B&F: 2347
ABH: 73.149
Status: Resident.
Distribution:
Local.
Primary Habitat:
Woodland.
Flight Period: Single
brooded in June and July.
Localities: Salcey
Forest, Barford Meadows, Fineshade and Bedford Purlieus.
Observations: With its Red Data Book designation
and greater number of sites in Northamptonshire than any other county
this is probably our most significant moth. Originally it is likely
that the species colonised damp woodland in the nineteenth century
following the draining of the fens. Early records suggest that the
influx was from the north-east, Rockingham Forest woodlands first
becoming involved followed by those of Nasborough, Salcey and Yardley.
After the advent of m.v. light traps in the 1950s the moth was
increasingly found to be locally widespread in these woodlands. It
was prized by collectors and sometimes could be found commonly on
the stems of its food plant at dusk without the need to resort to
light trapping. In the mid 1990s it became less common and was
not seen in some former strongholds despite specific searches. Although
the position was unclear, it seemed that roughly a reversal of the
original colonization had taken place in that the species contracted
its range and abundance from the north-east and that climatic factors
may have been involved. The moth was noticeably more plentiful by
2004 and this has continued in subsequent years. Currently in 2010,
pleasingly it seems to be back to its former levels of abundance in
its best sites.
Confusion Species: Mere Wainscot
L.O.N.: 1907 at least two.
Unspecified.
First Record: 1886, A. Wallis.
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