Tuesday 21 August 2012

Hold that Tiger! 21 August 2012





At last a real cracker of a moth to admire. A Ruby Tiger! Not unusual, in fact relatively common but what a beauty and a new one for me. As you can ascertain from my enthusiastic tone it really took my fancy and it was great to see it. Nice and docile when posing for the camera as well. Apparently the "tiger" comes from the black spots giving the impression of lines or stripes on the body. The body is really bright red and comes as a surprise when the moth spreads its darker red upper wings to reveal the body in all its glory plus bright pink hind-wings!

A few new moth species for me this morning so all in all a good session. I am really getting into this and enjoying the identification problems posed each morning. Still very much the novice but getting there by applying the same principles as employed in bird identification. I just love the realisation that all this beauty is flying around and about in our garden at night as I lie asleep. I just never knew but now I do and just cannot get enough of it. Just in case anyone is concerned all moths are kept safe and released either that same early morning or the following evening in the dusk after the birds have retired for the night


Ruby Tiger

The Magpie

Green Carpet

Rosy Rustic

Willow Beauty
Did you know that many of the pubs in Harlow, Essex are named after moths? My sister lives in Harlow and right next door is the Archers Dart - now sadly closed. I have also been in The Willow Beauty - very nice and The Poplar Kitten. Drinker must surely have been considered as a name for one of the pubs but sadly it doesn't exist nor does Manchester Treble-bar. What a shame

Moths caught last night:

Ruby Tiger; Green Carpet; Flame Carpet; Dark Arches; Flame Shoulder; Ear Moth; Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing; Large Yellow Underwing; Lesser Yellow Underwing; Rosy Rustic; Flounced Rustic; Single Dotted Wave; Riband Wave; Willow Beauty; The Magpie; Setaceous Hebrew Character; Orange Swift; Brimstone Moth; Iron Prominent

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