Lime Hawkmoth surprise

A surprise in one of the many moth traps on Saturday morning... a Lime Hawkmoth. I think on typing this is Tophill Low's fifth record in about 30 years of moth trapping. I guess if compared to recent avian scarcities, a Lime Hawk is more of a 'Tophill rare' than Purple Heron, Red-necked Phalarope, American Wigeon... more on a par of Lesser Yellowlegs, though slightly more regularly seen than Collared Pratincole and Nuthatch... only a single record of each!!!

Plenty of other nice bits in the traps as some of the summer stuff comes out - the first Barred Straw of the year, several Green Arches, Pinion-streaked Snout and a few Blacknecks, which are now annual.

With the weather not great for Odonata, we still managed Common Blue, Azure, Blue-tailed, Red-eyed and Emerald Damselflies on the wing, with 3 Southern Hawker, 4 Four-spotted and a single male Broad-bodied Chaser to pass the time.

Little Gulls seem to be around at the minute, still up to 5 in the week, though only 3 '1st summer' birds were on D res late afternoon.

Also the first Rutpela maculata of the year was seen - Black-and-Yellow Longhorn Beetle.