I don't want to sound blasé but Clifden Nonpareils are getting, well, almost common. Here's another one which was in the trap this morning. It had no companion this time and proved a very friendly insect. After warming up for a while, undisturbed by me apart from one quick photo, is sauntered off round our garden, pausing in various plants to allow me to take these pictures showing its magnificent blue stripes - the rarest of all colours in UK moths.
It also took a liking to my hand - indeed preferred it to a second-flowering delphinium, though I did manage to get some petals of the latter alongside the moth to big up the blue side of things. I naturally wondered if it was one of Wednesday/Thursday night's pair paying a return visit and I am sure that it is. Here below are the frayed edges of the three moths' right forewings. The bottom two look the same to me.
Clifden Nonpareils are not the only moth, of course, and three cheers for this vivid arrival, glowing with oranges, reds, pinks and purples: a Barred Sallow. At the same end of the spectrum, the lawn round the trap has been dotted on recent nights with pretty little Brimstone moths.
Continuing our journey along the spectrum, the other current moth with a preference for grass over eggboxes is the Light Emerald. There are so many around at that moment that you have to be careful where you tread. Smaller but a similar colour, here is a Green Carpet too, inside the trap bowl and, to show the effects of a moth's hard life, a sadly faded one on a handsome eggbox, as blue as a Clifden Nonpareil.
2 comments:
Never seen one :D I hope all is well Martin.
Great to hear from you Ben - hope that you and yours are all well. All is good here - in fact 'good' is a bit of an understatement with all these Clifden Nonpareils around. It is absolutely storming through Ox and Bucks. I'm sure you'll have one your way soon (unless we get an icy winter crackdown) All warm wishes, Martin
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