Four species were added to our list of those recorded since 1961 making a grand total of 490. The gratifying thing is that two of these are unquestionably residents which have been discovered. In May Ian Smith took the Light Knot-grass in his trap at Mellor (SJ98) and it was also recorded in SJ99; I had always expected this species to turn up, either on the Pennines or perhaps at Wybunbury Moss which is only five miles or so from Whixall where it is well established. In July, John Dawson, a Ranger at Rostherne National Nature Reserve, observed and photographed the Red-tipped Clearwing among the Osiers on the Reserve. Although this is a new record for the County it is not unexpected having been found for the first time on the Formby coast recently; I'm sure we have more Clearwings than we are aware of. Our other two new species are certainly not residents, a Crescent Dart in my garden trap on the 27th July had presumably strayed here from the North Wales coast. Even more startling was the discovery by Geoff Hulme of Bedstraw Hawk-moth larvae on Saltersley Moss near Wilmslow at the end of August. We have eight apparently healthy pupae from the original ten larvae, an attempt to force two of them was not successful and we must hope that some will emerge in 1991.

There were many more interesting records besides the four new species; Paul Griffiths and Roger Robinson took a Blackneck at Hurleton, only our second record. The Blair's Shoulder Knot at my trap on the 20th October was also a County second following that taken in Wirral by John Coupe in 1989. The Scorched Carpet at Combermere was another second, and being in the next square to the original record it does suggest that the species is established in that area. Another second was the Small Autumnal Moth in SJ88, a search of the moors must surely show that this species is well established somewhere on our Eastern boundary. One of the most pleasing events was the discovery of the Barred Sallow in three new squares (it had only previously been found in four) and in addition it turned up again in SJ87.

Compared with recent years the number of new records (190) was well down, being only about half the 1989 total, but we must expect the law of diminishing returns to begin to show now that only one square is left with a total of less than 200 species. This is SJ36, very little of which lies inside Cheshire, but we do have plans to work the most promising areas in it. No great effort was needed to get the totals for SJ37 and SJ68 past the 200 mark but no further squares reached the 300 mark this year and it remains surprising how many seemingly common insects remain unrecorded in squares which we regard as well worked; for eight of our squares there were no new records at all in 1990, let's hope they are still in 'the pipe-line' and that this note will bring them forth! In 1990 five species were added to the list of those recorded from all 31 squares. Most of these had just been overlooked but it does look as if the Cinnabar has been extending its range, being found in both SJ98 and SJ99 where it had been searched for in previous years without success.

C.I. Rutherford - (01625-583683)                                                                                                                            January 1991