A new flower, bird and moth and the butterfly set complete

I'm carrying on with the list for the Waldridge square but I haven't been in it much soI  have been relying mainly on the contents of the moth trap.

Away from the square I had a nice walk along the Durham coast to Hawthorn Quarry last week. A look around the grassland just north of the quarry revealed 132 species including 6 sp.of Orchid the best being Coeloglossum viride (Frog Orchid) and 11 species of butterfly. Some nice patches of Genista tinctoria (Dyer's Greenweed) and Betonica officinalis (Betony) plus a few Silaum silaus (Pepper-saxifrage) and Hypericum montanum (Pale St John's-wort) made a very enjoyable afternoon.
 

The moth trap has continued to produce a few new moths for the year on nearly every occasion I have put it out. As well as some pretty species such as Swallow-tailed Moth and some of my garden specialities like Slender Brindle I caught my first ever Pinion-streaked Snout.

Swallow-taild Moth

Coxcomb Prominent

Slender Brindle

Pinion-streaked Snout

A few dusk walks gets me some strange looks with my net and headlight but it too has given me a few including a Badger on Waldridge Lane at last.

On Monday whilst checking the trap I saw a Ruff flying over. This was a first for the patch but fortunately I always have my binoculars at hand when doing the trap so got very good views as it flew SW over the garden. Spurred on by this and what others are doing in the 1000 species in a 1km square challenge,  on Monday I had a good look around the fell and got some additional species including a patch of Marsh Ragwort - another new species for the fell. An Elder has started to grow in a hollow bit of the still living Black Poplar. It's the first time I've seen an epiphyte Elder though a Hawthorn is doing the same in an old Crack Willow nearby.

Senecio aquaticus (Marsh Ragwort)    

Sambucus nigra as an epiphyte on Poplar nigra

Lots of young birds about and I saw fledged Common Whitethroat, Swallow, Dunnock, Linnet and Goldfinch as I wandered. It looks like its been a decent breeding season despite the weather. There were 21 young Swallows on the wires with adult birds still going to some nests and at least 1 pair was sitting on it's presumed second clutch.

Common Whitethroat

Linnet

Young Swallows

It took a long time to get the two Hairstreak butterflies I was missing. Managed some semi-descent Purple Hairstreak views at the usual oaks after a fair wait. The White-letter Hairstreaks have never been that co-opertative at the only site on the fell (well within the square). Partly, because unlike I think all the others I've seen in Durham, they don't come down to feed on thistles. That's because there aren't any, so when they do come down to feed, usually early afternoon, they feed on a clump of Tansy. Like a few other species of plants Tansy is having a late year so is not in flower yet so I had to make do with a few glimpses at the top of the Elms nearby.

Phyllonorycter harrisella

Leucozona glaucia

Sericomyia silentis

So the list has moved on to 853, with the new species listed below. The full list on the right of the page I've got way behind in updating, but I will at some point

The new ones since last time

814. Crocallis elinguaria (Scalloped Oak)
815. Camptogramma bilineata (Yellow Shell)
816. Catoptria falsella (a micro moth)
817. Hoplodrina octogenaria (Uncertain)
818. Ourapteryx sambucaria (Swallow-tailed Moth)
819. Eudonia lacustrata (a micro moth)
820. Noctua janthe (Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing)   
821. Autographa jota (Plain Golden Y)   
822. Xestia baja (Dotted Clay)   
823. Ptilodon capucina (Coxcomb Prominent)   
824. Mompha propinquella  (a micromoth)   
825. Apamea scolopacina (Slender Brindle)   
826. Lycophotia porphyrea (True Lover's Knot)   
827. Ochropacha duplaris (Common Lutestring)   
828. Schrankia costaestrigalis (Pinion-streaked Snout)   
829. Philomachus pugnax (Ruff)
830. Favonius quercus (Purple Hairstreak)
831. Satyrium w-album (White-letter Hairstreak)
832. Blastobasis adustella (a moth)   
833. Senecio aquaticus (Marsh Ragwort)   
834. Stachys palustris (Marsh Woundwort)   
835. Lotus pedunculatus (Greater Bird's-foot-trefoil)   
836. Viola arvensis (Field Pansy)   
837. Betonica officinalis (Betony)   
838. Lestes sponsa (Emerald Damselfly)
839. Aeshna cyanea (Southern Hawker)
840. Udea lutealis (a moth)   
841. Eurithia anthophila (Tachinid Fly)   
842. Omocestus viridulus (Common Green Grasshopper)   
843. Carduus crispus (Welted Thistle)   
844. Meles meles (Badger)
845. Leucozona glaucia (a hoverfly)   
846. Sphaerophoria scripta (a hoverfly)   
847. Rosa caesia subsp. vosagiaca  (a Dog-rose) 
848. Mompha raschkiella (a moth)   
849. Aceria pseudoplatani (a gall-mite)   
850. Phyllonorycter harrisella  (a moth)
851. Lagria hirta  (a Beetle)
852. Rhagonycha fulva (a Soldier Beetle)
853. Leiobunum rotundum (a Harvestman)

Good old moths

Still cursing the weather. All the good days and I'm out of the square doing things, and of course whenever I'm back at home it raining. As I always knew (and planned) I am heavily reliant on vascular plants and moths to get to the 1000 species. In fact with a bit of concentrated effort I think I could get 700 species on these two groups alone. I have the advantage of doing the 1000 species in a 1km square before, and in this square, so its easier for me than others, but I would be stuffed if I had to do it elsewhere.

Despite the rain, the moths in particular have been quite decent, pushing me over the 800 mark. A Painted Lady, got me to 20 butterflies with just two hairstreaks to go. Has anyone seen any adults  north of south Durham yet? Should really have had both by now.

As I said the moths have been good to me including a few rarities such as Scarce Silver-Lines, Suspected, Large Twin-spot Carpet and Dichrorampha montanana, all in the same trap on Friday.

Bena bicolorana (Scarce Silver-lines)

Parastichtis suspecta (Suspected)

The list

777. Megachile centuncularis  (Patchwork Leaf-cutter Bee)
778. Sedum acre (Biting Stonecrop)
779. Lozotaenia forsterana
780. Idaea seriata (Small Dusty Wave)
781. Oligia versicolor (Rufous Minor)
782. Linaria vulgaris (Common Toaflax)
783. Gillmeria pallidactyla (Yarrow Plume)
784. Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald)
785. Acrobasis advenella (a micro moth)
786. Mesapamea secalis (Common Rustic)
787. Apamea lithoxylaea (Light Arches)
788. Nola cucullatella (Short-cloaked Moth)
789. Yponomeuta evonymella (Bird-cherry Ermine)
790. Dichrorampha montanana  (a micro moth)
791. Anania hortulata (Small Magpie)
792. Xanthorhoe quadrifasiata (Large Twin-spot Carpet)
793. Cnephasia stephensiana (Grey Tortrix)
794. Cnephasia asseclana (Flax Tortrix)
795. Eilema depressa (Buff Footman)
796. Bena bicolorana (Scarce Silver-lines)
797. Pleuroptya ruralis (Mother of Pearl)
798. Parastichtis suspecta (Suspected)
799. Diachrysia chrysitis (Burnished Brass)
800. Hylaea fasciaria (Barred Red)
801. Gandaritis pyraliata (Barred Straw)
802. Swammerdamia pyrella (a micro moth)
803. Borkhausenia fuscescens (a micro moth)
804. Bryotropha terrella (a micro moth)
805. Vanessa cardui (Painted Lady)
806. Campanula rotundifolia Harebell)
807. Centaurium erythraea  (Common Centuary)
808. Convolvulus arvensis  (Field Bindweed)
809. Hypericum tetrapterum (Square-stalked St. John's-wort)
810. Scorzoneroides autumnalis (Autumn Hawkbit)
811. Odontites vernus (Red Bartsia)
812. Sonchus arvensis (Perennial Sow-thistle)
813. Rhinanthus minor (Yellow-rattle)

Odontites vernus (Red Bartsia)