A very successful trip to Sussex tonight, thanks to my good friend Alan Lewis, who had visited the site the previous evening.
I finished work and made my way down to Eastbourne at dusk, and it didn’t take long to find the Tamarisk Peacock. A few hours of searching produced many adults and larvae.
The Tamarisk Peacock is a recent colonist, and its caterpillars feed exclusively on Tamarisk (Tamarix) shrubs, which are commonly planted along coastal gardens and promenades as windbreaks. These plantings provide plenty of suitable habitat for the moth to establish itself.
Historically a very rare immigrant, it was first recorded in Kent in 2004 and has since been recorded increasingly along the south coast. Warmer summers and milder winters may also be helping this Mediterranean species survive and breed successfully in Britain.
While searching for moths, I also came across a few Southern Oak Bush-crickets, which are small, nocturnal creatures that have been spreading across southern England since their first records in Britain in 2001. Additionally, I encountered several Green-fanged Tube-web Spiders, a large Mediterranean species that is now well established in southern Britain, particularly in coastal areas. These spiders create distinctive tubular retreats in cracks and holes in walls, with several silk trip-lines radiating from the entrance. Since I'm not particularly keen on spiders, I quickly took a photo of one and moved on!
Southern Oak Bush-cricket
Green-fanged Tube-web Spider