Carpet layers

A much quieter night, although warm early on, with light rain probably deterring the moths in the small hours. Still, the stand-out catches such as my birthday's wouldn't stand out if every night brought similar riches, so mustn't grumble.

And the moths aren't bad. The Waved Umber, above, behaved more patiently than its predecessor on Friday night, staying to be photographed, and alongside it there were four pretty Carpet moths, a Common Quaker, a large beetle, an unknown sort of fly and two snails.

This Green Carpet is the first of 2013 for me, a delicate little moth with a range from Cornwall to Orkney, where according to my Moths Bible, its caterpillars are "suspected to feed on Sheep's Sorrel in damp moorland." Such detail! And such careful use of the word 'suspected'. I must look at the updated version of the book and see if suspicion has now become proven fact.

There were two of them and two of the Red Twin-spot Carpet, above, which came the other night. Both are common and they form a pleasant colour contrast.