I took this Caloptilia sp’ on Wednesday night (5 April) and am guessing hemidactylella. What do others think?
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I took this Caloptilia sp’ on Wednesday night (5 April) and am guessing hemidactylella. What do others think?
Hi Paul,
From the photo it may also be C. betulicola. If you still have it check the palps. I believe C. hemidactylella has banded palps and in C. betulicola they are of one colour.
Paul
Hello Paul
Thanks for your comments. The moth’s dead – so will probably get it checked anyway – but looking at the palps this morning under a lens, they seemed reasonably uniform in colour, perhaps with a darker brown tip. There are a couple of small birch trees near the garden too so looking more likely to be betulicola.
I would say betulicola too.
Thanks Raymond. In a seperate e-mail conversation it was suggested I check the hind-leg colour and, if not too worn, the cillia. The latter look worn to me so I concentrated on leg colour, which I would say look off-white, not pure white.
Definitely one for the chop as hemid’ will only be the second site record, and betulicola would be new.