Notes on Suffolk Lepidoptera in 1957

LEPIDOPTERA NOTES, 1957

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Very little collecting was possible in August owing to the unfavourable weather conditions, but in September weather improved and the usual autumn moths appeared in good numbers including somefineforms of the Common Wainscot (Lucania pallens Linn.)- No migrants, however, appeared, but a larva of the Death'sHead Hawk Moth (Acherontia atropos Linn.) was found by a Stowmarket schoolmaster on September 16th.

Most butterflies have been scarce during the whole season.

There was no sign of the Large Tortoiseshell in its usual haunts in the late spring and even the Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell have been far from common. A few Red Admirals were on the wing in mid September.

A FEW NOTES ON SUFFOLK LEPIDOPTERA IN 1957 Since my grandson, Alfred Waller, has been away doing his national service, his light-trap has only been functioning now and again here on favourable nights. Large numbers of the ordinary species have turned up and many have come to a strong light in my room.

I was glad to see the Dusky Sallow (Eremobia ochroleuca Esp.), formerly almost confined to the Breck, but now fairly common all over the County. Another visitor was the White-point Wainscot (Aletia albipuncta Fab.) which seems to have found a happy environment in East Suffolk. The Lilac Beauty (Apeira syringaria Linn.), the Peach Blossom (Thyatira batis Linn.) after a long lapse, together with the Lunar Thorn (Selenia lunaria Schiff.) and the Purple Thorn (Selenis tetralunaria Hufn.) also came to the light. It is only in the last few years that we have noticed Purple Thorns in this district. Both the spring and the summer broods of it have appeared. The Hawk Moths, especialy the Privet {Sphinx ligustri Linn.) and the Poplar (Amorpha populi Linn.) have been very plentiful, but the Eyed (Smerinthus ocellatus Linn.) has been generally scarce.

Every year some insect of outstanding interest seems to turn up. This year it has been the Alder Kitten (Cerura biscuspis Borkh.). My younger grandson kept the trap going several nights in June and to my surprise brought me a beautiful newly

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NOTES ON SUFFOLK LEPIDOPTERA

emerged specimen of this rare moth. I can find no record for the county since Bloomfield noted the solitary capture at Elmsett before 1890. Baron de Worms in his delightful review of the rarer species noted in the British Isles has mentioned the increasing number of this rare moth. In 1953 and 1954 it was taken in the south and north and again last year he says : " It was quite numerous at light in the south and in the midlands."

Several birch trees are near the light-trap and alders about half a mile distant. It will be interesting to know if it has been observed elsewhere in the County, since it is possible that there may have been an immigration from another part of the country.

A . P . WALLER (CANON),

Waldringfield.

MORE NOTES ON SUFFOLK LEPIDOPTERA, 1957 b y D R . NEVILLE L .

BIRKETT

Until this year I had not attempted any collecting of lepidoptera in Suffolk though I was familiar with parts of the county as a result of serving therein on various R . A . F . Stations during the last war. T h i s year I determined to have a look for some of the more special insects for which the county is justly famous and so it came about that I spent a week at the Randolph Hotel at Reydon, just outside Southwold. I arrived in Southwold on 13th July, 1957 and stayed until the following Saturday, 20th July. T h e weather during my visit could hardly be described as ideal for lepidoptera and sunshine was conspicuous by its more or less absence. Night work was considerably hampered by clear, cool evenings with accompanying heavy dew—poor conditions for insect activity. However, in spite of these difficulties my overall bag was not to be despised and I did take a number of much desired moths, though perhaps not in the numbers I should have liked. L e t me hasten to say that I added nothing new to the knowledge of the fauna of the area, but merely followed in the footsteps of those who had gone before.

I received much help from M r . G . J . Baker of Reydon who is, as is well known, doing some Sterling work on the nocturnal moths of the area. H e put much of his great local knowledge at my disposal. T o M r . H. E. Chipperfield of Stowmarket I also