Yorkshire Status: Very rare and very local resident.

Sutton & Beaumont, 1989: Not recorded since Porritt (1883-86) and then only from York in 1842. (incorrect - see below) However, this species is still found in mid Lincolnshire (Duddington & Johnson, (1983) so there is still a chance it could be found in Yorkshire again.

Argus 58, 2009: One of the moths of the year, trapped and photographed in the south of the county. This attractive species of poplars and willows has not been seen in Yorkshire since one in the York area in 1842. It is well established in mid-Lincolnshire and numbers are building up in Cheshire, so our moth may have come from one of these populations. VC63. Old Moor RSPB, 9.8.2009 (CDi, JWr). NEW VICE-COUNTY RECORD.

Current status (CHF, 2011): The account in Sutton and Beaumont is a little sketchy. In fact Porritt's lists mention records in 1842 and 1870. Robert Clark mentions the species within five or six miles of York in a list of moths from 1842 (The Entomologist, Feb 1842) and William Prest notes (Entomologist's Monthly magazine 7: 256) Towards evening we began our return to old Ebor and on the way found a few larvae of C. curtula and reclusa in spun-together aspen leaves - this took place on 17.7.1870. Clostera reclusa was an old name for Small Chocolate-tip so larvae of both species were found together. William Prest is listed as finding Small Chocolate-tip at Askham Bog so perhaps this was the site. The other likely site is Strensall Common.

The population in the south of England has been doing well with expansion into Cheshire recently, and there are also plenty of recent records from Lincolnshire, so one trapped at Old Moor Wetlands in 2009 may have come from one of these populations.

Argus 75, 2015:

VC61. Cottingham, 21.5.2015 (AA). NEW VICE-COUNTY RECORD.

Argus 90, 2020: This species recolonised the county in 2009 and has been seen every year since 2013 in increasing numbers. VC62. Brompton, 20.5.2020 (AT). NEW VICE-COUNTY RECORD. VC64. Little Preston, 3.5.2020 (JMa). NEW VICE-COUNTY RECORD.

2020 (CHF): This species was known to occur in Yorkshire in the 19th century. In 1842 Robert Cook mentioned finding it "within five or six miles of the city of York" and in 1870 William Prest wrote - "towards evening we began our return to old Ebor, and on the way found a few larvae of C. curtula and retusa (Small Chocolate-tip) in spun together aspen leaves". As we already know that Prest found Small Chocolate-tip at Askham Bog, it is possible that this was the source of the Chocolate-tip. These two records were the only ones in Yorkshire for a long time as it retreated to the south east with its northern boundary on a rough line from Birmingham to north Norfolk, apart from a small population in Scotland. Since the turn of the century however, it has expanded its range and moved north. It appeared in the south of Yorkshire in 2009. Another was seen in 2013 and it has appeared every year since then in increasing numbers.

In 2020 there was a remarkable expansion of range and we now have a new frontier - Halifax and Keighley in the West, Brompton-by-Sawdon in VC62 in the north, Little Preston in VC64, and Wheldrake Ings to the south-east of York. A total of 17 sites in 2020 of which ten are new. Five records were of moths from a second brood. The big question is what will happen next. My guess is that the range will contract for the next two or three years, there will be a period of consolidation and "infilling", then it will be on the march again. It is probably enjoying being free of its usual parasitoids but I'm sure they will catch up with it. Of course, I might be totally wrong and it might carry on expanding. Speculating about this sort of thing is what makes recording so interesting. Perhaps it will reappear at Askham Bog and then will have come full circle. My aspens are ready and waiting. There will be an MV trap underneath them this May.

Recorded in 40 (20%) of 200 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1842. Last Recorded in 2022. Additional Stats

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