Heat Wave

The heat wave continues. Been at Beddington over the last couple of days- another busy night in the moth trap yesterday and managed to do an evening walk yesterday evening. Plenty of bugs around- good numbers of Marbled Whites again this year. A few pics and highlights; 

 Hobby- 400+ Swifts in the evening around the lakes attracting Hobbies

 The Mute Swans on the Southern Lake have young now

 Plenty of other young birds around too including these Coots and also the first Little Grebe young

 Black-tailed Skimmer- at least 50 of these on my walk yesterday, also 3-4 Emperor, Common Darters, Common Blue Damselfly and Nick reported the Small Red-eyes again on the Northern Lake (also extending their population to the Southern Lake). 

 Loads of Meadow Brown on the MG5 habitat and grassland on the southern mound, also Essex Skippers, Marbled Whites, Large Skipper (above), Commas (above), Red Ad and Small Tort.

 These mating Grapholita compositella were nice find. Other day flying moths on the mounds including Sitochroa verticalis, Burnet Companion, Six-spot Burnet, Crambus perlella and Common Grass Veneer.

 Sitochroa verticalis (above) and European Corn Borer (below) for comparison 

 European Corn Borer

 Crambus perlella

 I'm going for Apple Ermine on this based on the sparse distribution of spots and the sub-terminal line of spots? If so I think a new one for the site? 

 A worn Codling Moth? 

 Clepsis consimilana (male) the faint bar on an otherwise plain straw coloured Tortrix is what I'm going on 

Crambus pascuella - what a beauty 

 Agonopterix heracliana- two of these, the first for year. Getting about 50 species or so a night at the moment. 

 Bud Moth 

Male (above) and female (below) Eristalis intricaria