[1773] Broken-barred Carpet (Electrophaes corylata)

Field Trip - Hexton Chalk Pit - 17/05/16

 

I was joined by Roger, Colin and Steve for a last minute trip on Tuesday night to Hexton Chalk Pit.

 

Hexton Chalk Pit sits in Hertfordshire but only just as it is bordered by Bedfordshire literally on both sides as the County border forks out.

 

The weather seemed pretty good, warm and muggy if a little windy at times and with a high of 18 degrees and a minimum expected of around 11, it should be good I was thinking.

 

Well, for starter's the wind didn't die down, it just got progressively worse as the evening went on , and at packing up time at 12.30am it was strong in places across the reserve.

 

We setup four traps at different heights and areas and left them to their own devices and then concentrated on the sheet that Colin had erected Bear Gryll's style using various bits of wood.

 

The light went on and we got Green Carpets, more Green Carpets, then Scoparia ambigualis and then Cockchafers by the bucketload!

 

Unfortunately it was so slow that we were really trying hard to keep the interest going, really unheard of out in the field at nearly the end of May...we usually run out of pots!

 

All in all we recorded 31 species of moth.

 

Catch Report - 17/05/16 -Hexton Chalk Pit - 2x 125w MV Robinson Traps 1x 160w MBT Robinson Trap and 1x 80w Actinic Suitcase Trap with a 125w Bulb and sheet.

 

Macro Moths

 

1x Common Swift

25+ Green Carpet

1x Waved umber

4x Brimstone Moth

4x Pale Tussock

3x Flame Shoulder

2x Purple Bar

2x Small Phoenix

2x Treble-lines

5x Yellow-barred Brindle

1x Angle Shades

15+ Red Twin-spot Carpet

3x Common Pug

2x Brindled Pug

2x Oak-tree Pug

3x White Ermine

1x Double-striped Pug

2x Shears

1x Common Quaker

1x Broken-barred Carpet

1x Common Carpet

1x Rustic Shoulder-knot

1x Small Waved Umber

1x Least Black Arches f.columbina

1x Common White Wave

1x Chinese Character

 

Micro Moths

 

3x Cochylis atricapitana

1x Parornix sp

25+ Scoparia ambigualis

1x Agonopterix pallorella

1x Endrosis sarcitrella

1x Elachista argentella

1x Monopis weaverella

2x Cochylimorpha straminea

1x Plutella xylostella

Done