Cheshire Macro-Moth Report - 1991

This was a difficult year to summarise, we had more winter frost than for the past two years but over the year as a whole much less rain than in what we had regarded as hot dry summers! Entomologically it was a sandwich with the meat in the middle and some rather dry bread on either side. There were few good catches in the Spring and my garden catch was well below average at the end of June. At this point however things were picking up and by mid-August my total was higher than it has been at that stage for some time but with nothing new. On a freak night at the beginning of September I had four species that I had never seen in the garden here before but then things fell away very quickly and catches both at light and sugar were so poor that nocturnal expeditions did not seem worthwhile.

For me the outstanding event of the year was the discovery of not one but two active trap operators in SJ36; Steve Holmes in Blacon and John Raines in Ferry Lane, Chester added over 100 species to our records for this square which moved, not merely off the "bottom of the league" but well up the table to a total of 250 species. Dr Raines' trap which is virtually at sea level and in a wild habitat right on the Welsh border produced a remarkable profusion of insects.

We have added about 350 records in the year, which even without the SJ36 bonanza is a better result than we achieved in 1990 and gives us a total of over 8,600 or an average of 278 species per square, so we must work harder in any square below this figure! All squares now have over 200 species recorded and SJ68 is the back marker on 204 with SJ29 and SJ86 nearing 220. In only two of our 31 10km squares did we fail to get at least one new record during the year, due partly to a campaign of daytime larva beating in some of the squares where there is no resident trap operator. Such species as Northern Winter, Scarce Umber and Streak were found in this way, almost every Broom bush beaten seemed to produce the last mentioned.

Of the three species added to our list this year two were among those I had been expecting to be found as residents. Ian Smith took the Scarce Silver Y at Mellor, all attempts to find it on the high moors had been frustrated by inclement weather in the past. The Marbled Brown which Paul Griffiths and Roger Robinson turned up at Peckforton is the second of the four Oak feeders absent until 1989 when the same two workers found the Oak Lutestring. The new find brought a misprint to light, it is No. 2014 on the list, a number that I had shown for the Lunar Marbled Brown which should be 2015. The third addition, Angle Striped Sallow, which came to my trap on the 5th September must have wandered a long way from its known breeding ground unless there is an unknown one nearer home! This possibility is raised by the presence of two records for this moth in Volume 10 of "The Moths and Butterflies of GB & I" by John Heath et al., I am trying to trace the origin of these records.

The most interesting records other than for the new species seem to include Small Brindled Beauty in SJ55, Red Carpet in SJ99, Mallow in SJ36, three new squares for Red Green Carpet, Convolvulus Hawk a larva in SJ54, Golden Rod Brindle in SJ98 and Blair's Shoulder Knot in SJ88 & 98. Red Underwings were widely reported and this included four new squares. The number of Barred Sallows taken by John Raines was very good news as this has always been regarded as a rarity, but his catch of 1,100 Setaceous Hebrew Characters in one night puts even the Yellow Underwings in the shade (my trap took just 4 Setaceous Hebrew Characters in the season!).

C.I. Rutherford - (Tel.: 01625-583683)                                                                                                                     January 1992



The following new records were received for Vice-County 58 (Cheshire) in 1991: - an asterisk (*) indicates a new species for the county of Cheshire; the number (Code) at the extreme left is the Bradley & Fletcher code from their publication: "A Recorder's Log Book or Label List of British Butterflies and Moths" - J.D. Bradley and D.S. Fletcher (1979) :-
 
Code English Name
New 10Km Squares (SJ)
14 Ghost Swift
45
16 Gold Swift
38, 69, 97
17 Common Swift
36
18 Map-Winged Swift
55, 69
161 Leopard
64
163 Six-Spot Burnet
36, 58
171 Narrow-b'd 5-Spot Burnet
36, 78
1631 December Moth
36, 99
1637 Oak Eggar
54, 55, 98
1638 Fox Moth
36
1645 Scalloped Hook-tip
54
1648 Pebble Hook-tip
36
1651 Chinese Character
37
1654 Figure of Eighty
36
1657 Common Lutestring
99
1659 Yellow Horned
66, 69, 86
1661 Orange Underwing
54, 57, 58, 66, 69
1663 March Moth
36
1666 Large Emerald
36
1667 Blotched Emerald
36, 98
1682 Blood-Vein
88
1690 Small Blood-Vein
36
1693 Cream Wave
37, 47
1705 Dwarf Cream Wave
46
1712 Small Scallop
54
1723 Red Carpet
99
1725 Dark Barred Twin-spot C'pet
44
1732 Shaded Broad-bar
36
1734 July Belle
46
1741 Galium Carpet
47
1745 The Mallow
36
1748 Beautiful Carpet
55, 64
1749 Dark Spinach
36, 47
1750 Water Carpet
44
1752 Purple Bar
65
1754 The Phoenix
36, 45, 46
1755 The Chevron
36, 67
1756 Northern Spinach
67
1757 The Spinach
36
1760 Red-Green Carpet
36, 38, 87
1761 Autumn Green Carpet
29
1762 Dark Marbled Carpet
36, 37
1765 Barred Yellow
36, 47, 57, 86
1766 Blue-bordered Carpet
36
1767 Reddish Pine Carpet
36 64
1768 Grey Pine Carpet
36
1769 Spruce Carpet
36, 46, 86
1771 Juniper Carpet
69
1775 Mottled Grey
54
1776 Green Carpet
36
1787 Argent and Sable
54
1795 November Moth
36
1797 Autumnal Moth
29, 36, 46, 69, 76
1798 Small Autumnal Moth
87
1800 Northern Winter Moth
36, 46, 56, 66
1803 Small Rivulet
56
1808 Sandy Carpet
54
1809 Twin-Spot Carpet
47
1816 Toadflax Pug
36
1817 Foxglove Pug
55
1821 Valerian Pug
87
1825 Lime-speck Pug
45, 47
1831 Ling Pug
69
1832 Currant Pug
86
1835 White-spotted Pug
36, 37, 47
1838 Tawny-speckled Pug
36, 69
1846 Narrow-winged Pug
44
1849 Ash Pug
46, 55
1851 Golden Rod Pug
55
1852 Brindled Pug
55, 58, 69
1853 Oak-tree Pug
44, 99
1854 Juniper Pug
44
1857 Dwarf Pug
54, 55
1858 V-Pug
36
1859 Sloe Pug
78, 88
1860 Green Pug
69
1862 Double-striped Pug
45
1864 Streak
45, 55, 76
1867 Treble-bar
47, 69
1870 Chimney Sweeper
36
1874 Dingy Shell
54, 77
1876 Small Yellow Wave
69, 76
1885 Clouded Magpie
36
1894 Latticed Heath
44
1912 August Thorn
36, 45
1913 Canary-shouldered Thorn
37
1914 Dusky Thorn
37
1919 Purple Thorn
36, 37
1923 Feathered Thorn
56, 76
1925 Small Brindled Beauty
54
1926 Pale Brindled Beauty
36, 66
1932 Spring Usher
68
1933 Scarce Umber
29, 36, 58, 76
1934 Dotted Border
68
1936 Waved Umber
29, 36, 45
1947 Engrailed
44
1954 Bordered White
29
1955 Common White Wave
29
1956 Common Wave
47
1972 Convolvulus Hawk-moth
54
1979 Lime Hawk-moth
29, 99
1981 Poplar Hawk-moth
86
1984 Humming-bird Hawk-moth
29, 36
1991 Elephant Hawk-moth
29
1994 Buff-tip
36
1995 Puss Moth
57, 99
1997 Sallow Kitten
36
1998 Poplar Kitten
29, 44, 56, 58, 69
2007 Swallow Prominent
36
2014 * Marbled Brown
55
2020 Figure of Eight
36, 69
2026 Vapourer
29, 47, 54
2031 White Satin
69
2038 Muslin Footman
44
2050 Common Footman
99
2063 Muslin Ermine
36
2078 Least Black Arches
54, 64
2081 White-line Dart
36, 44
2088 Heart and Club
37, 47, 64
2091 Dark Sword-grass
36
2092 Shuttle-shaped Dart
36
2110 Broad Bordered Yellow U'wing
36
2112 Least Yellow Underwing
44, 67
2117 Autumnal Rustic
36
2119 Pearly Underwing
36
2121 Barred Chestnut
36
2122 Purple Clay
69
2127 Triple-spotted Clay
36, 46
2130 Dotted Clay
44
2132 Neglected Rustic
69
2133 Six-striped Rustic
36
2134 Square-spot Rustic
37
2135 Heath Rustic
36
2136 Gothic
55
2138 Green Arches
54
2145 Nutmeg
36
2147 Shears
36, 37
2150 Grey Arches
36
2158 Pale Shouldered Brocade
36, 37
2163 Broom Moth
36
2164 Broad-barred White
36, 47
2166 Campion
36
2167 Tawny Shears
36
2171 Marbled Coronet
36
2173 Lychnis
36
2176 Antler
36, 44
2178 Feathered Gothic
36, 37
2182 Small Quaker
29, 36
2192 Brown-line Bright-eye
36
2211 Wormwood Shark
88
2214 Chamomile Shark
69, 75
2216 Shark
36, 37, 45, 99
2221 Mullein
36
2231 Deep-brown Dart
36, 88
2232 Black Rustic
36, 47, 64
2233 Golden Rod Brindle
98
2235 Tawny Pinion
98
2236 Pale Pinion
36
2237 Grey Shoulder-knot
36
2240 Blair's Shoulder-knot
88, 98
2243 Early Grey
69
2245 Green Brindled Crescent
36
2247 Merveille Du Jour
36
2248 Brindled Green
36
2254 Grey Chi
54
2255 Feathered Ranunculus
36
2256 Satellite
29, 36, 56, 86
2258 Chestnut
29, 36
2259 Dark Chestnut
36, 69
2263 Red-line Quaker
36
2264 Yellow-line Quaker
36, 46, 58
2266 Brown Spot Pinion
36
2267 Beaded Chestnut
36
2268 Suspected
36, 38
2269 Centre-barred Sallow
36, 55, 57
2270 Lunar Underwing
36
2271 Orange Sallow
69
2272 Barred Sallow
36
2273 Pink-barred Sallow
36
2275 Dusky Lemon Sallow
36
2278 Poplar Grey
69
2280 Miller
44
2283 Dark Dagger
44
2293 Marbled Beauty
44, 86
2298 Svensonn's Copper Underwing
55
2299 Mouse
69
2300 Old Lady
55
2303 Straw Underwing
36, 46, 47
2313 * Angle-striped Sallow
87
2314 Dingy Shears
47
2322 Light Arches
36
2327 Clouded Brindle
36
2335 Slender Brindle
36, 37, 47
2336 Double Lobed
36, 47
2338 Rufous Minor
36
2341 Cloaked Minor
47
2342 Rosy Minor
36
2343a Lesser Common Rustic
47, 55
2350 Small Wainscot
36
2353 Flounced Rustic
55
2357 Large Ear
64, 87
2358 Saltern Ear
36
2360 Ear Moth
47
2364 Frosted Orange
36, 55
2367 Haworth's Minor
87, 98
2368 Crescent
36, 37
2369 Bullrush Wainscot
36, 37, 44, 86
2375 Large Wainscot
36, 87
2380 Treble Lines
36
2381 Uncertain
37, 99
2389 Pale Mottled Willow
36
2397 Small Yellow Underwing
55, 86
2399 Bordered Sallow
36
2421 Scarce Silver-lines
36, 47
2422 Green Silver-lines
54
2437 Golden Plusia
36
2439 Gold Spot
36
2447 * Scarce Silver Y
98
2449 Dark Spectacle
36, 99
2450 Spectacle
29
2452 Red Underwing
36, 37, 44, 47
2463 Burnet Companion
58
2474 Straw Dot
99
2489 Fan-foot
29
     


 

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