Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Pigmies (Nepticulidae) (Stigmella part 2)

PIGMIES (NEPTICULIDAE) (continued)


Red Elm Pigmy Stigmella lemniscella - None.  I've not found this species yet but it's common and widespread enough so hopefully I'll find it sooner or later.


Golden Pigmy Stigmella aurella - A male just above some Brambles (but beaten from an Oak tree) at the meadows 11th September 2019.  Also some mines at the meadows belonging to this species in both years, and in the Lakes in 2019.

leaf-mine of Golden Pigmy Stigmella aurella, Great Wood, Borrowdale (Cumbria), 5th April 2019

male Golden Pigmy Stigmella aurella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 11th September 2019

Glossy Bramble Pigmy Stigmella splendidissimella - None.  Common and widespread enough to mean I should have a fair chance of finding it locally.


Grey Apple Pigmy Stigmella incognitella - None, but previously recorded in my garden (in 2017).


Least Thorn Pigmy Stigmella perpygmaeella - Single males netted at the meadows on 27th April, 3rd May and 9th May 2020, my first examples of this species.

male Least Thorn Pigmy Stigmella perpygmaeella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 27th April 2020

male Least Thorn Pigmy Stigmella perpygmaeella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 3rd May 2020

Beech Pigmy Stigmella hemargyrella - Singles in my garden moth trap on 4th August 2019 and 30th August 2020.  Also a probable on 7th August 2020, keyed to this species but I damaged the genitalia during the preparation so wasn't able to confirm it.  I had 3 here in 2018.

female Beech Pigmy Stigmella hemargyrella, North Elmham, 4th August 2019

male Beech Pigmy Stigmella hemargyrella, North Elmham, 30th August 2020

Barred Sycamore Pigmy Stigmella speciosa - None.  I've not found this species locally yet but it's common enough and there's Sycamore at the meadows so it should be plausible.


Base-spotted Pigmy Stigmella basiguttella - A male caught in my garden trap on 25th July and a female to light at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019.  These are the first I have identified.  Also an occupied leaf mine at the meadows on 20th September.   None in 2020.

male Base-spotted Pigmy Stigmella basiguttella, North Elmham, 25th July 2019

female Base-spotted Pigmy Stigmella basiguttella, Swanton Great Wood, 27th August 2019

leaf-mine and larva of Base-spotted Pigmy Stigmella basiguttella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 20th September 2019

Red-headed Pigmy Stigmella ruficapitella - a male caught in my garden trap on 24th June 2019.  The minimal extent of blackish androconial hair-scales on hindwing helped to secure the ID of this one, a new moth for me.  Also mines at the meadows in September 2019 and November 2020.

male Red-headed Pigmy Stigmella ruficapitella, North Elmham, 25th July 2019

leaf-mine of Red-headed Pigmy Stigmella ruficapitella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 8th November 2020

Black-headed Pigmy Stigmella atricapitella - A male caught in my garden on 26th July 2020 was new for the garden but followed by 2 more on 7th August.  Although these were gen detted, the blackish androconial hair-scales on the hindwing also help to secure the ID.

Black-headed Pigmy Stigmella atricapitella, North Elmham, 7th August 2020

Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella - A male caught in my garden on 25th May 2019.  I had caught 5 of these here in 2018 and 2020 saw a return to this form with 5 between 20th May and 20th August.

male Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella, North Elmham, 25th May 2019

male Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella, North Elmham, 21st May 2020

male Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella, North Elmham, 10th June 2020

female Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella, North Elmham, 20th August 2020

Common Oak Pigmy Stigmella roborella- Singles caught in my garden on 1st June 2019 and 10th August 2020 (plus an unconfirmed probable in July).  I had 2 here in 2018.  Also one at the meadows on 17th May 2020.

female Common Oak Pigmy Stigmella roborella, North Elmham, 1st June 2019

female Common Oak Pigmy Stigmella roborella, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 17th May 2020

male Common Oak Pigmy Stigmella roborella, North Elmham, 10th August 2020

Next page: more Pigmies (Nepticulidae)

Chestnut Pigmy and Oak Eggar

After a poor night on 13th July things got back on track on 14th with 93 species of moth.  One of these was a new one for me, Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella.

Chestnut Pigmy Stigmella samiatella (female, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

Another was new for the house: Pistol Case-bearer Coleophora anatipennella.

Pistol Case-bearer Coleophora anatipennella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

A Grey Alder Case-bearer Coleophora binderella was only my second ever, following one here in 2016.

Grey Alder Case-bearer Coleophora binderella (female, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

A Plum Fruit Moth Grapholita funebrana was another species I had only previously seen in 2016, though I did catch 6 of them that year.

Plum Fruit Moth Grapholita funebrana (male, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

A White-bodied Conch Cochylis hybridella was also only my second here.

White-bodied Conch Cochylis hybridella, North Elmham, 14th July

A further 5 were new for the year here: Garden Midget Phyllonorycter messaniella, Apple & Plum Case-bearer Coleophora spinella, Grey Rush Case-bearer Coleophora glaucicolella, Oak Eggar and Maple Pug.

Garden Midget Phyllonorycter messaniella, North Elmham, 14th July

Apple & Plum Case-bearer Coleophora spinella (male, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

Oak Eggar, North Elmham, 14th July

Maple Pug (male, gen det), North Elmham, 14th July

A Wood Groundling Parachronistis albiceps was my third here this year, surprisingly for a species I had not seen in my garden until this year.

The rest of the moths were Hazel Slender Parornix devoniella, 2 Beech Midgets Phyllonorycter maestingella, 9 Bird-cherry Ermines Yponomeuta evonymella, Hawthorn Ermine Paraswammerdamia nebulella, 2 Meadow Case-bearers Coleophora mayrella, Golden-brown Tubic Crassa unitella, 3 Brown House Moths Hofmannophila pseudospretella, 3 Long-horned Flat-bodies Carcina quercana, Burdock Neb Metzneria lappella, 2 Cinerous Nebs Bryotropha terrella, Dingy Dowd Blastobasis adustella, Plain Conch Phtheochroa inopiana, Common Yellow Conch Agapeta hamana, Privet Tortrix Clepsis consimilana, 2 Red-barred Tortrixes Ditula angustiorana, Grey Tortrix Cnephasia stephensiana, Flax Tortrix Cnephasia asseclana, Dover Shade Cnephasia genitalana, Garden Rose Tortrix Acleris variegana, 5 Barred Marbles Celypha striana, 2 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, Marbled Orchard Tortrix Hedya nubiferana, 2 Nut-bud Moths Epinotia tenerana, Holly Tortrix Rhopobota naevana, 2 Common Cloaked Shoots Gypsonoma dealbana, 3 Hoary Bells Eucosma cana, 3 Many-plume Moths Alucita hexadactyla, 12 Garden Grass-veneers Chrysoteuchia culmella, 2 Inlaid Grass-veneers Crambus pascuella, 48 Straw Grass-veneers Agriphila straminella, 3 Common Grass-veneers Agriphila tristella, Pearl Grass-veneer Catoptria pinella, 2 Small Greys Eudonia mercurella, Small Magpie Anania hortulata, 18 Mother of Pearls Pleuroptya ruralis, 3 Grey Knot-horns Acrobasis advenella, 2 Common Plumes Emmelina monodactyla, Buff Arches, 4 Least Carpets, 11 Small Fan-footed Waves, 3 Dwarf Cream Waves, 12 Single-dotted Waves, Treble Brown Spot, 8 Riband Waves, Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet, Shaded Broad-bar, Common Carpet, V-Pug, 2 Double-striped Pugs, Clouded Border, Brimstone Moth, 4 Early Thorns, 2 Willow Beauties, Mottled Beauty, Elephant Hawk-moth, 2 Yellow-tails, Round-winged Muslin, Rosy Footman, 16 Dingy Footmen, 19 Common Footmen, 3 Buff Ermines, Cinnabar, Heart and Club, 2 Flame Shoulders, 4 Double Square-spots, Dot Moth, 2 Bright-line Brown-eyes, Clay, 3 Smoky Wainscots, 2 Dun-bars, 2 Dark Arches, Slender Brindle, 2 Common Rustics, 4 Lesser Common Rustics (and another Common Rustic agg.), 3 Dusky Sallows, 18 Uncertains, 3 Rustics, 3 Mottled Rustics, 3 Nut-tree Tussocks, Straw Dot, Snout and Fan-foot.

There was a good range of other insects too.  Mayflies consisted of Pond Olive Cloeon dipterum, Green Drake Ephemera danica and 4 Blue-winged Olives Serratella ignita.  The brown lacewing Hemerobius micans was only my second here and there was a good selection of caddisflies: Oxyethira flavicornis, 2 Hydropsyche siltalai, Mottled Sedge Glyphotaelius pellucidus, Limnephilus auricula, Limnephilus flavicornis, 2 Leptocerus tineiformis and Grouse Wing Mystacides longicornis. Mirid bugs were Phylus palliceps and Stenotus binotatus, the latter new for the year, and beetles comprised 2 Hydrobius fuscipes, 2 Nicrophorus investigator, Rhagonycha fulva and Lagria hirta.