newsletter 21.pdf - Dorset Moth Group

is nothing new and interesting to find in the future; moth populations are dynamic and may reflect
changes in land management and climate, and other factors.
C. populetorum and A. umbrana have both turned up after long absences. It is quite possible both are
resident but both are likely to be scarce if so. C. populetorum is a birch feeder, so no shortage of the
foodplant. However, it just seems to be rare in southern England, only becoming commoner further
north and it is quite common in Scotland. A. umbrana could be overlooked amongst A. hastiana, but it
has a broader forewing and often a strong diagonal band across the wing. The example from West
Bexington turned up on a very warm night and it could have travelled from sloe thickets almost
anywhere along the West Dorset coastline or possibly from further afield.
As always thank you for your records. I much appreciate the lists sent electronically in Microsoft Excel
spreadsheet format, and most of you now do this. Good hunting in 2009 and I hope you have a more
productive season than in 2008.
MICROLEPIDOPTERA REPORT 2008
Records of a number of nationally-rare and nationally-scarce species (mostly provisional statuses only)
have been included, together with records of other interesting species such as rarer immigrants and
those not recently recorded in the county. Nomenclature is taken from Bradley, J.D. (2000) ‘Checklist
of Lepidoptera recorded from the British Isles. Second Edition (Revised)’. Records of a number of
nationally-scarce species and of some immigrants/partial residents regularly recorded in Dorset, have
been omitted from this report. Data for all species are held at DERC.
Records were gratefully received from:
MC – Martin Cade RL – Ricky Lambert
JC – John Cheney JRL – John Langmaid
PC – P. Clarke CMM – Chris Manley
PDMC – Peter Costen JMcG – James McGill
PAD – Peter Davey TM – Tom Morris
MD – M. Deans BN – Bernadette Noake
RE – Roy Eden SMP – Steve Palmer
BE – Bryan Edwards MSP – Mark Parsons
DE – David Evans SP – Sue Philp
AF – Andy Foster CP – Clive Pinder
JF – Julian Francis EP – Ted Pratt
DG – David Gibbs ZR- Zoë Randle
DGG – Dave Green SR – Stuart Reid
RH – Robin Harley JS – Jenny Spence
BPH – Barry Henwood RS – Bob Steedman
JH – Jeff Higgott PHS – Phil Sterling
LH – Les Hill JW – Jim White
MJ – Mike Jeffes HWH – Hugo Wood Homer
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