Colin Piper

My numbers refer to the first picture btw.

I hate pugs too!
My extremely amateur take is that you are right about 1,3 and 4. Never seen No. 2, so don't feel qualified to comment.

I think the answer is yes, but footmen are a bit of a headache for me too, and I get loads of them. BTW, I haven't worked out how to see other replies on Bluesky, so everyone else might have said the same thing.
Colin

Scottish Pearl? Never seen one, being about as far south of you as it's possible to get without getting wet.
Colin

Hi Jess,
It's difficult from a small photo, but I would say it's a Rufous Tortrix.
Colin

Burton Mill Pond, in W. Sussex, includes a 'swamp' called Black Hole.
On warm humid nights this can be spectacular. Sunday night produced 209 of 65. Specialities included:
Bulrush Down Moth, Limnaecia phragmitella
Bulrush Veneer, Calamotropha paludella
Pale Water-veneer, Donacaula forficella

Burton Mill Pond, in W. Sussex, includes a 'swamp' called Black Hole.
On warm humid nights this can be spectacular. Sunday night produced 209 of 65. Specialities included:
Bulrush Down Moth, Limnaecia phragmitella
Bulrush Veneer, Calamotropha paludella
Pale Water-veneer, Donacaula forficella

Nice, and useful, pair of pics Phil, annoyingly however, as I can confirm from this morning's traps, neither of them always look exactly like your photos!

Rain, midges, cows and flighty moths all made for an extreme mothing session at Burton Mill Pond, W. Sussex. Some cracking moths though:
Barred Red, Mocha, Marsh Grass-moth, Sandy Carpet
#teammoth #sussexwildlife #ukmoths #ukwildlife

Spent the summer solstice at West Beach SSSI, lots of sand dune and shingle beach specialists inc. Small Plume, Oxyptilus parvidactyla (poss. only 2nd W. Sussex record), and Canary Tortrix (Lemon Bell), Thiodia citrana, poss. only colony in the county.
#teammoth #sussexwildlifetrust #ukmoths

Quantity rather than quality at Burton Mill Pond, W. Sussex, 83 of 36. Highlight, the 7th modern-day Sussex record for Moss (Gold-barred) Marble, Celypha aurofasciana.
Also had a Field Cricket!

My first ever Ochreous Pug. TBH, I've never liked pugs, but I'm getting loads this year of several species. Scots Pine (the food plant) isn't native to Sussex, but there are plenty of planted trees around.

70 moths of 25 species on Friday night, outnumbered about 2 to 1 by Cockchafer. Moths are emerging early but not flying around much is what I think is happening, due to hot days but cold nights. Orange Footman and Vestal are early for example.
Prettiest moth was a Cream-spot Tiger.

I live in VC14 (East Sussex), just. I do most of my recording though in VC13 (West Sussex). To find them on your map, head south from London until you get wet.

I remember the first exoplanet discovery, incredible that we have got so far in such a short time.

This is K2-18b.

It’s a planet outside of our solar system, about 2 1/2 times the size of earth, orbiting a small red dwarf star.

The James Webb space telescope spent time studying this planet via spectroscopy and determined it has gases in its atmosphere that are only created through biology!

Hi Steve, you've got me thinking. I held that one back to photo because I thought it looked the freshest, but maybe that's because it was different. Are those "fine black streaks or wedges projecting inwards from the outer crossline" (Waring & Townsend) diagnostic of Brindled?

Rain spoiled the first cloudy night for weeks at Burton Mill Pond SWT Reserve. Loads of pugs, 22 Brindled and 2 Oak-tree.
Plus, if confirmed, a very early Heather Hook-wing, Ancylis uncella. Not often seen in Sussex.
Plus, my 2nd Minotaur Beetle of 2025. #teammoth #sussexwildlifetrust #ukmoths

He died in 2006, I doubt he ever saw a frothy cappuccino😀

I trap near a lake and have a similar problem. It's interesting the effect water has, even the trees are later to budburst.

A hard frost in W. Sussex last night with Frosted Green literally frozen to the groundsheet. Highlights were an early Lunar Marbled Brown and my first ever Common Oak Purple (Common Spring Jewel), Dyseriocrania subpurpurella. The photo doesn't do it justice, really shiny in real life.

86 moths of 17 species last night in West Sussex U.K., though it was a lot colder than forecast. My favourite was this Red Chestnut.

First moth trap of the year, at Burton Mill Pond SWT reserve. 61 of 16, including what I believe is a Dark-streaked Tortrix, Acleris umbrana, plus a fantastic Minotaur Beetle #teammoth @sussexwildlife.bsky.social

Beautiful! In the New Forest? I haven't seen one for years, used to be an annual guarantee, like Willow Tit and Tree Sparrow. Hoopoe is my number 1 bogey, don't even try for them anymore.

The highlight of an extremely muddy walk around Henfield Levels yesterday was the discovery of Stinking Hellibore, a rare plant in Sussex, at a previously unknown site. Various lichens, fungi (inc. Southern Bracket) and a Black Swan, made up the supporting cast.

@pamhutch.bsky.social
I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed your piece in S&S re David Lynch. There's clever writing, and then there's clever writing that really tugs at the heart strings and makes you laugh and cry. I loved it. Thanks x

A heart-felt article by #OwenJones today.
www.theguardian.com/.../labour-l....
I too wonder why they haven't left the LP. I think it's that career politicians are, by definition, motivated to some extent by self-agrandisement.
In the extreme case of Keir Starmer it is there only motivation.

Hi Ruth, what are Wogans?

I agree James, Buff Arches is one of my favourites, breathtaking. Beyond the obvious, that the markings break up the outline of the moth and make it look like something else, like you I have no idea what that 'something else' is!
The problem is that we are looking at the world on a different scale.

Occasional reminder that there’s no, “it’s too late, its over” for anthropogenic climate change. Every molecule of CO2 that doesn’t go into the atmosphere makes a difference. Preventing 0.1 degree of warming makes a difference. Every bit of climate resilience we build together makes a difference.