The Long Process of Reporting a Rare Moth

Promising weather conditions prompted me to put the moth trap out in the garden last night, and amongst the usual haul of Common Quakers, Hebrew Characters and a Clouded Drab was this nationally scarce monster of a moth. It's a Dotted Chestnut, and is the very moth that has acted as my motivation for trapping through the poor weather this spring. The rough order of events as they unfolded this morning...

Wake up; go downstairs; unlock the back door; go into the garden; chase away Robin; yawn; stare into moth trap; lift up egg box; see Dotted Chestnut; do a doubt take; do another double take; realise it's a Dotted Chestnut; swear with joy; run to fetch camera; take pictures; run back into house; upload pictures onto laptop; resize pictures; upload pictures onto internet, add satisfying boastful text about how I've caught a Dotted Chestnut; have breakfast.

And it's that rush of morning adrenaline that keeps me, and indeed every other moth-trapper, coming back for more.