Andy Symes

*Greece

Ah, gotcha! We're definitely in the lean season for trapping unfortunately.

What other Weeting Heaths are there other than the one in the Norfolk Brecks?

It's addictive! It helped that I live within c2hrs of all of them apart from Thrift, and many of them are on the doorstep. Anyway please forgive the smug post - I suspect you catch a lot of moths that I'd be very envious of!

The UK's 16 (at least for now?) clearwing species

Gotta catch 'em all! 😆

When you said 'pleased', did you mean to say 'thoroughly ashamed'? If not, why not? Asking on behalf of a lot of people who lent you and Labour a vote last year, certainly not expecting miracles but not imagining for one second that a Labour government could sink to these current depths.

Lovely photos of a lovely place. Do you know what rare plant they're managing for?

Sounds a lot like you're in the wrong party...

Why post this if you don't have the guts to state that this Labour government wants to enable developers to trash our environment, and has no 'real Labour values' of any sort? If you refuse be explicit about that and take the consequences then these posts are just pointless, wishy-washy nonsense.

Hume's Warbler, Winterton y'day. On its own, ignoring passing tit flocks, it kept to a clump of sallows and adjacent bay tree, giving occasional bursts of calls. Despite not moving far, a nightmare to photograph! My first since finding one in Wells Woods in 2015. #UKBirding #NorfolkBirding

Lovely Pallas's Warbler at Cart Gap today, 500m from car park bird and suspect 2nd bird but can't be 100% sure. Certainly felt like a find when it dropped in in front of me! Bird was on its own and calling occasionally. Also Woodcock, Snow Buntings, ++Robins and Blackbirds #NorfolkBirding #UKBirding

I'm going to stick my neck out and say that second pic is quite something...

As a non-expert, it looks very like the crocicapitella I get regularly, although I've never knowingly caught obviella to compare it with. The dorsal streak is very pale and main ground colour is quite pale and peppered, which I think fits crocicapitella.

Enjoyed my first British Pallid Swift in a long while as it cruised over the streets of Cromer, then gave Blakeney Point a bash - barely a birder seen in 6 hrs but not many birds either. A November Whitethroat was unexpected, but I'd have preferred one of the more likely options (Pallas's or Dusky)!

False promise!

Likewise, hope it picks up for you! Ferrugalis and xylostella in already so fingers crossed.

Not exactly fighting off Death's-head Hawk-moths here, but Oak Rustic last night was a long-awaited new moth for me. Also Yellow-line Quaker and Sprawler this week. The wind has finally dropped to nothing so what will tonight bring? Royston, VC29 #TeamMoth

9 of 8 last night, 6 of 4 the night before. Nothing more migrant-y than Udea ferrugalis so far, but we go again tonight!

A very westerly Brown Shrike and a rather easterly Western Gorse at Upper Hollesley Common, Suffolk yesterday

I expect Clancy's will reach you before too long, they're definitely on the march! Gone from a rarity to a peak count of 27 in the space of a couple of years here.

Should have said: two Clancy's, a PMW and a Vine's in my pic

It looks a bit long and thin for a Clancy's - I wouldn't completely rule it out but they're usually more 'triangular' than PMW in my experience. But that one has clearly lived a life so who knows what shape it was to start with!

I'll trap again in a few days time and see how it goes then.

I often get half a dozen but they don't tend to cause trouble. Last night there were around a hundred! Trap was 15m from where it usually sits, to give a bit more shelter, but surely that couldn't have made that much difference!

Wasp to moth ratio of 25:1 last night - very unimpressed!

A day of two halves yesterday, starting with the Suffolk Turkestan Shrike - which was attempting to shelter from winds strong enough to blow it back to Turkestan - followed by a trip to London for a glorious, tearful, joyful farewell show from the living legend that is Edwyn Collins.

Did someone piss on your porridge this morning, or is this your usual level of debating prowess?

That's now Wall, Green Hairstreak and Small Blue seen by others in the past few years and not on my list for the Heath 🤦‍♂️

Thanks, was alerted to that and have had a very quick look but couldn't see it/any - now the weather is turning! Does sound like a bit of a resurgence for the species this summer, although usual caveats re uncertain origin apply. Assume the last record was 1990s or earlier but don't know for sure.

Look who was hiding on the back of the last sheet I checked this morning 🥳🥳🥳