25th Year Anniversary

2025 is the 25th Anniversary of the formation of Monmouthshire Moth & Butterfly Group, with our founding meeting being held in April 2000. Here's to another 25 years!

Redhouse Barns, 6th March 2025

I ran the MV Robinson over-night. This morning I recorded just 4 species:

Common Quaker 5, Hebrew Character 2, Clouded Drab 2 and Acleris literana 1. In 30 years of moth'ing I have never seen the last species before, so was quite excited. Sterling & Parsons says it is common though.

Acleris literana

Reminder: AGM tonight, Thursday 6th March, 7.30pm

Usk Royal British Legion

Old Market St, Usk NP15 1AL

Speaker: Liam Olds, Buglife Cymru

"The biodiversity of colliery spoil sites"

Also, the temperature is around 10c tonight with hardly any wind, so get your traps on!

 

Monmouthshire Moth & Butterfly Group

Annual General Meeting

Thursday 6th March
7.30pm

Usk Royal British Legion

Old Market St, Usk NP15 1AL

Speaker: Liam Olds, Buglife Cymru

"The biodiversity of colliery spoil sites"

Come and join us for some practical conservation to help our moths & butterflies

Wednesday 15th January & 12th February at Blackrock Quarry, nr Llanelly

Gwent Wildlife Trust are running a number of sessions at Blackrock Quarry, a site important for butterflies, to help combat the invasive cotoneaster. These sessions will be supported by Monmouthshire Moth and Butterfly Group and Butterfly Conservation Trust.

Location: Blackrock Quarry, Blackrock, Llanelly, Darrenfelen, Monmouthshire, NP7 0LL (SO217127, petulant.piled.butterfly). There is a layby near the site entrance for parking.

Timings: 10am-2pm on Wednesday 15th January and Wednesday 12th February

Task: Using hand tools to cut back cotoneaster.

For more details and to sign up, please send Kath a quick email at kbeasley@gwentwildlife.org 

Bonfire Night surprise

Redhouse Barns, 5th November 

I put out the Robinson MV in sight of a large Holm Oak, in the hope of catching a lot of Spiny Hook-tips. In the morning there was just one Spiny Hook-tip outside the trap which flew away straight away. There was one Radford's Flame Shoulder inside the trap. When I was putting the trap away, I noticed another on the cabling.

Redhouse Barns 29th October 2024 

I set up the Robinson MV and in the morning was excited to see a Spiny Hook-tip on the outside of the trap. I knew what it was as Kevin Hewitt had sent me  a photo of one caught in the north of the county by Wendy Tyler-Batt the day before! There were 3 more inside the trap, plus another on one of the baffles, making 5 in total. The foodplant is Holm Oak and there is a massive one only about 50m away. I also caught a Radford's Flame Shoulder, a 2nd VC record and again Kevin Hewitt had sent a photo of one the day before! The VC 1st had been trapped recently on the Blorenge by the Gloucestershire moth-er Jade Louise Gore. Also of interest was a Scarce Bordered-straw.

Spiny Hook-tip

Spiny Hook-tip

Radford's Flame Shoulder

Scare Bordered Straw