Andy Mackay

@leicesterllama

Leicestershire & Rutland birder and artist. UK birding, particularly Eyebrook Reservoir, moths and general wildlife stuff. 🚫No AI🚫

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Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· 19d

Not many moths again last night, but who cares when one of them was this pristine Striped Hawk-moth! 😃 My second macro lifer in 4 days. #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· 23d

Also had this Tineid last night, which I think is Nemapogon koenigi, unless anyone has any other ideas? Not a great photo, but probably the best I can do without risking losing it! #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· 23d

Moth numbers and species still fairly low for the time of year (184/57), but included my first ever Ni Moth in the MV trap! One I've always wanted to see. Striped Hawk-moth next please... #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· 28d

I don't think even AI could do much with mine! 😂 Scope views were perfectly good though and it did come closer than this.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Jul 11

Quick pot shot of last night's NFG Mere Wainscot. Wainscots are well known for wandering, presumably to ensure they find new sites if their wetland habitat dries out or scrubs over, but this one has come a long way from the nearest known colonies. #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Jul 9

3 NFG last night out of a total of 92sp: Scallop Shell (which I've only ever seen once before, about 20 years ago), Bordered Sallow and Hedya salicella. The latter two also new for the tetrad. #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Jul 6

Privet Hawk-moth last night was my first NFG since May (missed the last heatwave as I was away). Also 2 Silky Wainscots & the first Small Mottled Willow for a while (23 for the year). 85 sp, commonest were Smoky Wainscot, Common Footman & culmella. #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Jun 2

A couple more recent illustrations for my Eyebrook Reservoir book. Kingfisher and Barn Owl, both gouache and watercolour pencil on paper. #BirdArt #SciArt #UKBirding #Birds #Art

An illustration of a Kingfisher perched on a thin branch with other branches behind. The image is portrait in format with the bird at the top, looking down, and the background shading from brown at the top to green/grey lower down. Size of the original artwork is 10 x 20cm.

An illustration of a Barn Owl flying right to left over a field of golden-brown grass. Size of the original drawing is 19 x 7cm.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 31

Decent numbers last night, 252/69, although 91 of them were Heart & Dart. Nothing terribly exciting, first Scarlet Tiger of the year the highlight, and another 5 Small Mottled Willow brings the total for the year to 22. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Scarlet Tiger moth on top of the MV trap. Hopefully garden-bred as there were caterpillars on the Comfrey earlier in the year.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 30

Sloe Pug from my garden in June 2024. Pale brown band on the abdomen is distinctive, can sort of see it on yours but the photo is a bit dark.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 30

168/48 last night. Small Clouded Brindle NFG, 2nd ever Pale Oak Beauty & Cherry Bark Moth. One Small Mottled Willow & 5 Silver Y the only migrants. Running out of time for something decent before the weather changes completely after this weekend... #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Small Clouded Brindle moth on an egg box. Surprisingly new for the tetrad as well as the garden list.

Pale Oak Beauty moth on the inside of a dusty moth trap. Tried (but obviously not very hard 🤪) to get a better pic outside the trap but it flew off.

Cherry Bark Moth photographed where found, sitting on the slats of an old green plastic garden chair behind the MV trap.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 27

Temperature dropped 20 degrees last night, from 33.6 to 13.4 and consequently far fewer moths, 11/45. Assara terebrella is NFG and tetrad - a very scarce and local resident so this may be a migrant. Not many county records (see alt text). Also another 3 Small Mottled Willow. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Assara terebrella in a pot as it was rather active. I had the first VC55 record of this species in a previous garden (Evington) in 2014, but there have only been another 2 or 3 county records since as far as I know.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 26

198/65 last night, but nothing terribly exciting despite the insane temperatures. Highlights were my second ever Red-necked Footman, FOUR Small Mottled Willow (only one previous record before the one yesterday!), and Small Elephant Hawk-moth is always nice to see. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Small Elephant Hawk-moth on honeysuckle leaves.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 25

I was only saying yesterday that I'd never had Bird's Wing in this garden, and that was enough to conjure one up! Also Small Mottled Willow (flew off before photo 🙄) and a very worn Dark Sword-grass. 163/55 in total. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Bird's Wing moth on a honeysuckle leaf. A dark brown moth with lighter 'bird's wing shapes on each wing.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 23

Minimum 15.8C last night; 215/67. Grass Rivulet I think is NFG but need to check on the spreadsheet later, ditto Ptycholoma lecheana. Another Dwarf Pug, Sallow Kitten and Latticed Heath amongst the scarcer stuff. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Grass Rivulet moth on a honeysuckle leaf.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 22

A good 148/49 last night, with 5 NFG: Dwarf Pug, Bucculatrix ulmella, Teleiodes luculella, Glyphipterix fuscoviridella & Nematopogon schwarziellus. Also Eyed & Pine Hawks, Marbled Brown, Small Angle Shades & Toadflax Brocade. Tonight should be even better... #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Dwarf Pug - indoor shot on a table top in case it escaped! My 26th pug species in just under 4 years trapping in this garden.

A pristine Eyed Hawk-moth on bramble leaves.

Marbled Brown moth on an Acer branch. One I don't get very often here - Lunar Marbled Brown is much commoner.

Small Angles Shades moth on honeysuckle leaf. Wing tips out of focus as it was revving up ready to fly off! Another one I don't get many of here.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 21

First trapping for 11 days last night; 44/25 from two traps was reasonable given the weather we've had. Green Silver-lines and Agonopterix propinquella both NFG and tetrad, White-pinion Spotted only the second for the garden. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Green Silver-lines moth on a honeysuckle leaf. Well-named as it's green with several silvery lines across the wings. Slightly worn on the thorax, but new for the garden so I'll take it!

An in-the-pot photo of Agonopterix propinquella, a small brown moth with a faint blackish blob on each wing. Exciting stuff!

White-pinion Spotted Moth on a honeysuckle leaf. A white moth with two small brown marks along the leading edge of each wing.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 17

At Charnwood Lodge NNR in Leics this afternoon, 4 species that are getting very hard to find elsewhere in the county: 5 singing Tree Pipits, 2 Cuckoos, a Mistle Thrush, and rarest of all a Wall butterfly. Appropriately on a wall! #ukbirding #butterflies

A singing Tree Pipit on twigs with emerging leaves.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 9

I think "wholly unconfirmed report of possible" is my all-time favourite bird news phrase. Basically means "we don't believe a word of this"! 😂

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 1

Just releasing last night's moths and this was on the edge of one of the traps, missed this morning. Incurvaria masculella, the first NFG of the year! #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· May 1

Colder than forecast last night (6.3 vs 10) and consequently not too many moths, but more than some people are getting! 21/12 inc 5 NFY: 2 Chocolate-tip, White-spotted Pug, Scalloped Hook-tip, Foxglove Pug & Common Pug. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 30

Here it is. This is 30+ years old, so it's not great, but gives some idea. IIRC these were 2 of 3 similar birds at Cropston Reservoir in 1989. The bottom one looks more like Ferruginous x Pochard to me now, but at the time they were all considered to be RCP x Pochard.

An illustration of two ducks, considered at the time to be Pochard x Red-crested Pochard hybrids. Head shape of the top one is more square, like RCP, and the bill shape of both recalls RCP, but blackish rather than red. Both birds have brighter orange-red heads than Pochard, and distinctly paler flanks, strongly scaled on the top bird. I vaguely recall that this was done for publication somewhere, maybe British Birds or Birding World.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 27

Traps out for the first time in 10 nights (I don't bother when it's cold!). 47/22, 8 NFY inc Seraphim, Brimstone, Pale Tussock & Orange Footman. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Seraphim moth on a green painted wooden shed wall.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 17

Mine's usually just hidden amongst all the other crap on my highly disorganised 'painting table'! 😄

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 16

I was surprised to see around 15 Scarlet Tiger moth caterpillars on our three small Comfrey plants today, as I've only ever had one adult in the garden traps! Not too long ago these were confined to the far east of Rutland in VC55, but the range has expanded a lot recently. #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Scarlet Tiger moth - a strikingly marked caterpillar with black and yellow longitudinal stripes and tufts of black hairs along its sides.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 9

I haven't posted anything about it for a while, but I'm still plodding on with writing and illustrating my Birds of Eyebrook Reservoir book with a view to hopefully publishing next year. Here are a few more illustrations from it. #art #WildlifeArt #birds #UKBirding

Illustration of 3 swimming Pink-footed Geese. Gouache on white paper.

Illustration of two swimming male Pintails. Coloured pencil and gouache on white paper.

Illustration of a first-winter Mediterranean Gull standing in wet mud. Coloured pencil (actually almost monochrome apart from a bit of brown in the wings!) on white paper.

Illustration of 6 adult LittleGulls flying right to left. Coloured pencil on white paper.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Apr 9

A decent night after the warm weather yesterday - 160/26 from 2 traps, with several NFY inc 2 Waved Umber, 3 Lunar Marbled Brown, 6 Purple Thorn, Knot Grass, Least Black Arches & Acleris literana. Commonest species Brindled Pug with 36! #TeamMoth #VC55Moths

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Mar 22

Still 61/10 in my garden last night despite a low of 0.9°C. Highlight was this NFY Pale Pinion, which I don't get many of. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

A Pale Pinion moth doing its best impression of a piece of wood, on a piece of wood.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Mar 19

Even better last night - 161/16 despite a low of 3.2. Pine Beauty, Powdered Quaker, Early Thorn, Double-striped Pug & Diurnea fagella NFY. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth

Pine Beauty. I get a few of these every spring, with the nearest pine tree being about 250m away from the trap.

Powdered Quaker - one of the less common Orthosia species, but annual here in small numbers.

Andy Mackay@leicesterllama· Mar 18

Again my garden surprises with the number of moths after a cold night (min 3.8). 121/12 inc Engrailed and Early Grey NFY, 2 Yellow Horned, 3 Shoulder Stripe, Brindled Pug, Oak Nycteoline and the usual load of Orthosias. #VC55Moths #TeamMoth