Finally getting my moth records in order now I have pukka Excel. I only started regular garden trapping from June 23 in which I took 3,190 individuals of 257 species. In 2024 I trapped all year but only took 1,813 individuals of 232 species. Bit of a drop there…😳 #teammoth - ThreadSky

adesturner.bsky.social • 49 days ago

Finally getting my moth records in order now I have pukka Excel.

I only started regular garden trapping from June 23 in which I took 3,190 individuals of 257 species.

In 2024 I trapped all year but only took 1,813 individuals of 232 species. Bit of a drop there…😳

#teammoth

Comments

sj84turner.bsky.social•49 days ago

That’s quite an alarming drop in the face of it, Ade.
I haven’t calculated my total number of individuals caught, but I do know that I caught about 60 more species in 2024 than 2023!

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

The difference surprised me especially as last year I was getting into the swing of things, frequently 2 traps out instead of one, and still poor results. Subjectively I think I’ve seen fewer moths on the wing too even on warm evenings.

sj84turner.bsky.social•49 days ago

Not good 🙁
Although moths have been around since before the dinosaurs, so hopefully they can still bounce back 😄

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

As a vital part of the food chain I hope they can.

sj84turner.bsky.social•49 days ago

Indeed 💯

hardiestpalms.bsky.social•49 days ago

My house backs up to a mixed deciduous/evergreen forest and there's a pond across the street. Been photographing moths since 2011 , most every night spring through fall. I've cataloged over 550 species but have seen an alarming drop-off in number and diversity over the years.

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

It’s worrying whether it’s just a blip or signs of a real decline.

eggboxenvy.bsky.social•47 days ago

I trapped more often than last year, largely because as there were less moths it was taking less time to count them each morning so I had the time. Despite trapping more often the number of moths I counted was down 15% compared to the previous year. VC64

adesturner.bsky.social•47 days ago

That’s substantial. Last year was my first complete year trapping so my data is limited, even so a decline seems apparent. As nothing has changed in our garden/neighbourhood and my trapping habits remain consistent I’m assuming adverse weather is a factor.

ruthnewby.bsky.social•49 days ago

Overall numbers lower in my garden too last year despite more nights trapping.

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

Subjectively I felt for a while that I wasn’t getting the records I did the previous year. I might dig into my records a bit more as I reacquaint myself with Excel (a Christmas pressie to myself 🤓) I’m storing weather data now so that might come in handy.

ruthnewby.bsky.social•49 days ago

I’ve always felt I should record temperature but the max/min thermometer I had didn’t cope with being out in all weathers.

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

I use SwitchBot thermometers. 24h recording and stores up to a years data: https://bit.ly/3DYpZ7R It needs to link to a hub to patch it into your wifi and their phone app. I use their MiniHub: https://bit.ly/4hlYALh My 3 thermometers have been in use outside for 2 years with no issues 😉

ruthnewby.bsky.social•49 days ago

That looks very useful, thanks

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

You’re welcome. They’re pretty straightforward to set up. My mini hub is in my metal studio (I’ve set up WiFi in there through a TP-Link plug in doo-dah - transfers our network through the mains cable) and it manages to connect reliably to the thermometers set around the garden.

wheatersdave.bsky.social•49 days ago

That is a drop and a half. Poor weather or poor selection of trapping days?

adesturner.bsky.social•49 days ago

Bit of both maybe, but I fancy the choosing of what I’d deem appropriate days to trap would remain consistent(ish) throughout.

wheatersdave.bsky.social•49 days ago

I think the drop off is fairly consistent across the community, unless you significantly ramped up trapping like I did.

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