First for over 100 years

Post date: Jun 5, 2012 5:27:14 PM

Wishmoor Bottom is part of Broadmoor to Bagshot Woods & Heaths SSSI, straddling the south-east Berkshire border, south of Bracknell. Scotty Dodd of Surrey Wildlife Trust has been in touch to say that a group of his volunteers have been mothing a few yards over on the Surrey side of the border (shame!), and found lots of good things including Silvery Arches, Marsh Oblique-barred and Horse Chestnut. Scotty also recorded the leaf-miner Leucoptera lotella, and this one he found on both sides of the border. This Berkshire record of lotella (15 Sep 2011) is the first since around 1900, so although this is only one record to add to the database it is a significant one! The heathlands of south-east Berkshire include some excellent moth habitats and would certainly repay more recording.