Yorkshire Status: Very common and widespread resident.

It is difficult to imagine now, but in 1883 Porritt was only aware of one record of this moth. The next record was at Buttercrambe Woods in 1942, and there was then another gap until 1970 before the next appeared. It then underwent a huge increase in numbers and distribution nationally, and rapidly spread across the country. It is now a widespread and common moth in Yorkshire, where it became double-brooded in about 2003, a single brood in July and August giving way to an earlier first brood in June/July and a larger second one in August/September, giving rise to moths being seen as late as early November. Numbers started to stabilise around 2008 and the situation is now stable. Before its parasitoids caught up with it, catches could be huge; the trap at Haxby catching the most, with 391 on 29/8/2008! Numbers are a little smaller now but it is still a common moth.

Sutton & Beaumont, 1989: Another species which has increased in recent years. Now recorded as far north as Tow Hill in Widdale (VC65), well north of the line from the 'Mersey to the Humber' suggested by Skinner (1984) as its northern boundary. Whether this species is actually breeding in most of Yorkshire is debatable since it is a strong migrant, and the moths recorded on the coast in 1982 may well have been from the Continent or East Anglia. The only larval record we have is from VC63.

Recorded in 176 (88%) of 200 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1883. Last Recorded in 2023. Additional Stats

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