Mine's a Mocha - Two!

It's very satisfying when a new moth for my list re-appears soon after its debut, suggesting that the species has established a local toehold. This happened last night with the arrival of a second beautiful Mocha which was resting demurely on the edge of the light trap's transparent cowl. As you can see, it is darker than the first moth which I featured here half a dozen posts back.  The same has happened with the Oak Eggar, another new species for me, which has now arrived twice this July.

Meanwhile, I'm also delighted to welcome my first Jersey Tiger for the year, after previously seeing them in London and at the grandchildren's in Wiltshire where they are all over the place. I managed to tease mine into showing a little of its vivid rear-wing petticoats which cause many to confuse it with Red Admirals or other Vanessid butterflies, especially as it often flies by day.  We have always had Scarlet Tigers here, earlier in the year, and it is excellent to welcome the Jersey, whose rapid advance across southern England in recent years has been amply recorded.

Manoeuvring the moth into a position where you can glimpse its underside is another good way of showing what lies hidden, though nothing like as vivid as a flash of the topwings.

Other welcome newcomers for this year last night included the Lime-speck Pug, which shares the title of Bird-dropping Moth in this household with the Chinese Character, a Tawny-speckled Pug - another of the very few in this minuscule, nightmare family which is easy even for me to ID - showing the trap with its eggboxes below nd the mercury vapour bulb, a micro Udea ferrugalis or the Rusty Dot Pearl which is common here just now and fourthly a very battered puzzle. Maybe a passing expert can unravel it.

I'll leave you with another look at my second Mocha. What an exquisite moth!