19 Jul 2025: Tiger Moths!

A brightly coloured moth flew past one of our members, showing dark wings with cream markings on the forewings and red on the hindwings, so we suspected it to be a Scarlet Tiger moth (Callimorpha dominula). These have been common in the Fordingbridge area and other places on the Hampshire Avon since at least the early 1970's, and have recently become much more widespread in southern Britain. The moth came to rest at the base of a hazel bush, and to our surprise turned out to be the closely related and similarly coloured Jersey Tiger moth (Euplagia quadripunctaria). Fifty years ago this species was even more restricted than the Scarlet Tiger, occurring only at one or two spots in South Devon, in addition to the Channel Islands from which it got its name. Like the Scarlet Tiger, the Jersey Tiger has also become much more common recently.

Later the same afternoon, we spotted a different tiger-moth, this time the much more subdued Ruby Tiger moth (Phragmatobia fuliginosa), whose caterpillars I reared as a schoolboy in Portsmouth in the 1960's. The generic name (Phragmatobia)} refers to a liking for reeds – although there are none at Bishop's Pond at present, they might well put in an appearance.