Moths by Month

At last, here are the moths!

For each moth of the year from April to October, you’ll find 5 moths that are likely to be seen across the UK. Moths are seasonal creatures so the first thing to think about when you’re looking to identify a moth is

When is it flying?

Creating images for moth identification

A mobile phone or compact camera is adequate equipment so long as you know how to use it and take close up photos. After a couple of years struggling with blurry, pixellated images, I eventually found out how to use my phone camera after searching the internet for tips on how I could get best results when taking macro or close-up photos with my model of phone. Once you have the right settings on your camera/phone, then try these additional steps to get the best possible moth pictures:

·        Good natural light really helps. Try to avoid taking photos in artificial or bright light as it creates shadows that make it hard to see the shapes and markings on moths, If it’s a sunny day and you’re in an open space, create a shadow by standing between the sun and the moth and then take the photo.

·        It’s impossible to do a reliable identification on a moving moth, they just become a blur, so wait until they settle. The good thing about using moth traps is that the moths are usually still, so easier to photograph. Equally, it’s hard to take a good photo with a camera that’s moving, so stay still and hold your camera/phone steady. If you have wobbly hands, small tripods are available for phones and cameras very cheaply. I have a handheld button that links by bluetooth to my phone and operates the shutter so that I’m not trying to focus, hold the phone and also press the button on the camera.

·        Focus on the moth, don’t worry about anything else in the photo

·        Take 2 photos - an image of the moth from above and an image of it from the side

·        Try to give some idea of the size of the moth in millimetres. It doesn’t have to be exact but it will help to identify the moth. A common item like a pen or key placed next to the moth in the photo can give a sense of scale of you don’t have a ruler, graph paper or tape measure to hand (I rarely do!).

Other Useful information

Along with your photos, make a note of the date, place you saw the moth and anything else about the environment you noticed.

Did you use a moth trap, net, light or spot your moth in daylight?

Making a few notes will help you to remember and provide extra detail if you’re using a forum to help you with identification.

How to find your moths

Now for the fun bit, going moth hunting!

At this point it’s important to be clear about the sort of ‘hunting’ that is going on. In years gone by, butterflies and moths were physically collected, killed and then identified, often ending up mounted on pins in display cases. Thankfully, that’s not what we’re talking about here. We’ll be looking to find moths, take photos for identification (hurrah for digital cameras and phones!) and leave them to get on with their mothy lives. At all times, we’re looking to have as little impact on wildlife as possible, to focus on supporting, protecting and promoting it. The moths aren’t ours, they don’t belong to us, they’re just visiting or living alongside us.

Starting out

There are more moths in the warmer months, so to be assured of success, begin your hunt between April and October. In the Moths by Month section, I’ve given some moths to look for in the colder months, they are there but they’re fewer in number and less active.

Pick a good night

Moths like dry, mild weather with no rain and no more than a light breeze. Your chances of success will be much higher if you look on a ‘good’ moth night. You might see moths in other conditions, but they will be fewer. I often find that a fine, slightly warmer day after a spell of a few days of wet, windy or cold weather is the best for finding a nice batch of moths. I imagine them hunkering down, waiting out the wind and rain, then coming out for a good night out flying with friends.

Leave a light on

The easiest way to find a moth is to wait until it’s dark and to turn a light on. They are attracted to light and will come towards it. You could choose a light inside a room and watch what appears at the window. If you don’t want a load of moths in the room, keep the window closed. If you leave the light on all night, you’ll usually find some moths on the wall around the window and on the frame first thing in the morning. Choose a wall that doesn’t get the sun on it till later in the day and the moths are more likely to sit tight than fly straight off as soon as the light hits them.

If you have a porch, shed or conservatory that can be left open overnight with a light inside, moths will also find it. Be aware of the security risks however, and don’t illuminate portable goods that someone passing might just take away.

Moth traps

Moth traps are basically a box or bucket with a light on top and a funnel going into the box. The moths are attracted to the light, fly around it and fall down the funnel into the box. They can’t easily get back up the funnel tube, so they stay there until they’re released. Additional egg cartons or similar packaging placed inside the box create little nooks and crannies that the moths like to hide in while they’re waiting.

There are lots of different types of moth trap to buy, but they are quite an investment if you’re just starting out. They can be home-made fairly cheaply and plans for Bucket Moth Traps can be found online and made with easily available materials. See here for an example. The main issue used to be getting a light that is reliable and will last for a whole night when lit, but LED torches and light strips are now energy efficient and can run off small, re-chargable battery packs which makes the whole thing much more accessible. If you’re using a mains powered lamp, it needs to be safe for use outdoors as the dampness of the night could cause a short circuit and you and the moths will all end up in the dark.

Local wildlife and moth groups may have a moth trap you could borrow initially or you could ask around online. People often have the most unusual things tucked away in lofts, garages and sheds!

If you’re trapping moths, be aware that the moths then can’t get away until you release them. Any time after dawn you’ll find small birds eyeing up your moth trap as a breakfast buffet. If you don’t get up early to check the catch, record and release them, you’ll find and empty trap with a sad pile of moth wings at the bottom and a plump little wren looking on. Set your alarm nice and early and let your moths live another day!

Daytime Moth Spotting

There are some moths that are easily found during the day, hanging about in grass or just flying around. One of the most exciting daytime moths I’ve seen was a Hummingbird Hawkmoth, which as it suggests is like a hummingbird, and it was feeding on a salvia plant in my garden as I sat having a quiet cuppa. If you walk through long grass on a summer’s day, you’re likely to disturb tiny moths and warm evenings bring out lots to see in daylight. Follow one and see where it lands then take a quick photo. You can waft around using a butterfly net to catch your moth and get a bit closer. There are also Sweep Nets, which can be brushed over grass and weeds to disturb flying insects and see what’s flitting about.

One of the main places I find moths during the day is in our polytunnels, so anywhere enclosed and sheltered like a conservatory or porch would also be a good place to look. Move things around a bit, if there are any plants or places that insects might hide, you could give them a gentle shake and see what flies out. Piles of empty plant pots are a prime hiding place for moths.

What is a Moth, and what’s the difference between a moth and a butterfly?

So what are we looking for when we look for moths?

The very simple answer is an insect with a narrow body and four wings that are covered in tiny scales.

Sounds a bit broad? Hmmm, If you try to add any more detail to the definition, you come across a lot of ‘buts’.

But…what about butterflies?

Well, it seems that butterflies are now formally classed as micromoths, even though some of them are quite big.

But…don’t all moths fly at night?

Well, a lot of them are night flyers, but there are also lots that fly in the daytime.

But…aren’t butterflies bright and moths dull and brown?

Some moths are dull and brown (though beautiful with it!) and some are brightly coloured and very flamboyant. Some butterflies are colourful and some are brown.

But… don’t butterflies have club-shaped antennae?

Moths can have similar shaped ones, though no butterflies have the feathery antennae sported by some of the moths.

The differences are more cultural rather than physical or genetic so it’s probably best to keep an open mind and think of them all together in your head if you can. Once you start looking, there’s bound to be a time when you’re looking at a ‘butterfly’ and can’t find it in the book because it’s a moth, or vice versa, and don’t get me started on micro moths! It’s a tricky one.

The official term for moths and butterflies is lepidoptera, and that includes the whole of the moth and butterfly families. There are around 2,000 different types of moth and around 60 types of butterfly in the UK. With so many to look at in field guides, starting off can feel totally overwhelming. This blog focuses on some that are pretty reliable flyers across the UK so that you can get used to what a moth is, what you’re looking for when trying to identify them, and then move on to expanding your range.

Marvellous Moths A beginner’s guide

Where to find them, how to identify them, and why you should welcome them into your world

White Ermine Moth

This blog intends to provide the info that I needed four years ago, when I first started to look at moths. It’s a light-hearted introduction to the world of mothing that doesn’t get hung up on jargon and scientific language. Using my own experience, including lots of mistakes, it will give you a place to start in understanding these beautiful creatures, so that you can begin looking, and even start to record what you find.

It isn’t in any way a field guide, scientific or technical text. There are some really excellent versions of those that have been written by exceptional authors with immaculate attention to detail, vast qualifications and years of experience. I now have my own mini collection of moth texts and use them really regularly in my moth recording. The work that goes into producing a field guide is so impressive. However, they really weren’t very helpful to me at the beginning, they were just too much. I was totally intimidated by the amount of information and they didn’t tell me the absolute basics that I needed to know.

I started to add moth photos to my flower farm social media a few years ago and I was asked lots and lots of questions. People were interested and fascinated by the variety of moths, their names, what they eat, where I find them.  They send me their own photos of moths they’ve come across in gardens and fields, and the ones that make their way into kitchens and porches and ask what they are. I’m absolutely no expert and they all know that, but I know a bit more than them, love moths and I’m happy to help. This blog is for those lovely people, to encourage and inspire them to look a bit more, to find out about moths, their role and place in our fragile world, why they matter and how to encourage and protect them. And I’m writing it so that when they ask the questions, I’ve got a place to send them for answers and a place to start in their own moth journey.

Moths and Me

Mill Pond Flower Farm - a flower farm alongside a mill pond!

Until 2020, moths were in the background of my life. Fluttery creatures that passed by in the dusk, played percussion on the polytunnel plastic and wafted away when disturbed, I’d never really thought a lot about them. As an urban child, I was terrified of daddy-long-legs and nervous of spiders, the idea of actively seeking out insects definitely wouldn’t have appealed. However, in 2020 the world changed, in more ways than one. I’d been a flower farmer for 8 years, growing and selling cut flowers from our 4 acre smallholding, halfway up a hill in the Scottish borders. It was a good business, using all my skills from varied previous careers and building gently, enough to also include my husband Ray as a part-timer.

In March 2020, I had a sound plan for the coming flower season, a solid wholesale customer list, bookings for wedding flowers and a loyal local market for bouquets and bunches. The polytunnels and field were full of plants heading towards flowers and I was anticipating a successful year. We went into full lockdown in the third week of March, just after Mother’s Day when we’d done outdoor, socially distanced bouquet handovers and in a state of disbelief. Thousands of blooms waiting for weddings & celebrations coming ready in the next few months that were all cancelled in one fell swoop. Like many other small, relatively new businesses, we were forced to ‘pivot’ to survive, adapt our plans every time the guidance and restrictions were changed and bump along without any certainty about what was coming next. It was stressful, difficult, challenging, upsetting, frightening. We worked harder to survive, planning and replanning, heads full of testing, distancing, masks and handwashing.

In the middle of all this, I had an online chat with a flower customer whose husband Barry was the County Moth Recorder for Berwickshire. She said he was really missing getting out into the countryside with his moth trap. Barry had left a portable moth trap with Ray (who he’d met at a local school’s event) and I blithely offered to put it out to see what was flying if Barry would help with the identifying. And that’s how it started.