17th June

Another short petrel tape-luring session in less satisfactory conditions than last night came up with just a single Storm Petrel trapped and ringed overnight at the Bill. There was very little on offer during the hours of daylight: the Hooded Crow lingered on at the Grove, 2 Mediterranean Gulls were at Ferrybridge and 12 Common Scoter, 9 Manx Shearwaters and 6 Sandwich Terns passed through off the Bill.

Singles of Marbled Yellow Pearl Evergestis extimalis and Obscure Wainscot provided the main interest amongst the immigrants/wanderers caught overnight in the Obs garden moth-traps; routine fare there included 27 Rusty-dot Pearl, 3 Diamond-back Moth and a Silver Y. Elsewhere, singles of Hummingbird Hawk-moth and Delicate were of note at Sweethill.

 

 

Obscure Wainscot (right, with a Shoulder-striped Wainscot) and Four Spotted - Portland Bill, 17th June 2014 © Martin Cade

 

...despite being a common inhabitant of the reedbeds at, for example, Radipole and Lodmoor, we think that last night's Obscure Wainscot is only the third recorded at Portland. Four Spotted is a much rarer moth nationally but is relatively routine around the southern third of the island where it's one of the most sought-after of the Portland specials at this time of year.