73.042 BF2286 – Light Knot Grass – Noctuidae – Acronicta menyanthidis
Light Knot Grass – Noctuidae – Acronictinae – Acronicta menyanthidis – colour code •
STATUS – Last recorded 2014 – A resident that is confined to the upland grit-stone moors of the Central and Peak areas of Derbyshire. All records save this one (2009) and another from a garden in Ripley (2008), have been recorded from moorland habitat.
ID POINTERS – Quite a chunky looking moth with rather broad and rounded grey wings, quite variable in colour and markings. An obvious small oval pale centred with a dark outline and a most conspicuous black lined kidney mark and outer cross-line that is pale bordered on the inner edge. Sometimes there is a black streak flicking through the central area of the outer cross-line. A superb image below shows an example of the dark colour morph f.suffusa.
FLIGHT PERIOD – On the wing May – June.
IMAGES – Glossop, Derbyshire – Christian Heintzen© and Darley Dale, Derbyshire – Simon Roddis©