Ceredigion has a new group of moth enthusiasts linked by the internet and
Flame shoulder moth
If you are interested in contributing to the records as an existing trapper please contact Liz Snell as soon as possible on 01974 299166 or e.a.snell@btinternet.com
Later in the season it is hoped to arrange moth trapping sessions open to anyone interested in moths whereby new trappers can be encouraged and a general appreciation of these wonderful creatures can be demonstrated.. If you would like to be involved in open evenings please respond when the events are advertised in the Wildlife Trust newsletter.
Wildlife Trust teams up with Butterfly Conservation in Carmarthenshire for Brown
Photo Credit Phillip Precey
On a sunny but cold Sunday in February, the hardy Carmarthenshire gang joined Richard Smith from Butterfly Conservation, and his volunteers and contractor to visit a privately owned site near Meidrim, which has been managed sympathetically for wildlife by its owners for some years.
The works for the day involved planting a new blackthorn hedge, and coppicing some over-mature blackthorn, to help provide the young blackthorn growth that the Brown Hairstreaks need. The works were funded by Carmarthenshire County Council’s Conservation department.
A good time was had by all- many blackthorn whips planted, much prickling by the mature blackthorn was borne, plenty of biscuits eaten, and we left the site happy that we had done our bit to secure a positive future for brown hairstreaks in the area!
Brown Hairstreaks are rare in Wales and significant populations are restricted mainly to Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire. The adult butterfly flies very high in the tree canopy and is elusive even to the most seasoned of butterfly-spotters. Eggs, however, are laid on young blackthorn, and whilst tiny, are more conspicuous.
Anyone wishing to try their hand at spotting Brown Hairstreaks on Wildlife Trust reserves should visit West Williamston in south Pembrokeshire, or the Teifi Marshes near Cardigan.
Many thanks to Richard Smith, Butterfly Conservation and the private landowners- and we look forward to next year’s workparty!
A number of eager volunteers turned up at West Williamston Nature Reserve on the first Saturday of December, braving the cold and wet weather to take part in the annual Brown Hairstreak egg count survey. West Wales is the now a stronghold for the threatened Brown Hairstreak butterfly with the Wildlife Trusts’ West Williamston and Teifi Marshes Nature Reserves holding two of the largest colonies. For just over a decade an annual egg count has been carried out by volunteers at West Williamston to assess the status of its colony. It is a late flying, very elusive butterfly which lays its eggs into September but the count takes place after the leaves have fallen to make it easier to see them. The numbers of eggs found has fluctuated each year between less than forty and several hundred. The tiny white eggs are laid singly on new re-growth or young suckers of Blackthorn and keen eyes are required to locate them. Last years egg count was 251, which was the highest on record although I am pleased to say that this year’s count has beaten it by 20%! Despite the poor summers they seem to be doing well.
In spite of the weather, this has been a good year for Brown Hairsteak butterflies at West Williamston SSSI. Since seeing this newly emerged female in early August we have seen 33 more Brown Hairstreak butterflies during our 14 visits to the Reserve during August and September.
The annual egg count on 6th December 2009, along the transect on the foreshore, was the highest since the count began in 1995, a total of 301. The cluster of 4 eggs was found on a Blackthorn bush on which there were a massive 29 eggs in total. This is quite extraordinary, the butterfly usually lays her pinhead sized eggs singly, and on average 2 or 3 to a bush.
Annual flailing of hedge banks and field edges has been the major threat to this species of butterfly. Landowners with Blackthorn hedges are being encouraged to cut on a 2-5 year rotation again to allow the butterfly to complete its life cycle and produce more eggs.
Special thanks must go out to Stephen and Anne Coker who are real Brown Hairstreak champions, GPS mapping all sites and taking time to survey and record this species not just at West Williamston but at other sites too. Nikki Anderson, Voluntary Warden of the reserve, Maddy Berridge and last but by no means least, Jean Hambly, also deserve much recognition for their constant effort in helping to manage the reserve.
That Migration, but whose and in which direction?
As suggested previously, this Painted lady year has also been a good year for other migrating insects including sightings of Clouded yellow, Convolvulus hawk moth Humming bird hawk moths [see picture] across south and west Wales, with number of Painted ladies and Red Admiral still being observed streaming ashore on the South Wales coast in mid September. Continental dragonflies including Yellow winged and Red Veined darter have also appeared at places like Aberthaw although with blocking high pressure sitting over the UK for most of September and into October there have been no reports of any Monarchs yet.
In the opposite direction, the birds have be flying south in even greater numbers with 237 swallows passing over Aberthaw in one hour. Other less commonly observed migrants such as Wryneck have been seen as far apart as Lavernock and Skomer and our wintering shorebird numbers are beginning to grow and they return from their high arctic breeding sites.
The big question is do the Painted Ladies return south? Any observations of these butterflies moving south will be gratefully received.
Where have all the Painted Ladies gone?
2009 will be described as an exceptional insect migration year. From mid May we must all have all seen Painted Lady butterflies in numbers as the leading edge of their mass migration hit south and east Wales as it moved north.
Two months later the numbers seem to have attenuated, but having laid eggs we should be in for another eruption in numbers in August and September after they have defoliated thistles everywhere before they start to drift south again.
Good Painted Lady years often mean good years for other continental migrant insects including Humming bird hawkmoth and numbers of migrant dragonflies such as Red veined Darter and the odd Lesser Emperor, the darter having got as far inland at Breconshire.
Who knows this may be one of those years when a Monarch butterfly pitches up in the Vale of Glamorgan or further west. The great Monarch migration from Mexico north into the United States and back is well known. Their drift across the Atlantic in the autumn less so frequently accompanied by vagrant American bird species much beloved by twitchers. This movement in suitable weather conditions has also allowed the establishment of Monarch populations in the Canary Isles and the southern Iberian Peninsula including Gibraltar. So there are two possible points of departure for this magnificent curiosity should you see one in Wales.
Trust volunteers help with project to protect Marsh Fritillary site
Trust volunteers from Carmarthenshire have been working on a partnership project to help protect a small colony of the threatened butterfly, the Marsh Fritillary.
Marsh fritillaries were once widespread in Britain and Ireland, but have now declined significantly in both Britain and Europe. The west coast is the only remaining stronghold in Britain and the populations in west Wales are of international significance.
A small colony on private land in central Carmarthenshire was the subject of the project, which was overseen by the Countryside Council for Wales. The species is closely tied to its habitat- purple moor-grass and rush pasture, or ‘rhos pasture’ and the presence of its food plant, Devil’s Bit Scabious Succisa pratensis. Much of its habitat has been lost or fragmented by development or inappropriate management. In the case of this colony, grazing by sheep- which love Devil’s Bit Scabious and will nibble it to oblivion- were threatening the future of the butterfly.
In order to redress the damage, with the support of the landowner and funding from Butterfly Conservation, Trust staff and volunteers built a new stock fence to keep the sheep in one of the more improved fields nearby, rather in the rhos pasture. This will allow grazing in the marsh fritillary field to be better controlled, and hopefully allow the butterflies to flourish.
Marsh fritillary butterflies are only flying as adults for a short time in late May to early June- to find out which Trust reserves to visit to spot these attractive butterflies, contact Lizzie Wilberforce on l.wilberforce@welshwildlife.org