A SICKLESMERE GARDEN
OCTOBER 2003 – JANUARY 2004

The months from October through to January are very quiet times for moth recorders. There appears to be very little on the wing and this makes you consider if it is worth running the moth lamp during this period. However, some moths fly only during these months and without the use of the trap it is doubtful if they would be recorded.

October

I recorded 333 moths of 36 species during this month. The only ones worthy of mention were Deep-brown Dart, Aporophyla lutulenta, a common enough moth in Suffolk, but I see very few of them at Sicklesmere. A Large Ranunculus, Polymixis flavicincta, put in an appearance on 9th October. It is a local moth with the larvae feeding on a wide range of plants such as plantain and ragwort. I saw the first of a series of Juniper Carpet, Thera juniperata, on 11th October. This is a moth that is classed as Notable/Nb. I record it each year at this location and have no doubt that its increase over time has been due to popularity of Juniper bushes in gardens.

2003 has been unusual for the number of moths that have appeared well outside their normal flight period. On 14th October a Heart and Dart, Agrotis exclamationis, came to light. This normally appears between May and July. I recorded my first this year on 9th May. Another unusual moth for Sicklesmere was recorded on 17th October: Flounced Chestnut, Agrochola helvola; this was my first record for this species.

November

This month produced only 111 moths of 18 species.

A Large Yellow Underwing,   Noctua pronuba,   on 4th November was another that  was  outside  its  normal  flight  time.  It  usually  appears  between  July  and September. On the following day a micro moth, Carcina quercana, was recorded, another moth that is more normally recorded between July and September. During a year when there was a dearth of migrant moths it was, therefore, good to record a Pearly Underwing, Peridroma saucia, on the 7^th day of the month. Another surprise awaited me on 17^th November, when I went to check the trap. A Lesser Yellow Underwing, Noctua comes,   was tucked away amongst the egg boxes, a good six weeks outside of its more usual flight time.

December

The year finally reached rock bottom with only 15 moths of 5 species during the month.

The five were as follows: the Chestnut, Conistra vaccinii, Dark Chestnut, Conistra ligula, December Moth, Poecilocampa populi, Winter Moth, Operophtera brumata, and Yellow-line Quaker , Agrochola macilenta ,  all of them very common winter flying moths.

January

January started quietly with single specimens of the Chestnut on the first four nights and a Winter Moth on the ninth night. The first record of the winter for Mottled Umber, Erranis defoliaria , followed two days later. After a week of cold nights a Pale Brindled Beauty, Apocheima pilosaria, lifted my spirits by putting in a first appearance of the winter on the 23^rd day of the month. On the same night I recorded Spring Usher, Agriopis leucophaearia. A total of 28 moths of 5 species for the month is, hopefully, a sign of increased moth activity for the coming months. As I have had a bit of time on my hands I decided to list my 20 most recorded species of moth over the past 5 years. Before I name them, try to guess what they are. I will list them at the end of this article. However, be aware that I do a lot of recording in Breckland on the edge of heathland. These are moths recorded from all of my trap sites, mainly Sicklesmere and Elveden. There are no real surprises amongst them, considering the locations. If I had given it some thought beforehand

I would have probably come up with most of them.

I recorded a total of 17,362 moths in 2003, the best year since 1997. The number of species, however, fell to 316, the worst year since 1999.

Top 20 most abundant species