Notodontidae : Cerurinae
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Poplar Kitten
Furcula bifida

(Brahm, 1787) 1998 / 71.007
Photo © Damian Money,  Skelton in Cleveland, VC62

Similar Yorkshire Species
Alder Kitten
Furcula bicuspis
Sallow Kitten
Furcula furcula
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Yorkshire Status: Rare and local resident.

In 1883, Porritt wrote "of wider distribution than the last" (ie Sallow Kitten) which is curious. By 1907 he had modified this to "of very similar distribution to the last, but I think, not so common". It is certainly a lot less common than Sallow Kitten now; we receive one record of Poplar Kitten for every eight records of Sallow Kitten. When seen together in the hand, the two species are obviously different. Poplar Kitten is a bigger beast with much longer wings. It tends to be greyer, with fewer yellow scales, and the outer edge of the central band is not as wiggly. It still causes a lot of confusion with some recorders and it can be surprisingly difficult at times to tell the difference from a photo. Records are scattered across the county but most come from the north of VC62 and from VC53. It is much rarer in the west. Perhaps this is due to a lack of its foodplant; as its name suggests, it feeds on poplars including aspen. The Field Guide tells us it is single brooded, which is clearly incorrect. There is a small second brood all over the country in late summer. Numbers in Yorkshire are stable. It only ever occurs in small numbers at light - 97% of our records are of single moths.

Sutton & Beaumont, 1989: Much less common than F. furcula (Clerck) with only a few recent records from vice-counties 61 to 64. Many of the records below are of light trap catches. Searching for larvae or pupae, might produce many more records.

Recorded in 70 (35%) of 200 10k Squares.
First Recorded in 1883.
Last Recorded in 2023.
Additional Stats

< Alder Kitten  |  Lobster Moth >
Forewing: 16-22mm
Flight: May - July
Foodplant:   Poplars, Aspen
Red List Status: Least Concern (LC)
GB Status: Common
Verification Grade:  Adult: 1
List Species Records   [Show All Latest]
Latest 5 Records
Date#VC10k Area
31/07/2023164SE54 - York (S/W)
02/07/2023164SE43 - Garforth / Kippax
01/07/2023161TA41 - Kilnsea / Spurn Head
21/06/2023162SE98 - Wykeham
17/06/2023161TA04 - Beverley (N)
  Immature   Adult   [Show Flight Weeks]
Show Details | 1990 to 2023 | 2000 to 2023 | Graph Key
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