I have done very little moth trapping this year for various reasons. It is a shame as several of my mothing friends have told me that it has been a particularly good year for moths.
One of my sought after species has been the Striped Hawk-moth. Two friends have caught them this year and both of them invited me over to photograph them. It wasn't convenient at the time for the first offer, but then Nigel caught his and it was just too much of a temptation to miss, especially as Lisa was over at the time and she was keen having seen a picture of one.
The only one that I had photographed before was on a trip to Fuerteventura a few years ago when I was lucky to have one nectaring on the wing in daylight. A very lucky encounter!!
Striped Hawk-moth feeding in Fuerteventura in 2022.
The moth that Nigel had caught was in immaculate condition and sat well for us as we photographed it. Our thanks to Nigel for giving us this opportunity.
Striped Hawk-moth.
A couple of weeks later I saw that conditions were looking good for a moth session, so I put the trap out overnight and hoped for my own Striped Hawk-moth. As usual, the following morning on opening the trap I was full of anticipation of what I would find in the trap. Sitting near the top was an enormous moth in perfect condition. This one was not a Striped Hawk-moth, but a Convulvulous Hawk-moth. I have caught a few of these before, but I've never seen such a spectacular one before. It was so fresh it was likely to have emerged locally rather than migrating over from the continent.
The strange pattern on the body.
I also had a few other nice moths in the trap that night.
Large Thorn.
Portland Riband Wave.
Maybe I should put the trap out more often.
Seem to have been a lot of striped hawkmoths around this year judging by my feeds. Of course, I haven't come across one!
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