Yorkshire Status: Fairly common resident.

Nutmeg used to be a much less common moth in the county, and in 1883 Porritt only knew of records from Sheffield and Wakefield. The next records on the database are from 1968, and from the mid 1970s, it expanded across the county and records gradually increased. Number vary, but we now get more than 300 records per year. Numbers are augmented by immigration. Distribution across the county is patchy, and it it is commoner on the lower ground and much less common in northern and western areas. The larvae feed on various herbaceous plants but particularly on goosefoots and oraches, so this is a moth of disturbed ground and vulnerable to people who want to "tidy up" our countryside. Most of the biggest counts have come from Spurn, the maximum being 69 on 28/8/1996. There is a long flight time with two overlapping broods.

Sutton & Beaumont, 1989: This species has expanded both its northern and western ranges in the County. P. Q. Winter suggests that on the east coast it is probably a migrant and only temporary resident, but elsewhere in Yorkshire it would appear to be fairly well established.

Recorded in 120 (60%) of 200 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1883. Last Recorded in 2023. Additional Stats

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