China in your hand, or rather trap

Here's a pretty visitor to the trap: a Brown China Mark. It's officially a micro-moth but it's time that someone promoted it to the first division. Micro-moths are separated from macros for reasons dear to my heart, ie not some scientific distinction to do with genitalia but simply on grounds of size. Trying to distinguish between tiny pug moths didn't appeal to early entomologists who set the nomenclature any more than it does to me. The Brown China Mark, like the Mother of Pearl which features in last year's journal here, is easily big enough to be a macro. It's also interesting because its caterpillar is amphibious. We have a small pond (or as our neighbours' grandchildren call it, The Swamp) so that may explain its presence. It also seems to be taking an intelligent interest in Morrison's advice on eggs.

A propos yesterday's dragonfly, here is another picture of a Southern Hawker, showing that it has a rather grisly connection with butterflies and moths.
I've pinched it from the website of the British Dragonfly Society but I hope they won't mind if I say again how brilliant they are. btw do you remember that T'Pau song in my title? I listened to it constantly in Bart's Hospital in London after I was knocked off my motorbike outside the Guardian and had my leg broken. I still hum it.