73.015 BF2441 – Silver Y – Noctuidae – Autographa gamma
Silver Y – Noctuidae – Plusiinae – Autographa gamma – colour code • •
STATUS – Mainly an immigrant to Derbyshire. Small numbers breed each year. Flies by both day and night and numbers fluctuate each year. Widely distributed throughout the county.
ID POINTERS – The obvious feature is an inverted creamy white “Y” shape in the centre of the forewing, hence the name. Overall colour is a marbled grey-brown with conspicuous thoracic tufts. Several creamy-brown cross-lines. Sometimes shows a purplish sheen and some specimens that turn-up on good migration years can be a sandy brown colour.
FLIGHT PERIOD – On the wing May – November.
IMAGES – Melbourne, Derbyshire – Tony Davison©
This sandy coloured specimen turned-up at a time of high migration activity and coincided with the arrival of thousands of Painted Lady Butterflies into the UK.
Silver Y
