Species Account

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Distribution

Summary Data

Season (Adult / Immature):

National Status: RDB3

Local Status: Very rare and very local migrant/wanderer.

Local Record: Grade 4 See here for explanation

Flight time: Jun-Aug.

Forewing: 15-18mm.

Foodplant: Various flowers and seedheads.

IMPORTANT - Please note that the maps and accounts are provisional, subject to change and further update. The whole dataset still needs to go through the final verification process and it is likely that a very small number of records will not satisfy the present requirements and there are other records that have not been formally submitted. The information is for guidance only.

Record breakdown:

	VC9	Region
Year first recorded	1934	1934
Year last recorded	1997	1997
Number of records	10	20
Number of individuals	10	20
Unique positions	5	10
Unique locations	5	10
Adult records	10	20
Immature records	0	0

For the region, we have a total of 20 records from 10 sites. Earliest record on file is in 1934.

Photos

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Species Account

For further information refer UK Moths.

Davey, P., 2009: A declining species in south-east Britain, now restricted to a handful of counties in south-east England and East Anglia, the larva feeding on the flowers and seeds of herbaceous plants. In Dorset, there is slim evidence to support a resident status for this species. Any colony that was once established has long been extinguished by the loss of unimproved herb-rich grassland habitat on chalky soils since the Second World War. The following record was from a typical habitat for the species: Badbury Rings, (S Scarsdale Brown). Core habitat at the site is now just 25 hectares in extent, it has become isolated by the surrounding grassland that has for a long time now been improved. The Marbled Clover and the Shoulder-striped Clover²⁴⁰² were separated into two distinct species in 1938, and records prior to this date were all referred to as Marbled Clover Heliothis dipsacea.

Diagnostics include: dark basal streak absent; inner edge of dark median band meets basal edge of forewing almost at a right angle, not 45 degrees.

All records below refer to immigrant moths seen at light unless otherwise stated; the majority backtrack to central northern Europe. The second example in 1995 was disturbed from its preferred unimproved herb-rich chalk downland habitat, but was probably a remnant from the notable immigration a week earlier which yielded the example trapped at Arne; no other moths have been seen on Melbury Down either before or since: Dorchester, at light on 16 June 1951 (Dr A Lisney), Scar Bank, at light on 6 August 1934, 14 August 1947, 26 July 1948, 19 August 1949 (A Russell), Melbury Down, by day on 9 August 1995 (P Davey), Arne, at MV on 1 August 1995 (B Pickess) - see Portland2099 account for weather map, West Moors, at MV on 8 August 1997 (B Baker).

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