Aedia funesta - 1st for Britain

Dengemarsh - 1100hrs - warm, dry, cloudy, ne 3 - Once the guests had departed Mrs PT joined us for a circuit of the marsh. At ARC car park a collection of adult and juv Tree Sparrows was good to see while a Chiffchaff sang from the willows. Raptors were the order of the day during the walk with at least four Marsh Harriers and six Hobbies over Hookers, Peregrine and Buzzard on the fields at Boulderwall and a Kestrel by the Corral. Hayfield 3 was full of birds including 10 Grey Herons, eight Little Egrets, seven Shelducks, Shoveler, Teal, Lapwing, Redshank and Curlew.
Kerton Road Café - Its not every day you get to see a new species of animal for this sceptred, overcrowded island, but today was one such. The macro moth Aedia funesta was trapped at Kingsdown, near Dover, on 13th June by Nigel Jarman and delivered to the café fridge for the Moth Lord to deliberate and confirm its identity. For a much better pic than mine taken in the pot, go to www.atropus.info and check the flight arrival link as it really is a smart looking beast, for a noctuid, and similar to Alchymist. As it has not occurred here before, as yet it has not got an English name.