In focus

Pride of place this morning goes to a ladybird, not on its own merits pretty though it is, but because my iPad Mini came good for once with focus and colouring. I keep debating with myself and Penny about getting a new camera or perhaps an up-to-date iPhone. The camera quality of the latter is extraordinary. But for now, I plan to economise.  Anyway, thank the Lord for ladybirds, even if like this one they tend increasingly to be the American Harlequin sort which is dominating our native species, much as happened with squirrels.

Talking of mammals, here is a sad sight but one with interesting colouring. I am assuming that it is a shrew or mouse of some kind but whether the zebra effect is unusual, I do not know. I Googled the Mammal Society and via their website emailed the Oxfordshire county mammal recorder and now await news.

The top moth in my next picture is the pretty but familiar micro Pyrausta purpuralis, a species which surprisingly has never acquired a familiar English name in spite of its distinctive appearance and vivid colouring. The large micro below it is meanwhile more interesting than I thought. At first glance, I assumed that it was that regular visitor the Garden Pebble but a post and picture on the brilliant Upper Thames Moths blog by Richard Ellis shows me that it is a European Corn-borer, not the nicest of names but only locally common and new to my garden list. Apparently they are having a good year.

Still in microland, the distinctive paper-dart moth beside the Setaceous Hebrew Character in the picture below evades my ID skills for the time being but I will persevere. The second, very poor quality pictures, show it from either side.

Three old favourites next: the sweet little Spectacled Moth with its false giglamps, a Burnished Brass form aurea and a blurry pic of a Snout moth, showing the reason for its name.

 And to finish up with, here's a pretty Clouded Border which disdained the trap, preferring the lawn; and the beautiful creamy-brown form of the Large Yellow Underwing. There has been some concern on the Upper Thames Moths blog about LYU numbers but there are plenty here.