraig Point with expectancy levels high. I set up my usual six lights in warm and calm evening conditions and then spent some time ‘dusking’ with a net catching a few Cydia nigricana, a species surprisingly not recorded in Fife previously. As night fell I began working my way from one light to the next to start logging arriving species. One of the first moths of the night was a cracking Bedstraw Hawk-moth my second of the week, this was a harbinger of what was to become perhaps my favourite night trapping in Scotland this year.
About an hour into the night an unfamiliar Tortrix moth landed in front of me. It looked distinctive so the fact I didn’t recognise it was somewhat puzzling. I quickly potted it up and returned to the car to consult the literature I had with me. It was unequivocally clear that it was Eucosma pupillana, a species known from a few scattered populations in southern England as far north as Yorkshire and never recorded in Scotland. Somewhat surprised and extremely pleased I returned to make another round of the lights where I could see another individual of E. pupillana inside a trap.
Eucosmo pupillana by Nigel Voaden - Kincraig, Fife Square-spot Dart by Nigel Voaden, Kincraig, Fife
Before I grabbed a couple of hours sleep in the car I potted up an interesting Euxoa which on examination in the morning proved to be a smart Square-spot Dart, a new species for me and one which, although common on the Isle of May, is rarely recorded on mainland Fife.
In the pre-dawn I began methodically checking through the contents of each of the six lights and the haul was impressive. A single Confused was one of my hoped-for target species whilst a second Bedstraw Hawk-moth was in another trap. Two of the scarce Dotted Rustic were added as was Fife’s second ever Least Yellow Underwing and further evidence of migration was present in the shape of two Nutmeg (just two previous Fife records). Throw in a supporting cast including Barred Rivulet, Annulet, Bordered Sallow, Lyme Grass, Garden Dart and Shuttle-shaped Dart and the macro-moth assemblage was impressive, 84 species in total.
The micros were just as well represented, the final count yielded an incredible seven Eucosmo pupillana and two more species were added to the Fife list with Depressaria
7 Conservation News sordidatella confirmed later by dissection and a cracking Eudonia lineola being somewhat easier to identify. New to me also was Carycolum vicinella and several Agonopterix kaekeritziana was the first time I had seen the adult of this species. A total of 72 micro-moth species were recorded with a grand total of 156 species for the night, I have had higher diversity nights, but rarely have they included so many quality moths. The following night I needed to catch Eudonia lineola by Nigel Voaden - Kincraig, Fife up with some sleep and ran just one trap overnight in my often productive Burntisland garden. It was another good night with 101 species recorded, the third night of the year to break the 100 species barrier in the garden. A Single Dotted Carpet was a good addition to the garden list whilst a Hummingbird Hawk-moth was seen nectaring during the day. But it was the micros which starred. A plume moth with all the right features for Hellinsia osteodactylus and a Dichrorampha species which looked a good candidate for montanana were both retained for dissection to confirm as both would be further additions to the Fife list. The plume was confirmed but the Dichrorampha proved to be an altogether more exciting species, D. simpliciana, new to Fife and also with few previous Scotland records – and new to me too!
Hellinsia osteodactylus by Nigel Voaden - Burntisland, Fife White Satin Moth by Nigel Voaden - Tentsmuir, Fife 2nd August I was running a public event at arguably Fife’s premier moth location, Tentsmuir NNR. It was the last night in the forecast run of warm weather and again expectations were high. The hoped for Tentsmuir specialities including Portland Moth, Coast Dart, Angle-striped Sallow, Shore Wainscot and Lyme Grass all appeared. Less expected were two more new moths for Fife, Peacock Moth and White Satin Moth, the latter with only a handful of previous Scottish records but expanding its range northwards in England currently so perhaps not entirely unexpected. A Blood-vein was also a good record, and was new to Fife only this year as part of an influx into Scotland. And perhaps most surprisingly there was yet another Eucosma pupillana which really does raise the question, where have they all come from? Trapping efforts next year will hopefully clarify whether the species is indeed locally established or whether these were all migrants. So ended an exceptional three nights trapping in which eight new species were added to the Fife list including one altogether new for Scotland. I may have to wait some time for a run like this again but who knows what 2020 will bring. Nigel Voaden (VC85 Moth Recorder)
8 Conservation News Reedbed Adventures In July 2018 Berwickshire had a visit from a well-known moth-man from Bridge of Allan and, as can often happen with visitors to even well-recorded areas, his light traps revealed some new species for the vice county. One of these was the Southern Wainscot, a very scarcely recorded species in Scotland and at the time not known between southern Northumberland and the Forth coast. It’s a reedbed moth, the larvae feeding on Common Reed and Reed Canary-grass, and it was in the Mire Loch reedbed at St Abbs where he found it. This National Nature Reserve was for a while the location of a Rothamsted Insect Survey trap and has been well-recorded by others over the years and more than 15,000 moth records have been amassed for the area; new species finds are uncommon.
Southern Wainscot by Barry Prater (St Abbs) Southern Wainscot distribution in Berwickshire 2019 This inspired me to search for the moth at other potentially suitable sites in Berwickshire, even though reedbeds are in rather short supply here. However, I knew of some such places and the NBN Scotland Atlas together with Michael Braithwaite’s superb book ‘Berwickshire BSBI Botanical Site Register’ added several more. So the hunt was on. As seems often to be the case, butterflies and moths which are extending their range northwards colonise coastal areas first, maybe because of milder conditions. My idea was to search potential sites by moving Smoky Wainscot (left) and Southern Wainscot (right) by Barry Prater (Coldingham Loch) progressively away from the coast and see what I could discover. I started by checking the St Abbs
9 Conservation News site as I had yet to see the species and yes, it was still there. Next was Coldingham Loch, just 2km away and no further from the sea – and there it was again! The third site was some 18km inland and I wondered whether it might be a step too far, but I was not disappointed as an impressive 10 moths came to my traps. Finally, I went to a large reedbed about 27km from the sea and once more the moth showed up. At that point time ran out but there are more sites, some much further inland, waiting to be examined when the moth is on the wing again next year.
Southern Wainscot by Barry Prater (Middlestots Pond) While this species does appear to be extending its range northwards, the records from Northumberland and the Forth since about 2010 suggest that it would have also been around in Berwickshire at least since then. It is very much like the extremely common Smoky Wainscot and so can be easily overlooked (the ‘furrowed brow’ effect when looked at head-on is probably the best ID tip). That it has now been found over quite a wide area here in just one season hints at it being even more widespread.
Barry Prater
______
10 Conservation News
Oak Processionary Moth in Scotland - an unwelcome visitor? Oak Processionary Moth (OPM) is a native of southern and central Europe that has been spreading north and has now become established as far north as The Netherlands and northern Germany. Adults males occasionally appear as immigrants on the south and east coast of England, usually in August, the first being recorded in 1983. All these immigrants have been males.
However, in the early 2000’s it was accidentally introduced into west London most likely as over-wintering eggs on semi-mature oak trees imported for planting in landscaping projects.
Although a native species in Europe it is considered a pest in parts of the continent as it occasionally defoliates oaks. It can also be a human and animal health hazard due to the minute, severely urticating hairs on the larger caterpillars that are readily dispersed on local air currents and can cause persistent or severe symptoms in some people and pets.
In 2006 a government-led programme of survey and control sought to eradicate the population from five west London boroughs where OPM had become established. However, in 2011 Forestry Commission gave up this programme stating it was no longer practicable to eradicate the species from the core outbreak zone and progressed to a containment strategy. Just outwith London, populations were found in Pangbourne, Berkshire in 2010, and breeding confirmed in the Guildford area of Surrey in 2015.
However, in July 2019, the UK Plant Health Service intercepted a number of cases of OPM caterpillars on recently planted oak trees imported from the Netherlands and Germany. Around 60 interceptions have now been identified in the UK mostly in England but with three locations in Wales and six in Scotland. This is the first time the moth has been recorded in Scotland.
The six Scottish sites where OPM has been intercepted are: Inverness Royal Academy, Culduthel Road, Inverness, IV2 6RE (NH665420) New housing development, Houldsworth Street, Glasgow, G3 8ED (NS576656) Recycling and Energy Recovery Centre, 3 Whitehill Road, Musselburgh, EH22 1SX (NT323707) Donibristle Gateway, Dalgety Bay, KY11 9JN (NT154840) Wards Park, Ward Road, Brechin, DD9 7AG (NO606604) Pinkston Road, Sighthill, Glasgow, G4 0DD (NS599670)
In addition there are concerns over a seventh Scottish site due to the large number of oaks planted but so far OPM has not been intercepted: Calderwood, East Calder, EH53 0ET (NT098685)
To reduce the chance of further interceptions, strengthened measures on the import of most species of oak into Scotland have now been introduced.
OPM overwinters as an egg. When small the caterpillars are inconspicuous but become more visible as they get bigger and venture further down the tree to build their nests.
11 Conservation News
Nests range in size from a golf ball up to a rugby ball and can occur anywhere on the trunk or branches of the tree. The caterpillars move about on the trunk and on branches in a characteristic procession, often 2 to 3 caterpillars thick, as they travel between their food sources and nests. In England adult moths emerge from middle of July to mid-September and are attracted to light, they may fly a little later in Scotland. They are superficially similar to Pale Eggar, therefore any Pale Eggars reported in or close to the infected areas need to be given a second look.
Oak Processionary Moth Pale Eggar
For more information including photographs of caterpillars, their nests and adults as well as similar looking species see https://www.observatree.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/15_0044_-One-off-literature- Observatree-Pest-Disease-Field-Guides-OPM_wip14-3.pdf
OPM is a notifiable insect so if you find it you must report it. If you suspect OPM, you should not attempt to touch or move infected material yourself as the nests and caterpillars can pose a risk to human health.
Please report sightings to: Tom Prescott Email [email protected] Tel: 01540 661469 Mobile 07979 785665 who will pass them on to SASA (Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture) a division of the Scottish Government Agriculture and Rural Delivery Directorate who are seeking to monitor the current situation.
______
12 Big Butterfly Count
Big Butterfly Count Results - Scotland The Painted Lady had a phenomenal summer in Scotland, with some huge counts, particularly from the Firth of Forth and other parts of the east coast during late July and early August. These butterflies, probably arriving from Scandinavia, then dispersed more widely through the Central Belt and on to the Ayrshire coastline. The total number of Painted Ladies recorded in Scotland during the 2019 Count was more than 160 times greater than in the same period in 2018! What's more, participants north of the border saw far more Painted Ladies than those down south; on average people in Scotland saw 14 Painted Ladies per count compared with less than three per count in England. The Small Tortoiseshell also did much better in Scotland than in England. It achieved 2nd place in Scotland, with numbers up 126% on 2018, and on average more than twice as many Small Tortoiseshells were seen per count in Scotland compared to England. Many other species fared rather poorly however. As was seen elsewhere across the UK, populations of all three whites decreased markedly (all by over 50%), while the Peacock also fell back from the very high numbers recorded in Scotland in summer 2018. Its abundance was down by one third, but the species still managed third place. Scotland saw the biggest increase in participation in Big Butterfly Count 2019, with the number of counts and the number of contributors both more than doubling from 2018.
Scotland’s top 10: 1. Painted Lady 2. Small Tortoiseshell 3. Peacock 4. Small White 5. Red Admiral 6. Large White 7. Green-veined White 8. Meadow Brown 9. Ringlet 10. Speckled Wood
To see the Big Butterfly Count results in full go to: https://www.bigbutterflycount.org/2019mainresults
Butterfly Conservation Company, limited by guarantee, registered in England (2206468). Registered Office: Manor Yard, East Lulworth, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 5QP. Charity registered in England & Wales (254937) and in Scotland (SCO39268)
13