Silver Hook and other Surlingham goodies

Church Marsh, Surlingham was the destination for Norfolk Moth Survey's last night-time moth event in 2016 and I was keen to go along to this one, a site I've never visited before.  It was a windier night than we would have liked and it was a little difficult finding a site sufficiently sheltered.  We did the best we could and it turned out to be a thoroughly worthwhile night.

The star of the night was undoubtedly a Silver Hook - a scarce wetland species with its Norfolk stronghold in the Broads.  Perhaps surprisingly though, it has only rarely been recorded in the Yare Valley, and not since 1985, so this was a very pleasing result.

Silver Hook, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

I was also pleased to see another Broads special, especially after missing one that was recorded by others at the last event at Claxton Manor - my first Reed Smudge Orthotelia sparganella.

Reed Smudge Orthotelia sparganella, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

A third lifer for me was the tiny Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis.  It is sometimes said that these Stigmella are too hard to identify with certainty to record as adults, and that there is no need to anyway as their mines are so easy to find.  Well for no logical reason I like to see adults before counting them, and I like a challenge, so I set about trying to resolve this one using the excellent Kleine Vlinders key.  Where a couplet was in the slightest bit equivocal I followed both options until I reached a dead-end on one, so I'm fairly certain I arrived at the correct ID - and I'm pretty sure there was a lot of its foodplant present too.

Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis (female), Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Other highlights included 2 Meadow-sweet Buttons Acleris shepherdana, Double-striped Knot-horn Cryptoblabes bistriga, 2 Oblique Carpets, Chevron, Vapourer, 4 Garden Tigers, Old Lady, Small Wainscot, 2 Crescents, Twin-spotted Wainscot, 6 Webb's Wainscots, Gold Spot and Pinion-streaked Snout.

Meadow-sweet Button Acleris shepherdana (male, gen det), Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Double-striped Knot-horn Cryptoblabes bistriga, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Oblique Carpet, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Chevron, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Vapourer, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Garden Tiger, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Snall Wainscot, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Crescent, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Although Common Marble Celypha lacunana was suggested as the ID for this moth I don't recall seeing one quite like this so took it home to confirm.  Whoever called it that (Ben I think) was spot on.  There was a normal one too.

Common Marble Celypha lacunana (female, gen det), Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

I was also slightly doubtful about this rather dark Flounced Rustic, although by the time I came to dissect it I had already convinced myself that was what it had to be - and I've seen a couple of similar ones since so perhaps it wasn't so odd after all.

Flounced Rustic (female, gen det), Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

The remainder that I saw were Horse Chestnut Leaf-miner Cameraria ohridella, Common Nettle-tap Anthophila fabriciana, Golden Argent Argyresthia goedartella, Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella, 2 Small Clover Case-bearers Coleophora alcyonipennella, Cyclamen Tortrix Clepsis spectrana, Barred Marble Celypha striana, Grey Poplar Bell Epinotia nisella, Marbled Piercer Cydia splendana, Common Grass-veneer Agriphila tristella, Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer Agriphila geniculea, 5 Water Veneers Acentria ephemerella, Marsh Grey Eudonia pallida, 2 Brown China-marks Elophila nymphaeata, Beautiful China-mark Nymphula nitidulata, 5 Small China-marks Cataclysta lemnata, 3 Rusty-dot Pearls Udea ferrugalis, Mother of Pearl Pleuroptya ruralis, Figure of Eighty, Small Dusty Wave, Common Carpet, Yellow Shell, Purple Bar, Green Carpet, Triple-spotted Pug, Currant Pug, Double-striped Pug, Dingy Shell, Clouded Border, Tawny-barred Angle, 2 Brimstone Moths, 2 Dusky Thorns, Common Wave, Light Emerald, Poplar Hawkmoth, Swallow Prominent, Dingy Footman, 2 Flame Shoulders, Large Yellow Underwing, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Six-striped Rustic, Square-spot Rustic, White-point, Southern Wainscot, Copper Underwing, Dark Arches, Lesser Common Rustic, Rosy Rustic, 2 Burnished Brasses, Silver Y, Spectacle, Straw Dot and Snout.


A Scorpion Fly proved to be Parnorpa germanica and although I can't remember what we thought at the time I think this beetle must be Great Silver Water Beetle (though open to contrary suggestions).

Great Silver Water Beetle, Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August

Panrorpa germanica (male, examined), Church Marsh, Surlingham, 27th August