Wednesday 1 November 2023

Talking molluscs

Heading into autumn, moth-trapping along with general garden listing has started to slow down. As such I have started to turn my attention towards a TAXA group which I have previously only made the slightest of forays into exploring. Molluscs seem the obvious choice as conditions get wetter and cooler, and searching for them on damp nights when the moth trap is not running, maintains my curiosity, and scratches the "listing itch" at the same time.

Noting an interesting looking green and yellow slug on the wall, one night, towards the end of September, I thought it was potentially different to the Green Cellar Slug (Limacus maculatus) that I have recorded before. A long pale stripe running along the keel and tail, was not a feature that from memory I had noted on the few Green Cellar Slugs, I had already identified in the garden.

Having consulted the AIDGAP guide to the “Slugs of Britain and Ireland” (2014) I thought it might be a reasonable candidate for Yellow Cellar Slug (Limacus flavus); with a heavy dose of scepticism given that guide advises that dissection is often required to distinguish it from L. maculatus.
Limacus flavus

Posting the record on iRecord, I was surprised by the almost immediate verification of the species as L. flavus by Chris du Feu who also commented: “Thanks for the record. There is a long enough yellow streak from tail most of the way along the centre of the back to the mantle. It is likely to be a cross between L. maculatus and L. flavus. With L. maculatus being the dominant species at present, it is likely that these crosses become more and more like L. maculatus with each passing generation. Good to see a record which we can call L. flavus. They are becoming something of a rarity now.”

This prompt and considered response from Chris gave me no end of encouragement to pursue the trail (pun intended) of further garden molluscs. Over the next couple of weeks armed with the AIDGAP guides for both slugs and land snails, I stalked the garden looking for likely suspects.

Girdled Snail
(Hygromia (Hygromia) cinctella)


Kentish Snail (Monacha (Monacha) cantiana)

White-lipped Snail (Cepaea (Cepaea) hortensis)

Common Garden Snail (Cornu aspersum)



Large Red Slug (Arion (Arion) rufus)

Large Red Slug in cop.


Draparnaud's Glass Snail (Oxychilus (Oxychilus) draparnaudi)


Netted Field Slug (Deroceras (Deroceras) reticulatum)

Ambigolimax agg.

At work a colleague and I were felling small trees on the heathland. I became very excited to note several Tree Slug (Lehmannia marginata) along the length of a downed Birch (Betula sp.), and we carefully avoided killing them as the cord wood was cut and stacked.
Tree Slug


References

Cameron, R. (2008) 2nd Edition Land Snails in the British Isles AIDGAP Field Studies Council
Rowson, B., Turner, J., Anderson, R., Symondson, B., (2014) Slugs of Britain and Ireland AIDGAP Field Studies Council

Friday 22 September 2023

Mothing and moth trap intruders .. Isle of Man pt. 2

We leave tomorrow, and it is too early a start on the day - to want to trap again overnight tonight. Over this past week, the traps have yielded less species than I would have hoped for given the location.

The cottage has large gardens, laid out both formally with lawns and hedges, but also has a variety of native trees and shrubs, unkempt wilder areas, and is adjacent to the Killane River which has native wildflower and fern species upon its banks. The surrounding fields are relatively small with good connectivity in the hedgerows.

I used the 25W blacklight or 20W actinic in conjunction with the Skinner Trap, in the back garden. Trapping by porchlight only in the front garden.

Despite the lack of variety, I have still seen some moth species for the first time, adding them to the “life-list” along with a couple of beetles which also came to the light, and of whom I have not seen before either.

The final species tally on the week’s trapping list is as follows:

Moths

Snout (Hypena proboscidalis)
Canary-shouldered Thorn (Ennomos alniaria) Porchlight only
Canary-shouldered Thorn

Common Marbled Carpet (Dysstroma truncata)
Alucita hexadactyla Porchlight only
Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
Setaceous Hebrew Character (Xestia c-nigrum)
Pink-barred Sallow (Xanthia togata) new for me
Pink-barred Sallow

Angle Shades (Phlogophora meticulosa)
Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa)
Pearly Underwing (Peridroma saucia)
Beautiful Plume (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla)
Red-green Carpet (Chloroclysta siterata)
Blastobasis lacticolella new for me
Blastobasis lacticolella

Green-brindled Crescent (Allophyes oxyacanthae)
Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba)
Autumnal Rustic (Eugnorisma glareosa) new for me
Autumnal Rustic

White-shouldered House-moth (Endrosis sarcitrella)
Epiphyas postvittana
Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria)
Dark Sword-grass (Agrotis ipsilon)
Lunar Underwing (Anchoscelis lunosa)
Black Rustic (Aporophyla nigra)
Flounced Rustic (Luperina testacea)
Ypsolopha parenthesella new for me
Ypsolopha parenthesella

Beetles

Black Vine Weevil (Otiorhynchus sulcatus)
Chrysolina bankii new for me
Chrysolina bankii

Nabria sp.
Nicrophorus investigator
Acrosus rufipes new for me
Acrosus rufipes

Harvestman

Leiobunum blackwalli new for me
Leiobunum blackwalli

Bugs

Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina) Porchlight only
Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)

Caddisfly

Limnephilus lunatus
Limnephilus auricula
Stenophylax permistus
Halesus radiatus

Cranefly

Tipula paludosa

BWARS

Netelia cristata new for me