This morning when we went to check on our moth trap in Northumberland there was an incredibly exciting species awaiting us, a Bedstraw Hawk-moth (Hyles gallis).

A beautiful moth in its own right, but what makes this species truly exciting is that it’s an immigrant species/transitory resident. The UK experiences regular but relatively small numbers of Bedstraw Hawk-moths every year, arriving from Europe, with only a small population thought to be resident in Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire.

Periodically there can be larger invasions of the species, but in Northumberland there have only been 46 individuals recorded since 1834!

We can’t wait to see what we find on our Chesters Autumn Expedition.

-Cain