Trouser leg

Small is beautiful, I know, but it can also be good to go large. I have to admit that I always get a kick out of anything hefty-looking in the trap and this morning my adrenalin rush was nicely satisfied by this Red Underwing.

They're common, I know, and it would have been something really special if the dappled grey V-bomber lookalike had turned out to be its much rarer relative, the Clifden Nonpareil, which has been more frequent than usual in Oxfordshire and particularly Buckinghamshire this year. You also have to carry out a certain amount of harassment to get the moth to show off its principal feature, lovely scarlet petticoats worthy of Maxim's or the Folies Bergeres.

I thought that this one had done a runner before I managed to get an underwear, sorry underwing, shot as it responded to my gentle shaking of its eggbox by taking flight. But I didn't see it go far and it was also extremely groggy, much as I am when only just woken. I looked down and, behold, there it was on my trouser leg ( I was late up today, hence the absence of my world-famous pyjamas).

Here the snap I wanted, below. I took a couple more and then hid the moth safely away from our highly inquisitive and greedy neighbourhood wren. It looks a bit of a survivor: balding on the back of its head and with part of its eft antenna gone. I guess it's been on the wing for a month or maybe more.

I was interested in yesterday's suggestion that what I thought was a Red-line Quaker is more likely a Yellow-line one. It has thrown me into confusion (what's new?) about the next two moths. I think that the second is a Red-line, but anyone any ideas about the first?

Finally, the variations of November, Pale November or Autumnal moths continue apace. Here are four different ones which shared the trap this morning, the first making advances at a Red-green Carpet which also stayed the night.