In England, where I grew up, I used to record butterflies and moths for the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. Butterflies were (are) very well documented in books; moths less well so (at the time, in the 1970s). But I had the two volume's of 'South', so I could handle the macro moths. Micro-moths were much harder to identify, as were larvae of all moths (South had some drawings but only in black and white).
Fast forward to today, in Cyprus, and again, butterflies are well catered-for, thanks to
Christodoulos Makris' 'Butterflies of Cyprus', 2003. But moths are a nightmare for me. I see so many and know so few
These days, we have the internet to help, but I still feel knowledge-poor when it comes to the moths of Cyprus.
I plan to post some photos here in the hope that:
- some folks can help me identify them (bearing in mind that many also occur outside Cyprus)
- others will find them interesting or beautiful (I will name the ones that I can)
As with many small things, their attraction may not be apparent unless one takes a close look.
I hope others will look and photograph and post here.
And I hope it all helps folks appreciate these gentle denizens of the countryside and adornments of our gardens a little bit more.
