(Not) losing my marbles

I don't want to be disrespectful, specially on a Sunday, but this tiny scrap of a moth immediately made me think of Moses on Pisgah, or at least a priest or vicar about to address the congregation.

I had hoped that it might be a macro moth but unless it's a strongly-coloured Small Marbled, I think it's going to join the list of micros awaiting identification in my retirement (though thanks to Steve T in a comment on yesterday's post for tracking another of them down. Much obliged). Doesn't it have a fine, aristocratic nose? And that tawny micro must be Joshua, nipping back down the mountain to tell the Children of Israel.

These moths are about half as long as a grown-up's fingernail, but you can see the beauty of their colouring and patterns in the view to the right, taken after I caught the eggbox with my dressing gown (checking the trap is an early morning, pre-tea job so long as I have the willpower to get up). It fluttered down from Pisgah but fortunately settled. I was less lucky with a beautiful Brown China Mark micro, one of the loveliest and largest of the common ones, which skimmed away.

Talking of beauty, this next moth is a delight to see, albeit common enough. It's a Marbled Beauty which obligingly went to sleep for the night close to a Peppered moth (below, bottom of post) which has a similar swatch of soft and gentle colours. There were a lot of other arrivals, although not a record for the year, in spite of the very warm temperatures. Apparently we may enjoy a brief heatwave this weekend. Bring it on. Just a reminder btw that you can single-click on any of these pics to make them bigger.

Oh, and welcome to anyone who's come here via a link from the Observer, which generously gave me - and more important the UK's moths - two whole pages today, with lots of lovely pics. If you want to go the other way, click on the link, or there's a gallery online here. Moth power! Yay! (Even if they were suspiciously keen to highlight the clothes moth, because the editor's had an infestation.)