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Moth Night 2020: 27th – 29th August

Everyone loves Butterflies but Moths, our ‘night time butterflies’ are a fascinating yet often overlooked group of insects, and as a result some of the UK’s most important species remain poorly understood.

Moths pollinate plants and provide food for birds, bats and other wildlife. However since the late 1960s total moth numbers have declined by around a third and in the twentieth century over 60 species of moth became extinct. It is important to understand the distribution and habitat requirements of moths so that they can be conserved, and events such as Moth Night have an important role to play in this understanding.

Over the three evenings of Moth Night, they would like as many people as possible to attract moths to their garden, local park or favourite spot in the countryside and to submit details of their findings.

Moth Night 2020 takes place between 27th and 29th August and has been chosen to coincide with the flight periods of four of the Red Underwing moths recorded in the British Isles. The target species (if you wish to try and record them) are a mix of resident, colonist and immigrant species. Remember though that Moth Night is not just about the target or theme species, you can trap anywhere, enjoy the experience and submit your results. All records are welcome.

How to attract moths:

Many people are put off finding and observing moths as many of them are only active at night, but trapping is not difficult, does not harm the moths and is very rewarding. Furthermore, any records of moths make a valuable contribution to the national dataset and add to our understanding of these amazing creatures.

Whilst custom-built moth-traps offer the easiest method of recording moths, you do not need to own specialist equipment to take part. Using several of the techniques listed below will help diversify your species list.

Sugaring:

You will need:

454g Tin of Black Treacle
1kg Brown Sugar, (the darker the better)
500ml Brown Ale (for the moths not you!)
Paint brush

Slowly heat the ale in a large pan (DO NOT BOIL) and simmer for five minutes. Stir in and dissolve the sugar, followed by the treacle and then simmer for two minutes. Allow to cool before decanting into a container. A drop of rum stirred in just before use is recommended but not essential. Paint the mixture at eye level onto 10 – 20 tree trunks or fence posts just before dusk, being careful not to paint over mosses and lichens, and check for moths by torch-light for the first two hours of darkness. You should make sure you have the owners permission for this activity.

Feel free to use your own recipe if desired.

Light:

It is well known that moths are attracted to lights at night. Specialist moth-traps may be purchased from entomological equipment suppliers, such as those listed in the links section of this site. These use particular types of light to attract moths into a container filled with egg-boxes in which they can rest, unharmed, until the time of release. To find out how to build your own trap visit Atropos. You can still record a variety of species at light without a moth-trap by leaving outside and porch lights on after dark. Check lighted windows and lit walls and fences for moths during first two hours of darkness and again in the morning. You can make lit surfaces more attractive by draping a white sheet over them.

Moth trapping tips:

The highest catches are on mild, cloudy, still nights with no moon. Fewer moths fly when there is a full moon. Steady drizzle will often improve catches, but heavy rain and strong wind is best avoided.
Check your catch as early as possible in the morning before the sun start to shine and before birds become attracted to any moths that have landed outside the trap.
If you trap in the same place on consecutive nights, release the moths away from the line of sight of the trap so that the majority aren’t re-caught immediately. Although moth trapping doesn’t directly harm moths, they are unable to get on with the important tasks of feeding and reproduction while confined.
Avoid touching the moths when you inspect them, as you may harm them. To put them in a container gently lift the moth from underneath using a pencil, or rough cardboard tray, as they will grip onto rough surfaces.
Release moths at dusk, or keep them on egg trays in a part open container in a sheltered place out of the reach of birds etc. from which they can fly out by themselves at night. If you need to release the moths during daylight, place them among vegetation where they can hide away from birds or other predators. If you do this regularly it is a good idea to vary the release location so that birds do not learn the location of “fast food”!

Submitting your records from Moth Night makes a valuable contribution to the national dataset, which adds to our understanding of moths and their distribution. An online submission form will be available after 29th August, and records can also be submitted using MapMate.

To learn more about the data that they need you to collect, click here for their data submission guidelines HERE

By participating in Moth Night you can also be in with a chance to win one of several prizes. Prizes for Moth Night 2020 have been kindly supplied by Watkins and Doncaster, Atropos and Bloomsbury Publishing.

Their online data submission form will be available on this website from 29th August to 30th November 2020. For your records to contribute to the national dataset and help improve their understanding of moth distribution and habitat, there is some specific information they need from you.

What did you see?
They need to know the name of each species you saw during Moth Night, using either English or scientific names. There are many field guides available for both beginners and experienced moth recorders to help you with this. If you are unsure, it is better not to submit your sighting, as inaccurate records may lead to errors in the national dataset.

Where did you see it?
For recording to provide effective data for local purposes, such as planning and conservation work, or national analysis of how particular species are faring, records must be related to sites. This is done via a grid reference based on Ordnance Survey (OS) maps. A four-figure grid reference, which represents a 1km square, is the minimum requirement, but a six-figure reference, pinpointing a sighting to a 100m square, is preferable.

Know what you are doing?
Their recording form accepts both OS grid references and post codes to help identify the location where you recorded your moths. If you are familiar with OS grid references, please use these; if you prefer, you can enter the post code instead, which will focus the Google Map to the post code area from where you can refine and pinpoint the recorded location. As an alternative to the online data submission form, we also accept MapMate ‘sync’ files to the MapMate hub CUK ‘6b0’.
MapMate Support announces and releases a Moth Night filter annually to subscribed users via their email newsletters.

Date
The date you saw your moth. If you are using a trap that you check in the morning please give the date the trap was set, not the morning after.

Number
The number of each species that you see is valuable data that can be used to assess species population trends.

Weather
It is not essential that you record weather conditions during Moth Night, but it would help if you can. If you are able to, please record the following: