TWO NIGHTS OF MOTH TRAPPING AT PAMBER FOREST-HAMPSHIRE

I spent two enjoyable nights this week at Pamber Forest and Silchester Common with my good friend Alan Lewis, doing some late-night moth trapping. We had a fantastic couple of nights, with some really quality moths recorded.

Pamber Forest and Silchester Common is an area of woodland and heathland in Hampshire and is designated as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. Pamber Forest contains mature deciduous woodland, with hazel coppice dominated by mature oak, creating excellent habitat for a wide variety of wildlife, including some very interesting woodland moths.

Pamber Forest

The main highlights of our two nights were three spectacular Underwing species: Light Crimson Underwing, Dark Crimson Underwing and Red Underwing. We were particularly lucky to see them coming to a sugar solution that we had smeared onto the trees and hung up sugar ropes.

Alan applying the sugar base to the trees

Sugar ropes

Red Underwing

Dark Crimson Underwing

Light Crimson Underwing

Light Crimson Underwing and Dark Crimson Underwing were new moths for me, so to have the opportunity to see them at such close quarters was absolutely fantastic.

Seeing these impressive moths emerge from the darkness was one of the real highlights of the visit. Underwings can be easily overlooked when resting during the day, but when they reveal their brightly coloured hindwings, they are truly spectacular moths.

We also recorded Small Black Arches, another excellent woodland species. It is a localised moth in Britain, occurring mainly in the southern counties, and is associated with mature deciduous woodland. Its larvae are believed to feed on oak (Quercus), making the mature oak woodland at Pamber Forest particularly suitable habitat.

Small Black Arches

A fantastic couple of nights, some exceptional moths and a very memorable visit to Pamber Forest, which really delivered.