Assistant Conservation Officer for Epping Forest. PhD on the effects of nitrogen pollution on insects, particularly likes butterflies and moths.
Will Langdon
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The sort of butterfly moment you dream of today - wandering around the office (Epping Forest) in the late afternoon sun when I flushed a lovely old Large Tortoiseshell from the sunny wall next to this old plum - just wonderful. Seems to be the second recent record from the forest #Butterflies
Super excited to get my copy of this work. The images are fantastic, the text meticulously researched, and a number of very tricky rare micro species have their early stages described and illustrated for the first time. Set to be a game-changer!
Recently finished totting up my moths in Epping Forest last year - 671 species of which 277 were new for our database, 79 nationally scarce, and 4 new for Essex. Wonderful first year, so many exciting and rare species reflecting the forest's fantastic mix of habitats. Some highlights below...
Excellent to see this first paper from Will's PhD in print! Nice summary thread photos too!
One of the first things that struck me starting in Epping Forest last spring was all the lovely old Crab Apples. With these, come rare Crab Apple feeding micros: the much-declined Argyresthia ivella tapped from a tree on a warm July morning, and Eudemis porphyrana, reared from larva in May #TeamMoth
This rather dapper moth is the Liquorice Piercer (Grapholita pallifrontana), our Species of the Month. ✨
The Liquorice Piercer is so named because its caterpillars pierce Wild Liquorice seed pods.
📷️: Will Langdon
#MothMonday #MothsMatter #TeamMoth
Earlier this week, I visited Poldice Mine for the annual survey of Cornwall Butterfly Conservation's experimental management plots. Created back in January 2024, it's fascinating to see how each plot is developing... 🧵
New leafmine site update. Parornix atripalpella early stages seen for first time. Dicladispa testacea newly arrived in UK. Col prunifoliae - elusive species! Stigmella spinosissimae seen. Such an interesting update!
leafmines.co.uk/html/updates...
Will Langdon
Will Langdon
Will Langdon
Will Langdon
'Extinct' butterfly spotted across England butterfly-conservation.org/news-and-blo...
Owen Lewis
Marsh Fritillaries Euphydryas aurinia starting to fly at some of the Dartmoor, Devon sites over the weekend. One was caught by a carnivorous Sundew but plenty survived to start the next generation of these rare and beautiful butterflies.
Butterfly Conservation
Excited to see one of my PhD chapters now published! We found a trade-off between the quality of host plants and how warm they were for a declining grassland butterfly (Small Copper, Lycaena phlaeas) and looked at how this shaped their egg-laying choices: doi.org/10.1111/een....
Video
A butterfly classed as extinct in the UK for more than 30 years has been seen at sites across southern England.Eagle-eyed nature lovers have captured photographs of Large Tortoiseshells in Kent, Hamps...
So this arrived today, I don't think that micromoths of the low countries have ever before been compiled in one (2 volume) guide before in such a clear and accessible way, with life cycle info. Anyone with interest in micromoths of NW Europe should buy this! knnvuitgeverij.nl/artikel/hand...
