Three Mullein moths (Cucullia verbasci) have emerged this month from overwintered pupae in the shed. Not sure why I bothered to photograph all 3 when they look identical! Found as caterpillars on Water Figwort in early June 2023. 10 months as a pupa - what a life! #MothsMatter

Where are the Small Tortoiseshells this year? Since I started keeping records I've never before got to 5th April without seeing one. Plenty of Peacocks in Cardiff & the odd Comma. Brimstone, Speckled Wood & Orange-tip in Cornwall last week. But no STs. They're really struggling.

Very exciting to see that a super-sized White-spotted Sable moth has appeared on a wall in Kent

Another very early moth emergence - this Brimstone from the garden trap last night is my earliest here by 12 days, and might be the earliest Glamorgan record too. #MothsMatter #WildCardiffHour

Another very early moth emergence - this Brimstone from the garden trap last night is my earliest here by 12 days, and might be the earliest Glamorgan record too. #MothsMatter #WildCardiffHour

The first of my overwintered leaf mines in the shed have produced moths - three exquisite little Phyllonorycter strigulatella adults from mines on Grey Alder (Alnus incana), collected at Lamby Lake last October. This was the 1st VC35 record. #MothsMatter

Most of the gorse at Lamby Lake is out of reach in the middle of bramble thickets, but I did eventually find one accessible bush...and there was a stem mine of Phyllonorycter ulicicolella, new for VC35 Monmouthshire 🙂 #MothsMatter

Evolutionary change in flight-to-light response in urban moths comes with changes in wing morphology | Biology Letters royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rs…

A few of today's moths for #WildCardiffHour :

Scarlet Tiger caterpillar, 1st record for the allotment 🙂

Oak Beauty from the garden moth trap - my favourite of all the early spring moths.

And the much smaller Psychoides filicivora from Hart's-tongue Fern in the garden.

Good to see rare moths finally getting the protection they deserve

It's that time of year already! My earliest garden record by a whole 10 days, in a series going back to 2007. #BeeFlyWatch #CardiffWildlife

If you're ever in need of Moth Facts, look no further than ChatGPT!

Did you know Forester moths can change colour? The moth has a humidity-dependent colour-changing ability, changing colour from green during the day to red at night. (photo David Howdon) norfolkmoths.co.uk/index.php?bf=1…

The life history of the sundew plume moth Buckleria paludum is the subject of the sole colour plate in J W Tutt's unfinished (and over-ambitious) Natural History of the British Lepidoptera).

Just sneaking in before the end of #WildCardiffHour - a most unexpected Comma butterfly sheltering from the rain on this evening’s club trail run.

New moth species for the allotment - Endothenia gentianaeana larvae inside teasel heads. No anal comb (!) visible when checked under microscope.

Remember the golden rule folks: anal comb = marginana, no comb = gentianaeana. Excellent photos of this at ukmoths.org.uk

Moth year list now up to 32 species, mostly early stages with 9 species of adult moth in the Cardiff garden trap so far. Here are Psychoides filcivora, Dingy Footman, Luffia lapidella & Elachista argentella. More info in ALT text. #MothsMatter

It's that time of year when our Tuesday evening club runs get interrupted by toads on the trails 😀

Stainton's Natural History of the Tineina ran to 13 volumes (1855-73) but was never complete in the sense of covering all then known British species. It was always a work in progress as it relied on working out life histories which in some cases remained unknown

In the passageway by our house is the most miserable patch of grass you can imagine. A line of Red Fescue which looks more dead than alive. But every winter it is covered in moth caterpillars, 10+ seen by torchlight last night. Probably all Square-spot Rustic. #MothsMatter