Oct 212005
St. Agnes offers excellent opportunities for trapping rare & scarce migrant moths in the right conditions. We had several good “Moth Nights” during the week with warm southerly wind, despite being a little late in the season though.
We ran a Mercury Vapour Light & Skinner Trap each night from 15th – 20th October and we were located at Troy Town Farm on St. Agnes. The best evenings were 17 & 18th October with warm southerly winds, cloud & slight drizzle.A Dark Mottled Willow was trapped by Mike Hicks on the 15th October – a first record for the Isles of Scilly. A second was trapped on 17th October by Mick Scott. Also during our week a Tunbridge Wells Gem was trapped on St.Agnes.
Highlights of the week were –
9 of Plutella xylostella (Diamond-back Moth)
3 of Hellula undalis (Old World Webworm- Rare migrant)
Nomophila noctuella (Rush Veneer – good numbers)
1 of Palpita vitrealis (Status scarce migrant)
2 of Scarce-bordered Straw (Scarce migrant)
1 of Cosmopolitan (Status scarce migrant)
6 of The Gem (Status scarce migrant)
1 of Small Marbled (A rare migrant less than 20 records)
1 of Small Mottled Willow (Common migrant)
1 of Tunbridge Wells Gem (Rare vagrant )
1 of Dark Mottled Willow (1st record for Isles of Scilly)
Vestal (good numbers of this regular migrant)
White Speck (good numbers of this common migrant)
Delicate (good numbers of this common migrant)
Selected images below are:-
1) LEFT – 1) Cosmopolitan; 2) Dark Mottled Willow; 3) Old World Webworm; 4) Small Marbled 5) Small Mottled Willow; 6) Diamond-back Moth.
2) RIGHT – 1) Cosmopolitan; 2) Vestal; 3) Old World Webworm; 4) Small Marbled; 5) White-speck; 6) Palpita vitrealis
