Yorkshire Status: Fairly common in variable numbers on lower ground.

In 1907 Porritt described Beaded Chestnut as "widely distributed but scarcer in the south west" in 1907. Numbers have fluctuated a lot over the years, and 1989 when Sutton and Beaumont was written coincided with a low point. It bounced back and in some years can be common in some districts, with counts into three figures. The maximum catch is 330 at Blacktoft Sands on 21/9/76, a year when it appeared in big numbers at several sites. It's distribution is rather patchy across the county and it is rarely encountered in the west and on the higher ground. It is an extremely variable species in terms of colour and markings, but is usuallly fairly easy to identify as long as you do not confuse it with Brown-spot Pinion or Lunar Underwing.

Sutton & Beaumont, 1989: Until recently this species was widely distributed and often common in a wide variety of habitats in all five vice-counties. However, it has undergone a dramatic decline over the last few years. It has been suggested that the successive wet summers have caused a high larval mortality through drowning, since it is a moth of open areas with little shelter (PQW pers. comm.). However we shall have to wait to see whether it will recover if the summers improve over the next few seasons.

Recorded in 130 (65%) of 200 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1883. Last Recorded in 2023. Additional Stats

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