Last Friday (19th August) I decided, with the number of potential migrant moths in this quite exceptional year being quite high, to put two MV traps out at RSPB Newport Wetlands to maximise our chances.
Come Saturday morning the conditions were quite blustery but plentyvof cloud cover meant that there were plenty of moths in the traps, but sadly not any special migrants. But there were 8 Rush Veneers, 10 Pake Mottled Willows, which could have been migrants, and plenty of Square-spot Rustics and Six-striped Rustics, a first Ear Moth agg. of the Autumn, and a large number of Lesser Broad-bordrred Yellow Underwing (69) - it appears to be a bumper year for these (I had 111 in my trap in Blackwood earlier in the week).
Whilst emptying the last of the egg-boxes I noticed an innocuous small micro (just 5-6mm) in the bottom, and it proved difficult to get into a pot, so O decided to photograph it in the egg-bix for s record shot and thought nothing more of it.
Whilst going through the photos in the evening I decided to try out the Obsidentify App, and when I gave it a go on the offending micro it came up with Ptocheuusa paupella with 100% certainty, which, upon checking in the guides perfers wetland/salt marsh habitats and it's food plant is Common Fleabane (perfect for the Wetlands...) So I checked the existing VC35 list and couldn't find it, and there are only two records for Glamorgan... So I contacted Sam for confirmation and it is the first record of the species in the county. I do think that it may be overlooked, and will be checking out the flowers of Common Fleabane for the orange/brown florets that are signs of feeding lavae.
Ptocheuusa paupella at RSPB Newport Wetlands.
An example of the florets from the Manley guide.
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