White and Brown Plume Moths.

White Plume Moth, Pterophorus pendtadactyla
Plume Moths are fascinating, I think. Their wings have 4 or 5 segments which have tiny 'feathers' attached.

They are attracted by the Convolvulus (Bindweed) in my garden, and I will often find either a white or a Brown Plume Moth about.
Usually White Plume Moths have a wingspan between 2.5-3cm, but this week I caught a little one of say, 1.5cm.

I have been wondering what the advantages would be for a Moth to have wings like these, in contrast to the more common wing of our ordinary Moths. And where do these wings stand in the long list of evolution.. A kind of "Which came first.. the plumed, and segmented, wing or the structure of a wing consisting of just the one piece. This is all playing around in my head but I just do not have the time to try and find a proper answer to all this.
I'm just hoping to wake up and find that the famous One Day has arrived. Will I be able to finish everything that I hope to do One Day?


Large White plume Moth in my kitchen in July 2009.



This is the usual view of the Wood Brown Plume Moth,. A T shaped Insect, and in fact it looks more like a stick Insect than a Moth!


The Brown Plume Moth, or Wood Brown, as it is called more properly, I believe.
I am glad that I turned back and took a photo from the other side, as I had no idea that some of the wings was visible.



It is surprising that despite their size, Plume Moths (at least in the UK/Ireland) are classified as micro moths.

Pollen and pollinaters

Can you name this Fly? If so, please leave a comment below.




Sunday, the weather was kind for once, yet my back and my neck were hammering down too much, and so I had to stay home unfortunately. Instead, I stuffed myself with fresh fruit with my large fruit salad with I make every Sunday.
I hoped the wind would stay similarly nice the next day, and although the wind was still quite full on to photograph Wild Flowers, I headed off. A few showers had passed and I hoped the dark clouds would look kind on me! As if!
This Knapweed had just opened, the fresh pollen has an attraaction to me as well as to these Insects. The pollen stands out and sparkles really, very hard to capture in photos though.

Althuogh the photos of the Fly weren't that hard in the strengthening wind, this Bee was a bit late, and as you can see, keeping flower and Insect in the same frame was getting harder and more difficult.

So my apologies for quality. What did catch my eye though,was all the white on this Bee. White bands around the abdomen, I do see regularly, but not a Bee with white thorax as well as a white abdomen!. Any ideasto the specie?? Let me know, please! See the comment box underneath this post.




















Purple Loosestrife, Lythrum salicaria