MONMOUTHSHIRE MOTH & BUTTERFLY GROUP

NEWSLETTER No 34 April 2006.

A monthly newsletter covering Gwent and Monmouthshire Vice County 35

Editor: Martin Anthoney

Small Ranunculus ( Hecatera dysodea ) - part two

The Small Ranunculus In Newport On 14 th July 1999 I examined the catch in my Robinson trap at Summerhill Avenue. Amongst a list of common moths was a small noctuid which I could not identify. It was later confirmed that this was a specimen of Small Ranunculus., a first VC35 record. The following year I recorded another specimen on 4 th August. In 2001 I caught four individuals, in 2002 one, in 2003 three, in 2004 three but none in 2005. So far this is the only site where imagines have been found. There was some speculation as to the origin of the 1999 specimen, including a query as to whether I had been on the continent recently and another as to whether lettuce was imported via Newport Docks! Determined to find out whether this moth was a vagrant or a resident, breeding, species, Kevin Dupé and I set out to examine the flowers and seedheads of the stated larval foodplants. On 6 th July 2003, eggs and larvae were found on Prickly Lettuce at the Blaina Wharf site alongside the River Usk. Since then, records have been made from many sites in the Usk corridor with some further afield at the Uskmouth end of the Newport Wetlands Reserve, Spytty Road Newport Stadium and the Gaer. Given these records it would be tempting to believe that the Small Ranunculus is an estuarine species but I believe that the conditions which occur in this area favour the germination of the foodplant. With one or two minor exceptions, I have not found Prickly Lettuce in other parts of Newport. All egg and larval records have been in July with three exceptions: on 17 th August 2004 larvae at Maesfield Vale, Gaer, on 2 nd August 2005 four hundred larvae on the bund next to Newport Velodrome and, on 2 nd August 2005, 31 larvae on the roundabout near George Street Bridge (west side).

Small Ranunculus caterpillar

Historical The earliest mention of this species I could discover was in the 1869 edition of Stainton’s “Manual of British Butterflies and Moths ”. He gave a general description of the imago and larva, quoting a flight period of June and July. The larval foodplant was stated to be the flowers and buds of Lettuce, although he is not specific as to whether this is wild or cultivar. Stainton was editor of the “Entomologist’s Annual ” and relied on a network of correspondents to provide him with distribution records which he cited as being from Cambridge, Stowmarket and Worcester. He also had access to

1 various collections housed in the British Museum. Then, as now, the quoted distribution reflected where the recorders were rather than the true extent of the moth’s distribution. In the 1870s Edward Newman published a monumental work “ The Natural History of British Butterflies and Moths ”. He gave a more detailed description of the life cycle of Small Ranunculus than Stainton although, like Stainton, he mentioned the foodplant just as “Lettuce”. He observed that at rest the caterpillar lies along the stem of the plant, but when disturbed falls to the ground and forms a tight curl. I have observed this behaviour in other caterpillars but out of the hundreds of Small Ranunculus larvae I have examined I have never seen this presumably defensive behaviour.

Newman’s book was written during the period when it was fashionable to amass cabinets of natural history subjects. These mainly amateur naturalists had a good network for sharing information either through personal correspondence or by means of the many societies which sprang up during this period. Thus we have a more comprehensive list of records than in Stainton’s book some twenty years earlier. Newman states that the moth had been collected in Somerset, Kent, Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. Interestingly, he makes the comment that although abundant in certain areas it could by no means be regarded as abundant. In 1895 Edward Meyrick wrote another seminal work “ A Handbook of British Lepidoptera ”. Distribution of Small Ranunculus is given as southern England to Worcester and Norfolk, although local. For the first time Ireland is mentioned, with Galway given as the location. For many years, Richard South’s “ Moths of the British Isles ” was the standard field manual for lepidopterists. First published in 1907, it underwent seventeen reprints, including a second edition, up until 1980. Unfortunately by this time the colour plates had degraded somewhat. South stated that the larval foodplants are the flowers and seeds of Least and Great Lettuce together with lettuce cultivars and Hawksbeard. He also stated that at dusk the moth can be seen flying around the blossoms of plants but seems to prefer Red Valerian ( Centranthus ruber ). I grow this plant in my garden together with other moth attractants such as Honeysuckle ( Lonicera spp) and Tobacco ( Nicotiana spp). During the flight period I have regularly inspected suitable blossoms in my garden by torchlight, up to 2am, but have not so far observed this activity. South gave the distribution as mainly eastern and southern, especially Cambridgeshire, Surrey and Kent and rarely in Sussex and Dorset. Other counties noted are Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Northamptonshire, Bucks, Somerset, Hereford and Essex. There was a gap in records from 1918 until a specimen was captured in Yeovil in 1935 with two in Hertfordshire and another at Bletchley, Bucks, in 1941. For the next 56 years the moth was not recorded in Britain. Heath and Emmet agree in the main with South’s comments but significantly include Glamorgan as an historical record. It was therefore recorded in two counties (Hereford and Glamorgan) bordering Monmouthshire VC35. Heath and Emmet describe the decline in distribution as “rapid” and that by 1912 it had disappeared from most of its range but had been reported from Jersey since 1960. They also suggest that it was on the northern limit of its range and had become scarce in north central Europe since 1960. These observations and records pose some interesting questions. The 1940s were noted for severe winters, notably that of 1948. This pattern continued with a particularly brutal winter in 1962-63. For some years now our winters have been noticeably milder, so perhaps the Small Ranunculus has been able to recolonise previously-occupied areas. Another reason for the decline of a moth species is the disappearance of the larval foodplant but I cannot believe that this was a contributory factor in this case. During the war food production increased to an unprecedented level including the “Dig for Victory” campaign which encouraged domestic vegetable growing. Patches of hitherto unproductive land were made available and the allotment movement was probably at its height. Surely some of the cultivar lettuces would have gone to flower and seed? Further, the havoc and devastation caused by bombing would have produced ideal conditions for colonisation of the wild foodplant. Following the Second World War, there was widespread introduction of pesticides which may have affected larval activity on cultivars but it is highly unlikely that the wild foodplants would have been targeted to any significant extent. Another possibility for decline could have been parasitic infestation of the larvae and pupae but none of the literature mentions this so it must be concluded that the probable cause for the decline was a cyclical change in distribution resulting from climatic change.

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The Small Ranunculus reappeared in Britain on 26 th June 1997 in Kent. In 1998 it was recorded in areas around the Thames Estuary which was formerly one of its strongholds. There was a good deal of speculation as to its origins, including migration, but the occurrences did not conform to established migratory patterns. It was recorded in Denmark in 1997, a country in which it had not previously been seen. Many records of both adults and larvae have subsequently been made in several parts of Britain as far from the Thames Estuary as Glamorgan and Merseyside.

You can keep up to date with the current situation on the internet, but beware as Ranunculus is also a genus of buttercup and inappropriate phrases entered into a search engine can generate numerous irrelevant references! It would seem that Small Ranunculus is now a British resident again. Roy Leverton in his very readable book “Enjoying Moths” mentions the moth as a gain as possible climate change affects the list of British species. He concludes with the sentence “For lepidopterists, these are interesting times”. Indeed they are!

References Crafer, T. 2005 Foodplant List for the Caterpillars of Britain's Butterflies and Larger Moths. Atropos Heath, J. & Emmet, M. 1979 The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland . Vol. 9. Curwen Koch, M. 1984 (2 nd Ed) Wir bestimmen Schmetterlinge . Neumann-Verlag. Leipzig, Radebeul. Leverton, R. 2001 Enjoying Moths . Poyser Natural History Porter, J., 1997. The Colour Identification Guide to Caterpillars of the British Isles . Viking. Skinner, B., 1984. Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles . Viking Stokoe, W.J., 1958 The Caterpillars of British Moths Warne Wayside & Woodland Series Waring, P. and Townsend, M. 2003 Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland British Wildlife Publishing

Roger James

Silurian Search 2006 On the evening of 12 th April seven hardy adults plus the two junior Dupés set out on to the mountains above Abertillery to garner more information on the larvae of the Silurian moth and build on the exciting discovery twelve months ago (13 th April 2005) of the wild larvae in Britain for the first time. Despite a promisingly warm evening, in contrast to the euphoria of last year this search turned out to be, quite literally, a very damp squib. Just as we stepped out of the cars into the quarry below the gulley where the moth was originally found, the first raindrops fell and a rapidly strengthening wind quickly enveloped the whole area in uncomfortable, misty, drizzle, reducing visibility to a few yards. Nevertheless, about ninety minutes were spent searching for larvae by torchlight. Only three larvae, two Square-spot Rustic and one Angle Shades, were found, with no sign of the Silurian. Compared to the same time last year, it was noticeable how few bilberry shoots and buds there were. This could be due to us being too early, for Spring 2006 is several weeks later than 2005. More worryingly, there had also been much heavier over-winter grazing of the area than in the previous year. It could well be that the larvae were tucked up in the mossy mounds with no food available yet to entice them out. The only redeeming feature of the evening was the capture of two particularly fine forms of the adult Mottled Grey moth. Martin Anthoney

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National Moth Recording Scheme The Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded £806,000 to a Butterfly Conservation project for establishing a national UK moth recording scheme. There are still a great many contractual details to sort out with HLF before a timetable for the project can be planned in detail, but it is hoped that it will raise the profile of moths in the way that Butterflies For The New Millennium has done for butterflies, and help find explanations for the worrying decline of many moths.

Newport Report Butterflies I have received sporadic reports of butterflies over the past three weeks, mainly Small Tortoiseshell and Peacock, with the odd “white” and a number of Commas. The cold weather has delayed our annual transect on the Newport Wetlands Reserve, but Mary and Phil Price went down on 21 st April and recorded 11 butterflies of 4 species including a Brimstone, seldom encountered on this reserve but a known wanderer.

Moths We have experienced the coldest start to a year for about ten years which has resulted in a drastic reduction in the number of species recorded in Newport. Interviewed on BBC Radio Four, the meteorologist Michael Fish commented that the weather for 2006 was in fact normal for the time of year and that the weather we had experienced over the last decade was abnormal. The first Newport moth of the year was a Dotted Border, recorded by Kevin Dupé at Newport Wetlands Reserve on 18 th January. There was a long gap before Fiona Illing trapped Pale Brindled Beauty at Caerleon on 30 th January. I had to wait until 3 rd February to record my first moth, a Satellite at Summerhill Avenue. I followed this up with a Dark Chestnut on 13 th Feb and a Chestnut on 20 th . Another long gap ensued before I had Hebrew Character on 10 th March and Common Quaker on 11 th . I recorded two Oak Beauties on 22 nd March, Small Quaker on 26 th and Early Grey on 27 th . Kevin rounded off March with Oak Nycteoline at the Gaer on 31 st . 2005 was an average recording year and by the end of March we had recorded 31 species in the year. By the end of March 2006 the number was just 10 species. With slightly warmer weather, the night of 15 th / 16 th April proved more productive at Summerhill with a total of 131 macros although only 7 species. Two species comprised the bulk of these, with 28 Brindled Pug and 54 Early Grey (for which the previous highest nightly tally in Newport was 24 on the Gaer). The larval foodplant of Early Grey is honeysuckle and I have lots of this in my garden. On 17 th April I recorded Twin-spotted Quaker and Double-striped Pug at Summerhill. On 21 st I had Pine Beauty and Herald at the same locality. Sheila Dupe’s site at Haisbro Avenue came into the reckoning on 22 nd April with Lunar Marbled Brown (a first site record) and 27 Hebrew Character, by far the largest number recorded in Newport on a single night. On 23 rd I trapped a single Brimstone at Summerhill followed by a bonanza on 24 th with Garden Carpet, Muslin, Lead-coloured Drab (only 3 rd Newport record), Pale Prominent and Knot Grass. We have all recorded species other than moths in our traps: May Bugs, assorted flies etc spring to mind but I may have had a world first on 23 rd – a newt! I should explain that I have had to cut a hole in the bottom of my trap to let out rainwater and the trap is sited near a pond, but could this be a new method for monitoring amphibians? On 26 th April I recorded Pale Mottled Willow and Angle Shades. Chris Jones has had a number of firsts foe him at Home Farm, Caerleon. On 22 nd April he recorded Brindled Beauty with Nut-tree Tussock and Streamer on 17 th . With numbers increasing at the end of April it would seem that things are getting back to normal – or should that be getting back to abnormal? Roger James

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Recent Highlights & First Records

19 th March Brimstone butterfly at Llandogo. Simon Phipps

20 th March Satellite, Agonopterix ocellana to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

21 st March March Moth, Tortricodes alternella to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

25 th March Shoulder Stripe, Engrailed to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

26 th March Brindled Beauty to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

27 th March Brindled Pug, Acleris cristana, Acleris hastiana to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

29 th March 2 x Comma and 1 x Small Tortoiseshell at Bulwark, Chepstow. Shelley Cross. Mottled Grey to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

30 th March Acleris literana, Agonopterix alstromeriana, Emmelina monodactyla to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

31 st March Water Carpet to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps Oak Nycteoline at the Gaer, Newport Kevin Dupé

Acleris literana (Simon Phipps)

1st April Ypsolopha ustella to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

2nd April Pale Pinion, Early Tooth-striped to light at Llandogo Simon Phipps

4th April Small Eggar and Tawny Pinion at Red House Farm, Newport Wetland Reserve (ST333827). Kevin Dupé. Early Moth to light at Risca. Martin Anthoney.

9th April Painted Lady at Penallt Ian Rabjohns

10 th April Red Chestnut at Risca Martin Anthoney Small Eggar

13 th April Another Tawny Pinion at Newport, this time at Summerhill Avenue. Roger James A third at Home Farm, Caerleon on 14 th . Chris Jones

15 th April Blossom Underwing and another Acleris literana at Dingestow Sam Bosanquet Red-green Carpet at Ochrwyth Richard Clarke

16 th April Lead-coloured Drab at Dingestow Sam Bosanquet Purple Thorn, Yellow Horned, Red-green Carpet amongst 16 species to light at Cleddon Bog Roger James & Martin Anthoney

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17 th April Streamer at both Home Farm, Caerleon, and at Risca Chris Jones & Martin Anthoney

21 st April Pine Beauty and Herald at Summerhill Avenue, Newport. Roger James

23 rd April Muslin, Lead-coloured Drab, Pale Prominent and Knot Grass at Summerhill Avenue, Newport. Roger James

24 th April Swallow Prominent at Monkswood, Usk John Clarke

27 th April Orange Tip butterfly at SO332 085, Llanover. Bill Jones Lesser Swallow Prominent at Risca Martin Anthoney

28 th April Frosted Green at Dingestow Sam Bosanquet

29 th April Mullein Shark at Dingestow Sam Bosanquet

30th April Emperor Moth to light at Haisboro Avenue, Newport. Sheila Dupe.

Forthcoming Events Friday 5th May Monmouth 8pm till late, at the Osbaston Primary School. ‘Moths and bats on tour’ is a fun look at the secret lives of flying creatures that emerge as darkness descends. Repeated at Undy on the 19 th May, Tintern for 25th August and at Gilwern on the 15th September. Further information from: www.monmouthshire.gov.uk/countryside/access or contact: Ian Smith, Head Warden, Tel 01633 644825 Fax 01633 644800 [email protected]

Saturday 27th May Butterfly Conservation Day on Gower Commons. Meet at Llanrhidian Village Hall at 11.00am. Tea/coffee available from 10.45am. The hall is situated at SS497921, in the village, just north of the B4295. Short talks on Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary survey results and Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk moth will be followed by a visit to one or more of the Gower Commons, where Marsh Fritillary, Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Green Hairstreak and Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk moth are target species. Further details from Richard Smith 01446 793229 (e-mail [email protected]) or from Martin Anthoney.

Friday 9th June Monmouthshire Moth & Butterfly Group/CCW 9pm – midnight Hawks and Tigers Moth Watch - Trapping and identifying moths near the Newport Wetlands Reserve car park after dusk. We should see some of the larger hawk moths and possibly some tiger moths. We will also be using bat detectors to identify bats. Leader: Kevin Dupé, Reserve Manager Newport Wetlands Reserve. Meet: Reserve Car Park

Friday 22nd Sept Subject to confirmation, Paul Waring will lead another attempt to find out more about ecology of the larvae of the Silurian moth. Afternoon /evening. More details to follow.

Saturday 14 th Oct A date for your diary. This will be the annual Butterfly Conservation day of talks etc. at WTSWW visitors’ centre, Tondu.

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MMBG – Contact Names and Addresses. Secretary: Kevin Dupé Chairman: Roger James 44 Gaer Park Lane 14 Summerhill Avenue Newport Newport NP20 3NE NP19 8FP

Phone 01633 216599 Phone 01633 215627 e-mail [email protected] e-mail [email protected]

Treasurer: Sheila Dupe 18 Haisbro Avenue Newport NP19 7HY Phone 01633 256475

Newsletter Editor & Recorder for Recorder for Micro Moths Butterflies & Macro Moths Martin Anthoney Sam Bosanquet 23 Malvern Close Dingestow Court Risca Monmouth Newport Monmouthshire NP11 6QY NP25 4DY Phone 01633 612272 Phone 01646 690102 e-mail [email protected] e-mail [email protected]

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