Very rare moth discovered on reserve
The recent weather has not been kind to much of our wildlife and insects in particular have been suffering badly. Numbers of bees and butterflies have been noticeably low. So it is with some excitement that a very rare species of moth has been discovered on our Medmerry reserve. The bright wave is a small sandy-brown moth which has previously only been known to reside in parts of Kent, Suffolk and Essex, with other sightings being immigrants from Europe, including just two previous sightings in West Sussex. Whilst out surveying breeding birds, our warden, disturbed a couple of moths as he walked through the long grass. On closer inspection he found that there was actually a small colony of the red data listed species resting on the stems around him. Compared with just 59 species of butterfly, there are more than 2,500 species of moth in the UK and just two of them are associated with eating fabric, an unfair reputation that has demonised this family of insects.
To many they are also boring and brown. However, some of our moths are stunning, with colours and patterns to rival the most extravagant of butterflies. Okay, so there are a number of brown moths, but they are far from boring.
As well as being food for many other animals such as birds and bats, moths are also excellent pollinators. Moths feed on nectar from the flowers, pollinating the plants as they go. This does not just mean our wildflowers and plants, including several of the UK’S orchids, but also many of our food crops. Unfortunately, like much of our wildlife, moths are suffering with two-thirds of previously common and widespread species having declined dramatically in the last 40 years and threes species being declared extinct since 2000. Habitat loss is cited as the most common cause. Nevertheless, you can help by avoiding pesticides and growing nectar-rich plants such as honeysuckle, jasmine and sweet rocket on your patch. Visit www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/ activities/nature-on-your-doorstep/ garden-activities/growfoodformoths/