Species Account

Select species and region:

Distribution

Summary Data

Season (Adult / Immature):

National Status: Migrant

Local Status: Fairly common and mainly coastal migrant.

Local Record: Grade 1 See here for explanation

Flight time: Jun-Nov, peak Sep-Oct.

Forewing: 13-15mm.

Foodplant: No evidence of breeding in Britain.

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	VC11	Region
Year first recorded	1900	1997	1900
Year last recorded	2010	2006	2010
Number of records	271	5	552
Number of individuals	489	5	988
Unique positions	48	5	106
Unique locations	41	4	90
Adult records	256	5	522
Immature records	1	0	2

For the region, we have a total of 552 records from 90 sites. Earliest record on file is in 1900.

Photos

Species Account

For further information refer UK Moths.

Davey, P., 2009: An infrequent immigrant to the coastal counties of southern England, the larva feeding on Oleaceae plants including jasmines (Jasminum spp.), privets (Ligustrum spp.) and olive (Olea europaea), also on strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) in its southern Europe and Mediterranean haunts.

In Dorset this unmistakable and handsome moth has been recorded in nineteen of the past twenty-one years in varying but usually in small numbers, although one hundred and twenty were seen in 2006 and in one case, egg-laying was observed: Preston, female observed ovipositing on Ligustrum ovalifolium on 16 September 2006 (M Forster). The data suggests a bivoltine cycle abroad but with a significantly larger population of second brood examples observed during the autumn.

See background to species accounts. Index of Vernacular names - Search - Random Species