This February has been exceptionally cold in the last two weeks, with equally exceptional southerly warm winds in the first two weeks. The unusual southerly airflow brought several migrant moths rarely seen at this time of year. Along with the well noted Painted Ladies came moths such as Dark Sword Grass (A.ipsilon), Pearly Underwing (P.saucia), Rusty dot Pearl (U. ferrugalis) and Rush Veneer (N.noctuella). Now this freak occurence has passed we can expect the first true springtime species to take to the wing as soon as the temperatures rise.

It is still worth looking for hibernating species in barns, old sheds and even toilet blocks . I found a Herald (S.libatrix) in the public toilets in Gillingham!

One of the first off the mark is the Spring Usher(A. leucophaearia) which has several colour forms but is a papery affair not unlike a miniature Mottled Umber. Like a lot of the winter-spring flyers, the female is wingless but the males may be seen at lighted windows etc. The Mottled Umber however is on the wing in late autumn/winter. Also out soon will be the Dotted Border(A.marginaria) again with flightless female. Both these and the Early Moth are fairly common throughout Dorset ,as is the Early Toothstripe, but unless attracted to a lighted window are perhaps not often seen other than in the car headlights. A wander down a well hedged lane or alongside a wood with a torch soon after dark will usually find at least one of these species as well as the true moth of the Month, the March Moth (A.aescularia)!

Once the Sallow catkins are in bloom more moths come out to make use of the nectar on offer. An evening strolling around any such bushes in your area should produce a few bulkier Noctuid moths such as the Hebrew Character (Orthosia gothica), Common Quaker (O.cerasi), Small Quaker (O.cruda), and Twin-spot Quaker (O.munda). The genus Orthosia is a good place to start looking to identify early spring moths. As well as those already mentioned there are the Clouded Drab (O.incerta), and the much rarer Lead Coloured Drab (O.populi). The latin name of the latter indicates that it is very much restricted to the larval foodplant , Aspen (Populus tremula). If anyone has a stand of Aspen nearby some lightrapping could be very interesting.

Sallow bushes will also attract a number of hibernating species that have been tucked away in hollow trees, old sheds etc. These species include the Chestnut (C.vaccinii), the Satellite (E.transversa), Blossom Underwing (O.miniosa) and Dotted Chestnut (C.rubiginea).

From mid March you might come across the Pine Beauty (P.flammea) which, as the latin and English mame suggests, is a flame red coloured, very pretty moth which often flies some distance away from Pines and is strongly attracted to light.The tiny feather winged Orneodes hexadactyla or Twenty Plumed Moth which shares its foodplant, honeysuckle with another spring species, the Early Grey (X. areola) now flies out from its hibernation sites.

Another early “micro” is an oak lover by the name of Diurnia fagella. This is a lovely moth in which the female has half-sized wings whilst the male is fully winged. The females can be spotted crawling up Oak trunks at dusk whilst the males will shortly appear and flutter around the base of the tree. Quite a few “micros” overwinter, especially the genus Agonopteryx which are generally tortrix shaped and various shades of fawn to tan. They also are partial to Sallow catkins.

The other main group of early flyers are the “Beauties” which, in Dorset, would include the Small Brindled Beauty (A.hispidaria) , the Brindled Beauty (L.hirtaria) and the Pale Brindled Beauty (A.pilosaria) and Oak Beauty (B.strataria). These are robust , very furry creatures where the males have very noticable feathery antennae. The Oak Beauty is very like the familiar Peppered moth in shape and size.

We can’t pass the Pugs by completely now the new book, British and Irish Pugs by Riley and Prior has finally been published. Only two species are likely in March, namely the Double-striped Pug (E.rufifasciata) and the Brindled Pug (E.abbreviata). Fortunately the Double striped Pug is quite distinctive so the Pug dilemma can be postponed for a month or two! There are a couple of rarer moths that occur at this time; the Small Eggar (E. lanestris) whose larval tents on Backthorn were once a commoner sight is attracted to light, especially the males, and Somerset and Dorset is a national stronghold for this species; and the Barred Toothstripe (T.polycommata) which has also been found in both these counties but is restricted to stands of Wild Privet. As with the Aspen, if there is any good blocks of Privet near you it would be worth investigating with a torch
at dusk.

This list is not a complete list of all moths possibly on the wing but covers the most usually encountered species. Any records would be very welcome and a photo of any unidentified moths can be emailed to me at paulnbutter@hotmail.com. All species are illustrated in Bernard skinners’ "Moths of the British Isles" and in the new "Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland" by Waring and Townsend.