Atropos migrant insect review – mid-May 2011

The first half of May continued this Spring’s theme of largely warm and dry weather, with the predicted warm plume of air originating from Spain/North Africa arriving towards the end of the first week of the month. These conditions accounted for some very interesting sightings, particularly in the moth department.

The record influx of Vagrant Emperor Anax ephippiger continued with a male superbly photographed on a garden gate in Weymouth, Dorset, on 2nd (B. Spencer). A further male then appeared in Hampshire: at Denny Lodge Inclosure, New Forest, on 8th (P. Winter) with the final one reported on St. Mary’s, Isles of Scilly, on 11th. It will be fascinating to see if any stay around and breed this year.

Butterflies reported included a few Clouded Yellow Colias croceus with up to four on Alderney, Channel Islands, on 8 May. A Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta appeared at light at Lizard, Cornwall, on 6 May – records at light often indicate a migration of atalanta taking place. One Cambridgeshire observer noted an increase in Red Admiral to six on his local walk in Mepal, having only previously seen singletons (R. Partridge). Painted Lady V. cardui were noted inland at Norchard, Worcestershire, on 1st and at more usual sites in Essex and Suffolk.

It was one of the most exciting periods for moth immigration in early May for many years, heralded by the capture of an early Silver-striped Hawk-moth Hippotion celerio near Clevedon, Somerset, on the night of 5 May (P. Chapman et al). Immigrant moth news continued to flood in with the highlight being the third to fifth British records of the attractive Patton’s Tiger Hyphoraia testudinaria (two on the Isle of Wight – one by day on 6th and one light-trapped the night before) with a singleton on Portland, Dorset, on the night of 6 May (M. Cade). Another stunningly attractive immigrant moth is Purple Cloud Actinotia polyodon – one was light trapped at Greatstone, Kent on 7 May (B. Banson). The same night (7th) produced the first Bedfordshire record of Many-lined Costaconvexa polygrammata at Eaton Ford (Tony Lawrence) and the second Levant Blackneck Tathorhynchus exsiccata of the year at Sholden, Kent (Lin Hirst).

Following on from April’s early Dusky Hook-tip Drepana curvatula two were light-trapped at the Long Pits, Dungeness on 7th (J. Clarke/A. Bradshaw). This exciting period ended with a Lunar Double-stripe Minucia lunaris at Bracklesham, West Sussex, on the night of 9 May (D. Lee).

The best of the rest included Delicate Mythimna vitellina at Portland, Dorset and on the Isles of Scilly; White-speck Mythimna unipuncta at Landguard, Suffolk and a sprinkling of Dark Sword-grass Agrotis ipsilon and Silver Y Autographa gamma.

Atropos would like to thank you for your contributions to the Flight Arrivals webpage. Please keep posting your migrant news and we look forward to an exciting second half of May.