Marsh Marigold moth

After dropping Alex in Huntingdon, I drove to nearby Brampton Wood to begin my vegetation surveys. It was noticeably chilly when I arrived, and the sky was somewhat threatening during much of my visit, with occasional spells of sunshine. At one point I had to sit on a sheltered, sunny log to warm up, as my hands were beginning to stiffen!

While I was sitting I noticed many tiny moths feeding on the pollen of the pendulous sedges. The Marsh Marigold Moth (Micropterix calthella) is a species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It's found in damp habitats throughout Europe (except for the far south) and is also distributed eastwards to central Siberia. This rather small moth has a forewing length of up to 4.6 millimetres Like other members of the family, this species has functional jaws rather than a proboscis and it feeds as an adult on pollen grains from a wide variety of plants.

I finished the first phase of my survey just before lunch, and as I returned to the car the heavens opened - for once my timing was impeccable. I was home in time to supervise Ben take his first mock chemistry exam. He found it quite difficult, but did better than he'd expected, which was a nice confidence booster - and it has highlighted some areas where he needs to do a bit more revision!