collection and other material extant in outside collections located on the islands. The possibility that an 

 unknown number of published records may be based upon misidentifications cannot be overruled. From 

 some obscure records noted, it is reasonable to assume that this possibility exists. Similarly, many species 

 from which only single records are known, can, within reason, be regarded with some scepticism, though 

 equally it can be regarded that many singleton records are quite genuine inclusions. A future closer analysis 

 of existing voucher material may one day provide a more plausible listing for the Channel Islands, but with 

 certainty many species presently regarded with scepticism, will be vindicated through the addition of further 

 records. 



Into the year 2000 and the literature of 2001 



P.D.M. Costen in Guernsey was enterprising and gained the first published records for the New 

 Millennium. On New Year's Eve he found a single Aittographa gamma in his light-trap, but on 1st January 

 2000, the Millennia moths were Apamea lithoxylaea, Epiphyas postvittana and Udea ferrugalis, (2000: 130). 



With the unique opportunity in the offing of obtaining records for the New Millennium, the author 

 and his wife made three visits to the islands, in spring, summer and autumn of 2000. In April and May there 

 was a combined visit to Guernsey and Sark, which yielded a total of 77 species and very satisfyingly added 9 

 new species to our voucher list; Sark in July brought in 190 species and yielded 26 new voucher species; 

 October with a short stay on Guernsey and a week in Herm provided 48 species, of which 3 were new 

 voucher species. These three periods amounted to six weeks and brought together a total of 250 species 



The last paper to be produced in 2000 was from Jersey, the Entomology section report for 1999, 

 appearing early in 2001, conveyed information on the additional butterfly for Jersey, Melanargia galathea, 

 the butterfly totals for the islands was now 62 species. In the same paper, covering the year 1999, a 

 discovery of the pyralid moth Dioryctria sylvestrella was also disclosed. The British species were revised in 

 1966 (Shaffer, 1966(17): 19-26), where it was established that up to that time the British species had been 

 consistently misidentified and that sylvestrella (formerly known as splendidella (Herrich-Schaffer)) had to 

 be removed from the British faunal list. Discovery of the species in Jersey was probably to be expected, for 

 it had been known that the species was to be found in mainland France. As a matter of interest, the author 

 discovered that the specimen used to illustrate the species in later editions of B.P. Beirne's work British 

 Pyralid and Plume Moths, first published in 1952, had colour plates produced by the late S.N.A. Jacobs. 

 The specimen used for illustrating the species on plate 7 figure 12 was in the collection of Jacobs (now in the 

 BMNH) and was captured in France. Jacobs had used this specimen because a British example could not be 

 traced. Though the species was not included by Bradley in his British checklist in 1998 and later in 2000, the 

 species has at last been taken in England. There are now correctly identified records from Kent in 1995, 

 1997 and 1999, from Cambridgeshire in 1997 and from Dorset, Sussex and Suffolk in 2001 . 



In 2001, early literature covering the year 2000, showed that parity for the species of the 

 micromoths and macromoths had nearly been reached, with the macro's surpassing in numbers by 1 with a 

 total of 582 species. In Jersey a new Continental species was taken by D.J. Wedd, the geometrid moth 

 Pseudoterpna coronillaria, a species not yet recorded in Britain. By late 2001 however, reexamination of 

 some earlier Jersey material showed that coronillaria had already existed on the island but had been 

 misidentified as P. pruinata. 



The major Guernsey Bailiwick report covering the year 2000, produced by R.A. Austin, included 

 not only species caught that year by the Guernsey recorders and the author, but in addition, a number of 

 identified species from previous years. These additions were in particular, greatly favouring the 

 microlepidoptera. In numbers of moths, parity at 585 species between the micro's and macro's was finally 

 reached with the inclusion of Phyllonorycter hilarella, but on completion of the listing for the Guernsey 

 Bailiwick, the microlepidoptera total for the islands had increased to 594 species. Remaining to be added 

 was the annual report for the Jersey Bailiwick by R. Long to complete the survey of the year 2000. The 

 addition of 2 species of macrolepidoptera for the island, due partly to recorded material by the Rothamsted 

 Insect Survey based in Trinity, brought the total of macrolepidoptera for the islands as a whole to 587 

 species. By the end of year 2000 a total therefore of 1243 species and subspecies of Lepidoptera for the 

 Channel Islands had been recorded. 



2001- 



Entering the New Millennium 



In 2001, J. Asher, et al., brought out the long awaited Millenium atlas of butterflies in Britain 

 and Ireland, published by the Oxford University Press, which included the butterflies for the Channel 

 Islands on the distribution maps. 



During 2001, collecting and recording in the islands was carried out by the author and his wife in 

 April and June into early July. The sister's M.J. and H.E. Bull living in Sark at Le Clos Bourel and Maricel, 



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