NOTES ON SOME SUFFOLK MOTHS, 2001
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COMMENTS AND NOTES ON SOME SUFFOLK MOTHS IN 2001 TONY PRICHARD The moth recording year started favourably in 2001 with warm weather conditions during January and February. Recording in the field then came to a rather abrupt halt with the outbreak of foot and mouth disease and the associated restrictions on access to the countryside. The foot and mouth restrictions combined with the rather poor spring weather meant that recording outside of the garden was rather limited during the early part of the year. Many species seemed to be delaying their emergence during this period of poor weather and it was not until the middle of June that conditions improved and increasing numbers of species appeared on the wing. Fortunately this increased activity coincided with the opening up of access to the countryside again and the summer was rather a hectic period of recording. The autumn was particularly warm and mild resulting in the late emergence of some species and an extended period of leaf-miner recording. A record of Gelechia senticetella (Staudinger) on 25 July 2001 by J. Higgott in Ipswich was a new species of micro-lepidoptera for the county and proves the benefits that the internet is bringing to moth recording. The moth was initially identified by J. Langmaid from a digital photo JH posted to a moth discussion newsgroup. The identity of the specimen was subsequently confirmed by D. Agassiz et al. at the Annual Exhibition of the British Entomological and Natural History Society (BENHS). This species was first recorded in Britain in 1988 by D. Agassiz at Grays, Essex as an adventive but is now resident in several south-eastern counties. The larvae feed on juniper (Juniperus spp.) or cypress (Chamaecyparis and Cupressus spp.) Several species new to the country have been discovered recently feeding on juniper and cypress trees, their spread no doubt assisted by the garden nursery trade and the popularity for planting these types of trees in gardens. Argyresthia trifasciata Staudinger also feeds on juniper, cypress or cedar (Thuja spp.) and has expanded its range across the country since its discovery by the late Maitland Emmet in London in 1982. An individual of this species was taken in Ipswich on 29 May 2001 (TP). Agassiz & Tuck (1999) documents the discovery of Argyresthia cupressella Walsingham in Suffolk in 1997. It would seem likely that other species with a similar pabulum will be discovered in the county in the future. The discovery of Caloptilia populetorum (Zeller) by N. Sherman at the Ipswich Golf Course on 26 June 2001 adds another species of microlepidoptera to the county list. This species occurs on heaths and moors where birch, its foodplant, grows. It appears to prefer saplings and seedlings of birch on which to lay its eggs. The adult has a long flight period from August to May but the moth is not usually recorded at light prior to its over-wintering. Three species of the ‘Ear’ moths are currently thought to occur in the county. Amphipoea fucosa paludis (Tutt), Saltern Ear, occurs almost exclusively in the coastal areas of Suffolk, not venturing very far inland from the coast or estuaries. Amphipoea oculea (L.), Ear Moth, similarly occurs in coastal areas in Suffolk but can be found extending further inland than the
Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 38 (2002)