A difficult family to identify the adults, even when referring to their genitalia, but I think I'm making progress. For the most part I only identify individuals that are fresh enough to make significant progress towards their ID based on external features (the Kleine Vlinders key is very useful for that), with gen det confirming the suspected ID or eliminating some of the alternative possibilities. Quite a few go unidentified and unrecorded. Currently there are still some species that lack photos of their genitalia on the Dissection Group website which adds to the problem but the svenska_fjarilar website also has quite a comprehensive set of illustrations of genitalia which is very helpful. 2019 was a good year for this family, but 2020 was even better - I recorded adults of 16 species in 2020 (15 caught in my garden).
I have made a little effort with leaf-mines, especially at the Cathedral Meadows, but I still have a great deal to learn and frequently don't feel confident enough about the IDs to record them.
Sorrel Pigmy Entucha acetosae - None. I've never found this, Britain's smallest moth, but both species of its foodplant (Sorrels) grow at the meadows so hopefully I'll at least find its leafmines there sometime.
Drab Birch Pigmy Stigmella lapponica - None. I've not recorded this species yet but it's apparently pretty widespread in Norfolk and there is Birch in my garden so hopefully I'll find it soon.
Pale Birch Pigmy Stigmella confusella - None. I've not had a confirmed example of this species yet though a probable caught in my garden in 2018 (I couldn't find any photos of female genitalia to compare it to but ruled out the most likely similar-looking alternatives).
Lime Pigmy Stigmella tiliae - a vacated leaf-mine in Norwich on 22nd August 2019.
vacated leaf mine of Lime Pigmy Stigmella tiliae, Norwich, 22nd August 2019
Common Birch Pigmy Stigmella betulicola - None. Despite the common name this species is apparently scarce in Norfolk. Even so, not so rare that I would discount it as a possibility here.
Small Birch Pigmy Stigmella sakhalinella - None. I caught what I believed to be this species here in 2018 but although it keyed out to this species it wasn't quite convincing enough. I retained the genitalia so may be able to return to this and resolve it fully in due course.
Short-barred Pigmy Stigmella luteella - A male trapped in my garden on 23rd June 2019, the first time I have identified this species.
male Short-barred Pigmy Stigmella luteella, North Elmham, 23rd June 2019
White-barred Alder Pigmy Stigmella glutinosae - None. Seems to be quite scarce away from the Broads but with a scattering of records elsewhere there must be a chance of finding it locally.
Nut-tree Pigmy Stigmella microtheriella - None at home but it should occur in my garden as there is a large Hazel overhanging and I have found a vacated leaf-mine here in the past (2014). A leafmine found in Hornbeam at the meadows in 2020.
leaf-mine of Nut-tree Pigmy Stigmella microtheriella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 3rd August 2020
Scarce Maple Pigmy Stigmella aceris - None. Graham Moates found a leafmine of this very recent colonist at the meadows in 2020, but I've not managed to find it here yet.
Apple Pigmy Stigmella malella - None. With single Apple trees growing in my garden and at the meadows I stand a fair chance of finding this species locally.
Rose Leaf-miner Stigmella anomalella - One caught in the garden moth trap on 17th August 2020, a new moth for me. The ID wasn't completely straightforward as it didn't key to this species - the key seems to think it shouldn't have an orange vertex but all 3 photos on Lepiforum (all different individuals) show an orange vertex. In the end the genitalia clinched it. At the meadows 2 leaf-mines in Dog Rose on 28th October 2020 were probably this species but I couldn't rule out Narrow-barred Pigmy Stigmella centifoliella.
male Rose Leaf-miner Stigmella anomalella, North Elmham, 17th August 2020
occupied leafmine of possible Rose Leaf-miner Stigmella anomalella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 28th October 2020
Common Thorn Pigmy Stigmella crataegella - None. One of several widespread Hawthorn-feeding Stigmella that I'm yet to see (others including Scarce Thorn Pigmy S paradoxa and Purple-shot Pigmy S regiella). With Hawthorn being the dominant hedgerow species at the meadows I expect at least some of them must be lurking there somewhere.
Common Fruit-tree Pigmy Stigmella oxyacanthella - None. Another common Hawthorn (and Apple) feeding Stigmella that I've not found yet.
Greenish Thorn Pigmy Stigmella hybnerella - None. A very common Hawthorn feeding Stigmella but I'm yet to identify my first.
Coarse Hazel Pigmy Stigmella floslactella - 2 in my moth-trap on 24th June 2019 and 3 between 7th and 18th August 2020. I had 1-2 in 2018 too.
male Coarse Hazel Pigmy Stigmella floslactella, North Elmham, 24th June 2019
female Coarse Hazel Pigmy Stigmella floslactella, North Elmham, 7th August 2020
male Coarse Hazel Pigmy Stigmella floslactella, North Elmham, 18th August 2020
Small Beech Pigmy Stigmella tityrella - A female in my garden moth trap was the first adult I have positively identified, though I found occupied mines in my beech hedge in 2014. This was followed by 2-3 in 2020, singles on 17th May and 30th and 31st July (the middle one beng doubtful). Also mines at the meadows (occupied and not) in October 2019, July 2020 and November 2020.
female Small Beech Pigmy Stigmella tityrella, North Elmham, 23rd July 2019
leafmine of Small Beech Pigmy Stigmella tityrella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 9th October 2019
male Small Beech Pigmy Stigmella tityrella, North Elmham, 17th May 2020
leafmines of Small Beech Pigmy Stigmella tityrella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 13th November 2020
Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis - A male to light at the meadows on 30th June 2019 and an occupied mine in Grey Willow there on 28th October 2020. A new species for the garden when I caught 2 on 30th July 2020. Also one at Hills and Holes on 21st May 2020. I gather Stigmella salicis is thought to consist of several different species, so if and when they are eventually split these may be relegated to Stigmella salicis agg.
male Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 30th June 2019
female Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis, Hills and Holes, 21st May 2020
female Sallow Pigmies Stigmella salicis, North Elmham, 30th July 2020
leaf-mine of Sallow Pigmy Stigmella salicis, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 28th October 2020
Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella - A total of 7 caught in my garden moth trap between 1st and 10th August 2020, a staggering total considering that I had never identified the species before. I'm not sure how much this has to do with my improved skills in identifying this family and how much it was just a really good year for the species - it must have been the latter anyway.
female Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella, North Elmham, 1st August 2020
male Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella, North Elmham, 5th August 2020
female Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella, North Elmham, 5th August 2020
male Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella, North Elmham, 6th August 2020
female Willow Pigmy Stigmella obliquella, North Elmham, 10th August 2020
Black-poplar Pigmy Stigmella trimaculella - None. I've not identified this species yet. I sometimes see moths at the meadows that have come from the nearby stand of poplars so it's a feasible species to occur there.
Scrubland Pigmy Stigmella plagicolella - 2 females caught in my garden moth trap on 4th August 2020, the first time I've identified an adult of this species.
female Scrubland Pigmies Stigmella plagicolella, North Elmham, 4th August 2020
Next page: more Pigmies (Nepticulidae)
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