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Tag Archives: British moths

Leafmines: Eriocrania unimaculella

22 Monday May 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects, trees

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British leafminers, British moths, Eriocrania unimaculella, leaf-mining moths, leafmine, leafmine on Birch, moth leafmines

The moth formerly known as Heringocrania unimaculella, now known as Eriocrania unimaculella – either way a tongue twister! – spends its larval stage developing within the leaves of Birch trees. And it poohs … a lot … pooh that Rob Edmunds, expert from the British Leafminers website, describes as ‘long strands of spaghetti’. There are several Eriocrania species that can be difficult to identify but Rob produced an excellent well-illustrated guide explaining how to separate them in his March 2018 newsletter (click to access). The adult moth is a tiny golden critter, which you can see on the UK Moths website.

230522 eriocrania unimaculella on birch

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Leafmines: Coleophora serratella

15 Monday May 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects, trees

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British leafminers, British moths, case-bearing moth larva, Coleophora serratella, Common case-bearer, leafminers on Birch, moth larvae

I’ve been checking Birch trees since their green leaves first started to unfold, prompted by a post I’d seen by Rob Edmunds (@leafminerman on Twitter) of the British Leafminers website to check for the small holes created by the feeding of the tiny Common case-bearer moth, Coleophora serratella. Finally, last Tuesday, I found some on a tree in Cardiff’s Grangemoor Park.

And, luckily, the little case-bearing larva was still in situ, initially checking out some silky seedhead fibres that had lodged on the end of its leaf, then retreating to the patch that marked where it had been feeding and resumed munching. You can read more about this beauty on the British Leafminers website and see the adult moth on the UK Moths website.

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Leafmines: Coleophora lutipennella

01 Monday May 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects, trees

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British moths, case-bearing larvae, Case-bearing moth, Coleophora, Coleophora lutipennella, Common oak case-bearer, moth larvae on Oak

It’s often the way that, while looking for one thing, I find another. In this case, I was checking for eggs or larvae on the newly opening buds and flowers of an Oak tree where I’ve previously seen Purple hairstreak butterflies. No luck with those but I did find this …

230501 Coleophora lutipennella (1)

It’s the larva of the Common oak case-bearer moth (Coleophora lutipennella) – you can see the pretty little adult moth on the UK Moths website here. These case-bearing moths remind me a bit of snails, spending their larval stage in a home they carry around with them, though the moths don’t grow their own – they weave theirs from bits of vegetation and silk. In the photo below, you can see the larva poking its head out from the bottom of its case.

230501 Coleophora lutipennella (2)

It can be difficult to distinguish between the larvae of two very similar case-bearing moths, this one and Coleophora flavipennella. I had my find confirmed by expert Rob Edmunds, who manages the British Leafminers website. The difference between the two cases is minor but fascinating, the presence or not of a small hump of leaf tissue built in to the case – there’s an explanation and some excellent photos on the website’s June 2004 newsletter.

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The final countdown

19 Wednesday Apr 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects

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British moths, moth larva, Oak eggar, Oak eggar caterpillar, Oak eggar larva

Though I was actually searching for migrating birds, the most exciting thing I found during last Sunday’s six-mile walk was this caterpillar that had just shed its skin. This is the larva of an Oak eggar moth (Lasiocampa quercus), now in the final instar of a one-year life cycle (some Oak eggar larvae have two-year life cycles) and due to pupate in June.

230419 oak eggar

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Beautiful plume

07 Wednesday Dec 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects

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Amblyptilia acanthadactyla, Beautiful plume, British moths, moth, plume moth

This tiny moth was a lovely surprise from last week’s wildflower searching. I only managed a couple of quick shots before it flew into the vegetation but they were good enough for my friendly local moth expert to identify this as a Beautiful plume (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla), which George also told me is ‘One of the few plumes that overwinters as an adult’. Beautiful, indeed!

221207 Beautiful plume

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Rush veneer

07 Friday Oct 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects

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British moths, migrant moth, moth, Nomophila noctuella, Rush veneer

The migrants just keep coming, and I love to see them because it always seems so amazing to me that a little moth like this, with a wingspan of just 26-32mm, can fly all the way to south Wales from somewhere in Europe.

221007 rush veneer

Meet the Rush veneer (Nomophila noctuella), which the UK Moths website says ‘can often be found in large numbers at coastal watch-points, and tends to occur in the adult stage between May and September’. At least six of these little migrants flew up from the path as I walked through a local field earlier this week.

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Leafmines: Phyllocnistis saligna

03 Monday Oct 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British moths, leaf-mining moth, leafmines on narrow-leaved willow, leafmining moth larvae, Phyllocnistis saligna, Phyllocnistis saligna leafmines, Willow bent-wing leafmines

A new month, a new leafmine challenge, and it’s got off to a very successful start for me. But let’s start at the beginning …
Our locally based Senior ecologist with Butterfly Conservation, George, kickstarted the challenge with a couple of tweets and some photos last Friday evening:

Ok #TeamLeafmine here’s another recent S. Wales colonist to look for; an easy one to identify too. Phyllocnistis saligna mines narrow-leaved willows, unusual because it mines both leaves & young stems. 3 recent records by the Taff in North Cardiff, must be out there elsewhere!

Cocoons are formed in a turned over leaf edge, see 3rd photo in original tweet. Quite a few Gwent records from the Levels and Monmouth/Abergavenny, also new to Carmarthenshire in 2021. Must be in & around Cardiff Bay! More info here: http://leafmines.co.uk/html/Lepidoptera/P.saligna.htm

221003 Phyllocnistis saligna (2)

I didn’t have any firm plans for Saturday’s walk so wended my merry way along the edges of the two local rivers, the Ely and the Taff. I soon realised that this challenge will be a little more difficult than previous ones, as narrow-leaved willows were few and far between and, when found, often inaccessible. However, I did manage to find mines in two locations along the River Taff, which has encouraged me to continue my search further up the river very soon. And, though I hope to find more mines, I doubt I’ll find one of the very lovely little adult Phyllocnistis saligna moths, the wonderfully named Willow bent-wings, which you can see on the UK Moths website.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

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Pearly underwing

13 Tuesday Sep 2022

Posted by sconzani in autumn, insects

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British moths, migrant moth, Pearly underwing, Peridroma saucia

I start to put on my jacket before heading out on my daily walk when something flutters on the sleeve. It’s a moth, this moth, and I have no idea how it got there. Did it land on me during yesterday’s walk and spend the night on the jacket that I’d just flung over the back of a chair? Or did it creep in through the gap in a barely open window during the night?

220913 pearly underwing

A moth expert on Twitter tells me it’s a Pearly underwing (Peridroma saucia), a moth that doesn’t breed in Britain but migrates here from Europe, most often during September and October. No wonder it’s looking a little faded after such a long flight. I keep it inside during the day and release it after dark, hoping that will help it avoid any hungry birds.

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Pale tussock moth caterpillar

03 Saturday Sep 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects

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British moth caterpillars, British moths, Calliteara pudibunda, moth larva, Pale tussock moth caterpillar

Is this outrageous, or what? This is the larva of a Pale tussock (Calliteara pudibunda), a moth that is a beautiful creature in itself (you can see the adult on the Butterfly Conservation website) but nothing at all like its incredible caterpillar.

220903 pale tussock moth cat

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Shaded broad-bar

19 Friday Aug 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects

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British moths, day-flying moths, moth, Scotopteryx chenopodiata, Shaded broad-bar

Apart from Five- and Six-spotted burnets and the various grass moths that flit up as I walk along pathways through meadows, I’ve not seen many day-flying moths recently so these Shaded broad-bars (Scotopteryx chenopodiata) were a nice surprise. They fly during July and August, and can be found throughout Britain, particularly in areas where vetches and clovers – their larval food plants – grow. As you can see, the colours of these moths can be quite variable (the Butterfly Conservation website has more examples).

220819 shaded broad-bar

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sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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