MONMOUTHSHIRE MOTH & BUTTERFLY GROUP
NEWSLETTER No 96 October 2013.
A monthly newsletter covering Gwent and Monmouthshire Vice County 35 Editor: Martin Anthoney
Gwent’s Commonest Moths and Butterflies? The following table shows the number of records held on the Gwent database for the top twenty five species since 2000. Corresponding figures for pre-2000 records are shown for comparison. The figures clearly show how moth recording has increased since 2000, with Large Yellow Underwing overtaking Heart and Dart as the commonest moth in Gwent.
Gwent Macro-Moth Records For 2000 Onwards Pre 2000 Records Rank Name Taxon Number Name Number Records Records 1 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba 1213 Heart and Dart 407 2 Brimstone Moth Opisthograptis luteolata 922 Large Yellow Underwing 393 3 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta 901 Flame Shoulder 317 4 Heart and Dart Agrotis exclamationis 808 Dark Arches 303 5 Common Marbled Carpet Chloroclysta truncata 776 Brimstone Moth 277 6 Silver Y Autographa gamma 695 Small Square-spot 266 7 Dark Arches Apamea monoglypha 671 Silver Y 233 8 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum 623 Square-spot Rustic 215 9 Willow Beauty Peribatodes rhomboidaria 618 Common Rustic 209 10 Small Phoenix Ecliptopera silaceata 605 Smoky Wainscot 209 11 Garden Carpet Xanthorhoe fluctuata 600 Flounced Rustic 209 12 Riband Wave Idaea aversata 590 Common Wainscot 202 13 Straw Dot Rivula sericealis 588 Setaceous Hebrew Character 197 14 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum 583 Common Marbled Carpet 193 15 Snout Hypena proboscidalis 561 Common White Wave 192 16 Lesser Yellow Underwing Noctua comes 552 Riband Wave 191 17 Flame Carpet Xanthorhoe designata 509 Hebrew Character 189 18 Hebrew Character Orthosia gothica 501 Mottled Beauty 186 19 Flame Axylia putris 490 Ingrailed Clay 177 20 Common Rustic Mesapamea secalis 478 Peppered Moth 173 21 Spectacle Abrostola tripartita 473 Silver-ground Carpet 164 22 Mottled Beauty Alcis repandata 471 Angle Shades 164 23 Common Carpet Epirrhoe alternata 465 Bright-line Brown-eye 160 24 Square-spot Rustic Xestia xanthographa 457 Clouded Border 156 25 Green Carpet Colostygia pectinataria 456 Willow Beauty 155
Pre-2000 numbers are too small to draw profound conclusions, but it is surprising that eleven of the top twenty five species have dropped out of the table, with Small Square-spot and Smoky Wainscot the biggest losers. Buff Ermine and Small Phoenix show the largest jump in position in recent years.
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The corresponding tables for butterflies are: Gwent Butterfly Records For 2000 Onwards Pre 2000 Records Rank Name Taxon Number Name Number Records Records 1 Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina 1207 Meadow Brown 371 2 Large White Pieris brassicae 1088 Small Tortoiseshell 325 3 Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria 1075 Speckled Wood 271 4 Green-veined White Pieris napi 1056 Large White 249 5 Peacock Butterfly Inachis io 891 Green-veined White 243 6 Small Tortoiseshell Aglais urticae 887 Small White 232 7 Common Blue Polyommatus icarus 773 Peacock butterfly 230 8 Small White Pieris rapae 744 Gatekeeper 220 9 Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus 715 Common Blue 193 10 Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta 608 Small Skipper 184 11 Comma Polygonia c-album 559 Red Admiral 163 12 Orange-tip Anthocharis cardamines 533 Orange-tip 152 13 Ringlet Aphantopus hyperantus 521 Brimstone butterfly 151 14 Painted Lady Vanessa cardui 452 Small Heath 150 15 Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus 381 Holly Blue 146 16 Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas 378 Large Skipper 140 17 Small Skipper Thymelicus sylvestris 354 Small Copper 128 18 Brimstone butterfly Gonepteryx rhamni 332 Comma 118 19 Large Skipper Ochlodes venata 331 Ringlet 112 20 Marbled White Melanargia galathea 314 Marbled White 105 21 Dingy Skipper Erynnis tages 237 Painted Lady 87 22 Holly Blue Celastrina argiolus 231 Grayling 78 23 Clouded Yellow Colias croceus 142 Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary 59 24 Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary Boloria selene 117 Marsh Fritillary 54 25 Grayling Hipparchia semele 87 Wall Brown 44
As expected because of the smaller number of British species, changes in the list of butterflies are less pronounced. Meadow Brown is obviously the most common butterfly, with Large White catching it up. It is a pleasant surprise to see Speckled Wood maintain third position in the list. The species showing the largest jump in position is Dingy Skipper, reflecting increased suitable habitat on regenerating coal tips. Martin Anthoney
Recent Highlights
October continued the warm theme of the previous few months, but it was also a very wet month, limiting the number of butterflies on display and the opportunities for moth-trapping. A few migrants added variety to the moth species, with the highlights being eleven Vestals in the period 27th Sept to 7th Oct and the rare Pyralid Etiella zinckenella. A few Clouded Yellows and Painted Lady butterflies seem to have survived the month.
1st Oct An immigrant Bordered Straw, plus Cypress Carpet, Cypress Pug and Large Ranunculus, to light at Melbourne Way, Newport. (Roger James)
Merveille du Jour and Large Ranunculus to light at Risca. (Martin Anthoney)
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2nd Oct Hibernating Buttoned Snout (first site record since 2007), 30 Herald, 2 Alucita hexadactyla moths, 20+ Small Tortoiseshell and 2 Peacock butterflies at Dingestow Court. (Sam Bosanquet)
9 mines of the micro Phyllonorycter platani found on a large Plane Tree, also at Dingestow Court. The fourth county record of this species, which was recorded new to Britain in the 1990s and has been spreading north-westwards. (Sam Bosanquet)
Cypress Carpet and Large Ranunculus to light at Haisbro Avenue, Newport. Another Cypress Carpet was caught on 5th Oct. (Sheila Dupé)
Bordered Beauty and Large Ranunculus at Newport Wetlands Reserve. (Kevin Dupé)
4th Oct Immigrant Vestal at Wonastow, near Monmouth. (Heather Colls)
5th Oct Another Vestal, plus Autumn Green Carpet and Merveille du Jour, to light at Aberbargoed Grasslands NNR. (Martin Anthoney and Roger James)
Two more Vestals, Cypress Carpet and Merveille du Jour at Melbourne Way, Newport. (Roger James) Cypress Carpet to light at Undy (Keith Jones)
Painted Lady, 17 Comma and 25 Red Admiral butterflies at Caerwent Quarry. (Nick Felstead)
Painted Lady among eight butterfly species at Penallt. (Ian Rabjohns)
6th Oct Humming-bird Hawk moth flying in a Chepstow garden. Seen again on 7th Oct. (Nick Felstead)
Vestal number seven of the autumn at Gaer Fort, Newport. (Kevin Dupé)
L-album Wainscot and Vestal, both immigrants, plus Figure of Eight among twenty species to light at Portskewett. (Richard Clarke, Kevin Dupé and Sheila Dupé)
3 Clouded Yellow and 10 Small Copper at Solutia Reserve, Newport. (Roger James)
The Vestal
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7th Oct A specimen of the very rare migrant Pyralid, Etiella zinckenella, to light at Chepstow. Only the thirteenth British specimen and probably the first one for Wales. The fourteenth British specimen was reported at Portland, on the south coast of England, on the 9th Oct. (Nick Felstead)
Also in the same Chepstow trap were Vestal, Cypress Carpet and Beautiful Hook-tip (all new site records). (Nick Felstead)
Vestal number ten at Haisbro Avenue, Newport. (Sheila Dupé)
Vestal number eleven at Bassaleg. (Andrina Whitfield)
Etiella zinckenella (Nick Felstead)
9th Oct Feathered Ranunculus at Chepstow. Much less common in the county than its Large relative, this is only the sixteenth Gwent record. (Nick Felstead)
Painted Lady, 15 Small White and 7 Red Admiral, amongst others, at Portskewett. (Nick Felstead)
10th Oct Clouded Yellow, Red Admiral and Small Copper at Newport Wetlands. (Kevin Dupé)
17th Oct Autumn Green Carpet, Cypress Carpet and Beautiful Hook-tip at Haisbro Avenue, Newport. (Sheila Dupé)
2 Painted Lady at Newport Wetlands. (Kevin Dupé)
Seventh county record of the micro Blastobasis lacticolella at Chepstow. (Nick Felstead)
Blastobasis lacticolella (Nick Felstead) 4
18th Oct Blair’s Shoulder-knot at Oakfield Road, Cwmbran. A new site record for a species which is rapidly infilling gaps in its county distribution. (Bob Roome)
Red Sword-grass to light at Melbourne Way, Newport. (Roger James)
Red Sword-grass
19th Oct Satellite and Mottled Umber among eight species trapped at Llantarnam Abbey. (Bob Roome)
22nd Oct Grey Shoulder-knot, Brick and Flounced Chestnut at Risca . (Martin Anthoney)
25th Oct Red Sword-grass to light at Rassau. (Rodney Morris)
26th Oct Streak, Pale November Moth and Feathered Thorn at Risca. (Martin Anthoney)
Pale November Moth and Mottled Umber at Melbourne Way, Newport. (Roger James)
31st Oct The first December Moth of the year to light at Risca. (Martin Anthoney)
Gwent Distribution Maps
Accompanying this newsletter is a file containing the eighth batch of distribution maps for Gwent macro moths. Plotted on a 2km basis, black squares indicate records for 2000 to 2012, whereas open squares indicate sites where pre-2000 records exist but no post-2000 records. Historical records which were too vague to be assigned at the 2km level have been omitted. Three more batches remain to complete the set. I have been limited in the size of each batch as some people have fallen foul of the file size limit imposed by their Internet Service Provider. To overcome this, I will send out two more batches, without a newsletter, in a week or so, with the final batch distributed in December with the last newsletter of 2013. Martin Anthoney
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Dates for your Diary 2014 Sunday 26th January Habitat management in Blackrock Quarry, Clydach Work task at Blackrock Quarry, Clydach, in conjunction with Usk Conservation and Environment Group, clearing cotoneaster from this important lepidoptera site with superb views. Tools provided, but bring lunch, drinks etc. Meet at 10am at the lay-by adjacent to the old lime kilns (SO215125). [ Head east along the A465 Heads of the Valleys road from the Brynmawr roundabout. After 1½ miles take the left turn for Clydach Village. Continue along Main Road through Clydach village and the lay- by is then on your right.]
Saturday 22nd February Joint Gwent / Glamorgan Recorders’ Forum. In celebration of SEWBReC’s tenth anniversary. Details will be announced soon. Contact
Sunday 9th March Work task at Hendre Woods, near Monmouth. Meet at Old Lodge entrance at Hendre Woods (S0 462146), on the B4233 Rockfield Road from Monmouth, at 11:00 - 15:00. Bring lunch, warm drinks, appropriate clothing, footwear and hand tools. The task will be clearing cut rideside vegetation to encourage germination of Wood Spurge, larval foodplant of Drab Looper. Contact: Martin Anthoney, 01633 612272.
Thurs 3rd – Sat 5th July National Moth Night. Moth trapping events will be organised in due course. We are hopeful one of the events will be at MoD Caerwent.
MMBG – Contact Names and Addresses.
Secretary: Kevin Dupé Chairman: Roger James 44 Gaer Park Lane 44 Melbourne Way Newport Newport NP20 3NE NP20 3RF
Phone 01633 216599 Phone 01633 263374 e-mail [email protected] e-mail [email protected] or in case of problems [email protected] Treasurer: Sheila Dupé 18 Haisbro Avenue Newport NP19 7HY Phone 01633 256475
Newsletter Editor & Recorder for Recorder for Micro Moths Butterflies & Macro Moths Sam Bosanquet Martin Anthoney c\o Dingestow Court 23 Malvern Close Monmouth Risca Monmouthshire Newport NP25 4DY NP11 6QY Phone 01633 612272 e-mail [email protected] e-mail [email protected]
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