Name that Moth

I went up to check the duck pen was secure last night and spotted a Whacking Great Big Moth hanging on the netting of the pen. I have large hands and long fingers and the moth is about 5 - 6cm across

I assumed it's a Hawk Moth and have been looking it up but the closest I can find to it is the Lime hawk moth Mimas tiliae but it's forewings aren't nearly so scalloped, is this simply a varieation?

When I looked this morning he was still hanging on the fence, if he's still there I'll try and take another piccie.

Any Lepidopterists among us here who can confirm or scoff at my ID attempts please? :)

Hello Baa,

It looks to me like a Lime Hawk Moth, (without fishing the relevant reference book out of the loft). Either that, or, a Poplar Hawk Moth. Whichever, a great picture of one of our most exquisite moths.

Thanks Prophetfive

We think he or indeed she may be an Eyed Hawkmoth http://images.google.com/images?q=eyed%20hawkmoth&btnG=Search&hl=en&lr=&cr=countryUK%7CcountryGB&c2coff=1&client=safari&rls=en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi They are similar aren't they!

We've been fortunate this year, we spotted a Hummingbird hawkmoth in the garden last week and it's visited us several times.

Hi Baa, I think moth is an Eyed Hawkmoth, you'll have to poke it to see if it shows its 'eyes'!

We have been having moth hunts a few nights and have been getting over 20 species a night. We keep on finding species new to our garden and some not recorded for our area. We use a light trap with egg boxes in the base and they all just fly in and settle on the egg boxes so they are very easy to identify and are so beautiful with so many lovely names, much more descriptive than the butterflies.

We've had some hummingbird hawkmoths zooming up and down the paths, but never still for long enough to get a photo - I've tried.

Haven't had a visit from the Hummingbird 'Hawks' as yet, which is unusual because the honeysuckles are in full flower. Unless, of course, they've called while I'm at work.
I've never seen an Eyed Hawk Moth before. When I was young I used to collect Elephant Hawk caterpillars and keep them overwinter as pupae. Used to be quite scary if they hatched at night with half a dozen or so moths hurtling around the bedroom. They sound like huge bumble bees!

LOL I can imagine Prophetfive! I don't think I've ever seen an Elephant Hawkmoth in the flesh before.

Patbarr, I didn't have a chance to poke him in the end, it didn't occur to me when I spotted him. He's gone now but it was great to have a visit from him. I've never been moth hunting before, what kind of moths are you getting?

I was sat here last night, this is a tiny box room and I spied 7 different kinds although I couldn't begin to tell you their names. I'll have to dig out the wildlife book.

I can picture you with a bedroom full of flying moths Prophetfive - could be quite scary.

I haven't got my list handy, but some moths we have caught last week are:
Large elephant hawk moth
Small elephant hawk moth
Plume
Peach Blossom
Buff Tip - which looks just like a snapped off twig
Burnished Brass
Golden Y
Ermine
Yellow Underwing
Dark Arches
Peppered

These are just a few I can rember at the moment. They are so beautiful when you see them close up - I'll try to remember to photo some next time we get the trap out.

The Large Elephant Hawks were the ones I used to collect. We had a large patch of Rosebay Willowherb nearby, and, I collected the caterpillars from there. The moths are a gorgeous rose pink and lime green, and, look really exotic.

Yes, the Elephant Hawks are amazing colours. We seem to have quite a lot of them round here every year.

Here are a couple of pictures I took today of the Burnet moths mating and a pupa case. Not very good photos. I was wearing my varifocals and they put a bend on things so I don't get them centred. Must remember for next time.

And a Burnet moth and a bumble bee:

And a Speckled Wood butterfly which landed on the honeysuckle.

That Burnet moth is amazing, and fancy getting them mating next to a pupa case. There's something black at the top of the case, doyouknow what it is?

great shot of the Burnet with the bumble, I have of a red Admiral with a bee from last year.

Does your Speckled Wood look different to mine? It looks like the one in the book, a female, the male has yellowish spots and is darker. It does say the intensity of colour varies greatly from place to place.

Sorry baa, I meant to say the Eyed hawk Moth is amazing too, I'm not sure I have seen one, but I have seen some interesting ones a few years ago and you can forget. It does look familiar, not sure about the eyes though!

There has been the Hummingbird Hawk here a couple of times, but I missed it.

I went between the shrubs and hedge trying to follow the Gatekeeper butterfly, and out flew this dainty little moth I think it is. It looks too small and not quite right to be a Brimstone Yellow, the closest there is in my book.

I got a pic of this interesting moth? the bands on it's wings looked like shiny gold.

On 9th June on the asiatic lilies

Another funny one I found inside, I took it out, on 8th Dec 05. The closest I can come is an Oak Eggar, but not quite.

This was 7th February camouflaging (trying) on the wood in a glass pane door inside.

See the fringed edges of wings.

This on 17th September last year, the closest I can get is a Silver Y, not that one.

I saw a really strange one about a week or so ago, it was about 2" across but not long, and a bright mauve-purple-deep pink, I grabbed the camera but couldn't find it. Not sure if it was a butterfly or moth. The leaves on the ground looked good camouflage, from the Eucalyptus tree. It's wings were a similar shape, the colour a little deeper.

I took a pic of the leaves to remind me!

I used to know all of these moths off by heart, now I can't put a name to any of them!
Wallaby1 has a purple one, and yesterday, at work, I found a lime green one which I really should know the name of, but, for the life of me, I can't remember. It's time to fish out those reference books again.

P.S. The one on the doorframe might be a Goat Moth, wallaby1.

I found a pic of a European Goat Moth, it looks different, but I did take a pic of another one that looks similar!

http://www.forestryimages.org/browse/detail.cfm?imgnum=2101046

prophet, the Brimstone Moth is a lemon-yellow but can perhaps looks greenish

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brimstone_Moth

I searched for 'lime green moth' and came across a site that lists plants to attract moths. ther is a 'Lime Speck Pug Moth'

http://www.englishplants.co.uk/Mplants.html

Some moth pics here

http://www.kendall-bioresearch.co.uk/moth1.htm

Guide to moths of GB and Ireland

http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?id=482

Forester Moth is metallic green

http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?bf=163

Lime-speck Pug

http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?id=113

I've just had a quick look through my book Field guide to Butterflies and Moths of Britain and Europe and have a few suggestions for you.

The one on the lily looks like a Degeers Longhorn. The next is definately some kind of Egar - could it be a Small Egar, they sometimes change colour a bit with wear and tear. The one on the frame I thought was a Peppered moth, and the one you took on 17th September may be a Flame Shoulder.

Not an expert so I may be wrong, and some of the photos in the book are obviously of old specimens - with a pin through them!

Thanks Pat, it gives me something to go on, I will have to get a 'proper' book!

There's a lot on that ukmoths site, but too many to look at them all without a clue. Sometimes it's easier to go through a colour coded book. Don't think I want one with pins through them...

We will all be moth experts after this!

Today I saw my all time favourite moth, the Garden Tiger. Must make a mental note to take the camera to work more often!

There was a pic of that one on here

http://www.kendall-bioresearch.co.uk/moth2.htm#top

I had caterpillars like that when I grew Lathyrus Cupani, I will have to grow them again, some others like feed on sweet peas.

I took my camera out with me when I did the rounds this morning, there was a Ringlet butterfly in a greenhouse, it could have got out if it knew how. I got some pics!

I went out yesterday and today, butterflies flying across the road everywhere. It must be a good hatching year.

I found one that look similar to the 'Oak Eggar' on in December, it hasn't as much light colour on it's head, it's a 'December Moth', it feeds on ....oak.

http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk/moths%20p1.html

I also have the 'Common Footman', no pics this year yet but I've seen it, I got one of it last year hiding.

I had a moth feeding from flowers at around 7pm yesterday, once it got used to me I got some pics but it was difficult as it would flutter it's wings while feeding. When it did stop , by the time I had focused it was fluttering ready to move on again!

There was a lot of small ones around, they must have just hatched.

This one was hiding in the clematis flammula, I scared it out for a photo shoot! The small ones confuse the camera and don't come out well.

Another with some wing missing

Those are very striking photos. I've not had chance to look them up, but the last one looks quite unusual (not only because it has a bit missing)

We've got the moth trap out tonight, so I'm just going to see what has turned up.

Pat, you need to take some pics!

The ukmoths.org.uk site has thousands on, I went through some and can remember one called a 'Map Moth' that had strong markings on it. You can look at the pics by clicking on the 'next' but there is a lot. I haven't seen that last one before, but then I am looking more!

I checked, there is a Map-winged Swift Moth, not like that at all.

I got a pic of a moth last night that looks similar to the well patterned one. The colour does look darker, perhaps male and female are different. I don't think the night made the difference.

There's a silvery looking one at hte top as a bonus.

Another that visited inside, it has a fluffy head.

I had a very pretty moth inside on the back of the curtain. This one I recognise as a Silver Y.

I helped it outside so it could feed, but got some of that rust colour on my hands. It flew off so should be OK.

There was an article in the Independent last week about rare butterflies and moths suggesting it was because of global warming. They actually put a photo of a Painted Lady against the report of Monarch butterflies being blown across the Atlantic (which was nothing to do with global warming anyway)

What I wondered was do other European or British Gardeners regularly get Hummingbird Hawk moths? They were suggesting that they are rare, but I have had them in my garden most summers since at least 1975 (which was the first time I looked it up in the book to see what it was). They say they are now over-wintering in this country in the South. What I was thinking was if they are only infrequent summer visitors in the North, why are they in my garden every year. I know I have lots of their favourite nectar plants they especially like honeysuckle, and one was on the Michaelmas daisies on Monday. I often think that it is more likely that people don't report their sightings, or don't know what they are, and that lots of supposedly rare species are much more common than the experts think.

I agree Patbarr, it doesn't sound very occasional does it. I think there should be a central place where gardeners, farmers and naturalists can report sitings of the plants and animals they see. I know the BBC has Springwatch etc but they only ask for specific plants or animals.

I know you can go to the various clubs, assocs., and local widlife groups but how many of those only keep their own records?

We see the Hummingbird Hawkmoths too but living here that's not going to be a big suprise is it LOL.

I have had the Hummingbird Hawk moths around all summer, it been seen the last two years briefly but I didn't see it myself.

I saw one several times go to the purple dahlia and purple phlox Nicky, a young plant which I put in the new bed. I was stood with my camera by the dahlia once and one flew right in front of me but it wasn't still or hovering long enough to get a pic.

I did get lots of pics of one sunning itself on the hedge, then later it spent ages feeding on my neighbours white buddleja and blue hebe (saw it while looking for dragonflies). I must have taken a hundred shots, and did manage to get some reasonable ones with such a good opportunity. It was interesting to watch, it would go along one side of the flower spike, over the top and down the other side, then around the tip.

It's not long since one was sunning itself on my south facing wall. I think they must be living and breeding here.

I have 26 pics I kept of it feeding, can't show them all but each one had some interesting angle worthy of keeping it for.

In some there doesn't appear to be a wing, just a faint shadow. It's amazing how a camera can capture a flower through the wings as it beats so quickly.