A greenhorn lepidopterist at large in suburban London

Berrylands Station is on the London Waterloo to Hampton Court line between New Malden and Surbiton, a 25 minute train journey from central London. I became aware of its potential for attracting moths in late August 2008. The station is situated on an embankment with the Hogsmill Sewage Farm directly to the north and a typical mix of suburban houses and gardens to the south. The elevated aspect of the station and the comparative lack of domestic and street lighting in the immediate area mean that it acts like a huge moth trap, there are white-painted covered waiting areas and staircases on both platforms, these are illuminated at night and most of the moths are found in these areas. What follows is my attempt as a novice lepidopterist to record and catalogue all the macro moths I encounter on my daily commute to work along with the occasional "awayday" in search of other British lepidoptera .

Saturday, April 04, 2015

The Micro Moths of Berrylands Station (No.3 in an occasional series)


Common Plume (Emmelina monodactyla) 04/04/2015

The most commonly encountered micro moth at the station, it can be found virtually all year round sometimes in counts of double figures. It was late to appear this year with the first moth showing up on April 3rd, some two weeks later than Beautiful Plume (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla) which usually appears later.
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