UK moths

[Jacques Francis]

Thanks Martin

I've got an old copy of South's Moths of the British Isles, and the pictures
of Winter Moths look very like the ones I saw. Well, you live and learn!

Jacques

Martin Hough wrote in message ...
>These will almost certainly be male Operophtera brumata- the Winter Moth
>(the females are wingless). Numbers are likely also to be enhanced with a
>few Operophtera fagata- Northern Winter Moth and some straggling November
>Moths (Epirrita dilutata). It's now too late for the other abundant
autumnal
>woodland species-  the inappropriately named Scarce Umber, which far
>outnumbers the Mottled Umber.
>
>The sheer numbers of Winter Moths does in some small measure make up for
the
>paucity of species in the UK at this time of year
>
>
>Jacques Francis <jacques.francis at oznone.co.uk> wrote in message
>news:945121385.12645.0.nnrp-14.c29fdc4a at news.demon.co.uk...
>> Driving along quiet single-track country roads in wooded Surrey tonight
>> (13-Dec-99), with the car's thermometer showing 0 to -2 and after a day
of
>> dank grey overcast with long periods of rain (yes, I'd rather be in
>> Barbados), I caught at least 30 moths in the headlights. They all looked
>> about the same in size and colour - buff, and were quickly flapping their
>> wings. As I don't know a great deal about moths, I was surprised to see
>any
>> at all at these low temperatures.
>>
>> Does anybody know if this is normal and I've been rather unobservant in
>the
>> past, or whether it's unusual. What sends moths to bed for the winter,
and
>> are there some that come out irrespective of the weather?
>>
>> Jacques Francis
>>
>>
>
>