fieldguides and moth traps (1 Viewer)

hi all,

as part of my volunteer work for the rspb (and partly due to my thirst for knowledge) i have to identify moths caught in the moth trap, although we have books on site i dont have one at home that i can read up on. so i was hoping someone on here could recommend a good fieldguide/ID guide to moths in the uk, the ones we use with the rspb are a bit old and big, plus the images have the wings pinned out, which the aren't in real life, so don't think i'll be buying a copy of them books.

i could also do with a fieldguide for caterpillars of both moths and butterflies, again recommendations are more than welcome.

on to my final question now, i would love to get some practice in IDing moths when not at the reserve so my own moth trap would be brilliant. does anyone have any plans or a link to a website that tells you how to build one?

thanks in advance

adam

Hi Adam,

The 'bible' for most mothers is Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland by Waring and Townsend. I can't recommend this book more, as it has loads of brilliant illustrations and really useful text on each species' best ID features.

This thread has loads of info on homemade moth traps:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=95708

There aren't any fieldguides just on caterpillars as far as I know, but this website might help:
http://www.ukleps.btinternet.co.uk/index.html

Good mothing

Sean

Here is a drawing of a moth trap that is easy to make at home and some text that explains how to do it.

http://www.atropos.info/gardenmoths.html

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Colour-Identification-Guide-Caterpillars-British/dp/0670875090
but currently out of print
I haven't used the book myself but I tend to rely on the www.
There are loads of threads on DIY moth traps on Birdforum!!
Ken

valiantbirder said:

hi all,

i could also do with a fieldguide for caterpillars of both moths and butterflies, again recommendations are more than welcome.

adam

Click to expand...

Jim Porter's 'Caterpillars of the British Isles' is an excellent photographic guide.

David

http://www.amazon.com/Colour-Identi...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=0670875090
but it'll cost you!

the caterpillar ID book looks a tad on the expensive side, might see which one they have on the reserve and ask where they got it from and for how much.

anyway, thanks for your help with the moth guides and trap building, i'll probably leave building one now until the new year, if i made it now i'd probably not catch much and forget about it come spring, but definately want one as its something i will need to learn, think coombes valley has recorded something like 550 moth and butterfly species.

http://www.pwbelg.clara.net/mercury/kits/index.html
might be worth a look. Paul Batty is well known to moth'ers as a supplier of traps and parts.
Ken