Spring 2012 newsletter - Butterfly Conservation

Spring Moths in Scotland Jan England
Moths, Scotland & early April didn’t
sound like an ideal combination at
first glance. However, a friend and
I set off by train to Pitlochry in an
optimistic mood.
Our course was held in the Field
Studies Centre at Kindrogan, a
former country mansion about
ten miles outside Pitllochry. Set in
extensive grounds with woods, river
& moorland it offered a variety of
habitats & spectacular scenery. We inspected
the mothtraps after breakfast, had a coffee
break halfway round the eight traps and set off
before lunch to different sites to look for moths
and butterflies. Each evening after slides and a
discussion we tried to identify moths we had
caught that morning. By the time that finished
and the moths released we were all ready for a
reviving drink in the bar!
Target species for the week included Brindled
Ochre, Rannoch Sprawler, Rannoch Brindled
Beauty, Swordgrass & Orange Underwing.
Finding these depended on the right weather
conditions, no mean feat in a Scottish April.
Despite some rain during one or two nights, each
day was dry, sunny & unseasonably warm, 17-19
degrees. Nights were mild too so
this produced good results in the
traps our tutor ran each night.
By the end of the course we had
recorded good catches of 26
species in & around Kindrogan
including Brindled Ochre, Early
Toothed-striped, Oak Beauty,
Swordgrass, Water Carpet, Satellite
& Yellow Horned.
Male Rannoch Brindled Beauty
A female wingless Rannoch Brindled Beauty Photos by Jane Bowman
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A trap was also run in birchwoods
at Kincraig which produced 14
species with the RDB moth Rannoch
Sprawler found on birch trunks in
the garden thanks to the diligent
searching of 13 course members.
The moth our tutor was most keen
to find was the Rannoch Brindled
Beauty a Nationally Scarce A moth
which rests by day on fenceposts &
walls.
The male is small, has a black furry body with a
line of orange dots along the abdomen,grey semitransparent
wings marked with a dark curved
outer cross line & central crescent.The female’s
body is the same but she is wingless.These moths
are usually found low down on fenceposts so our
group presented a strange sight to passers-by as we
peered, bent double, at dozens of posts along the
road to Struan.The sharp-eyed amongst us finally
found 8 males and 13 females after two days
searching.Back to the bar again that night!
Our final target species was a day-flying moth
called Orange Underwing usually seen flying
around the top branches of birch trees in
sunshine.
Fortunately the exceptionally warm sunny weather
in Scotland meant we found Orange
Underwings on three days with over 20
being seen along the Old Military Road
at Drumcroy Hill. Once more our group
entertained passing traffic as we ran up &
down desperately trying to net an Orange
Underwing for detailed inspection.
After a week of excellent mothing, good
weather amid wonderful scenery we agreed
our optimism had been well and truly
rewarded.