Another offering of moths

This weekend our moth trap produced some more beauties
Pride of place has to be this Pine hawkmoth, which is a very unusual moth for Staffordshire

Pine hawkmoth Hyloicus pinastri

But I don't just get excited by the unusual, I also like moths for their beauty and we had some more new delights too, including this beautiful large emerald

 
and this yellow-tail

  so why is it called a yellow-tail? ....

What a poser!!!

This cute drinker moth deserved a post on here all to itself, quite happy perched on finger preening itself and posing for it's photo session. I hadn't realised quite how intricate moths antennae could be until I started photographing them - just amazing!

drinker moth  - Euthrix potatoria

drinker moth  - Euthrix potatoria

Butterflies, caterpillar, bee and hoverflies

small skipper

ringlet

peacock caterpillar

I still have to get to grips with bees and hover flies
so no names for these two

 

but I have been given the names for these

Eristalis interruptus

Buff arches

This has to be one of my favourite garden moths so far, not quite so in your face as the stunning garden tiger but it has amazing markings - we have flint gravel in our garden and if it had flown onto the gravel we would never have found it again!
Buff arches

new moth for us in our garden - A stunning Garden Tiger

We only started recording moths in our garden last year and our list is steadily growing. This weekend we gained several more new ones to add to it - this is just one of them - more to share later.
Garden tiger

cobwebs before sunrise

I woke at 4am today, so I got up early. The moth trap was still on and would be emptied later - some more new beauties in there today - will share  a few of them later.

The mist was hanging over the common and the sun was yet to rise

dew covered cobwebs were everywhere

and then the sun rose

and it was time for my morning cuppa!

before photographing the moth beauties

large skipper

This large skipper was the only butterfly that chose to stop by our garden while I sat outside yesterday - so pleased it did as it is the first one I have seen this year!