New Wood for Fletcher's/Pauper's Pug

5th June 2021

Traphill Wood, Mounton

After a fine sunny day with just a build up of cloud in the afternoon a visit to Traphill Wood was on the cards. The temperature reached 23c locally today and even though it was reasonably calm, the evening forecast threatened more windy conditions to arrive. The once wooded area has seen lots of stripping back of trees over recent times, but fortunately some larger trees do remain dotted on the the periphery and along the gully floor, so a mix of habitats of sorts it could be said. The turn out at the light-trap tonight was not a bad one at all, involved 80 moths of 40 species to my surprise. 

Largest total was the Pale Tussock moth with 10, with most numbers of the other species ranging from singles to 5 maximum. Some important other rarer species arrived with Blomer's Rivulet one of them and a Mocha (pictured above). These two seem to be doing well in this woodland complex. 

I was aware of Lime trees here too, and although not many are present I was hopeful still- after trying once before with no luck- that I could entice a species out into the open to the trap. Luckily the gods answered my request giving me not one but three Pauper's/ Fletcher's Pug's to view (pictured above). The larvae feed on the flowers of Lime trees and overwinters emerging mostly but not exclusively, around the month of June. This backs up the recent sighting in the Great Barnet's section of the wood where there are scattered Lime trees too. It's a Red Data Book category moth mostly found through the Wye Valley and in parts of East Anglia, Somerset and a few localities in the midlands and south-east of England.  

Also found was a new micro to me in the form of a Thyraylia nana (Birch Conch) pictured above. It feeds on Downy and Silver Birch of which there are several trees here. 

Suffice to say the forecasters got it right where conditions began to get increasingly windy late evening so a quick pack up of equipment as moths numbers began to decrease in the conditions.