Review of 2019 and 2020 - Moths: Gelechiids (Gelechiidae) (Part 7: Groundlings - subfamily Gelechiinae III)

GELECHIIDS (GELECHIIDAE) (continued)


Subfamily GELECHIINAE (continued)


Common Groundling Teleiodes vulgella - Singles in the garden trap on 5 nights between 4th and 25th July 2019.  This species is just about annual here but although I had 6 in 2018 previous year totals had ranged from 1-3.  2020 was back down again with just one on 17th July.

Common Groundling Teleiodes vulgella, North Elmham, 25th July 2019

Crescent Groundling Teleiodes luculella - One here on 1st June 2019 was only my second record for the garden following one in 2015

Crescent Groundling Teleiodes luculella, North Elmham, 1st June 2019

Large Groundling Teleiopsis diffinis - Singles here on 28th August and 5th September 2019 and 31st July 2020.  This was a welcome (and I think overdue?) addition to my garden list.  Also one at Bintree Wood on 13th June 2020.

Large Groundling Teleiopsis diffinis, North Elmham, 28th August 2019

Large Groundling Teleiopsis diffinis, North Elmham, 5th September 2019

Large Groundling Teleiopsis diffinis, North Elmham, 31st July 2020

Elm Groundling Carpatolechia fugitivella - One in the garden trap on 17th July 2019 was my second record of this species following one here in 2015.  The 2015 record was the first post 19th century record for Norfolk but there have been nearly 20 since.

male Elm Groundling Carpatolechia fugitivella, North Elmham, 17th July 2019

Suffused Groundling Carpatolechia alburnella - One in my garden moth trap on 29th June 2020.  This was my first here and only my second anywhere.

Suffused Groundling Carpatolechia alburnella, North Elmham, 29th June 2020

Black-speckled Groundling Carpatolechia proximella - None.  I've had just a single record here, in 2015.


Horse-shoe Groundling Altenia scriptella - One in the garden moth trap on 21st May 2020 was a completely new moth for me.

Horse-shoe Groundling Altenia scriptella, North Elmham, 21st May 2020

White-barred Groundling Recurvaria leucatella - Another new moth for me caught in the garden on 6th August 2020.

White-barred Groundling Recurvaria leucatella, North Elmham, 6th August 2020

Pine Groundling Exoteleia dodecella - None.  I've only had one of these here, in 2017.


Black-dotted Groundling Stenolechia gemmella - 2019 was a good year for this species in Norfolk enabling me to see not only my first, but also my second and third, all at different locations.  The first was in my garden trap on 26th August, the second was the following evening at Swanton Great Wood and then there was one at Row Heath (West Runton) later that week on 31st.

Black-dotted Groundling Stenolechia gemmella, North Elmham, 26th August 2019

Wood Groundling Parachronistis albiceps - One in the garden trap on 26th June 2020.  I had 3 of these here in 2018 but I've not recorded this species in the garden any other year.

Wood Groundling Parachronistis albiceps, North Elmham, 26th June 2020

Next page: Batrachedridae plus

Vice county first and county second

The night of 10th July was the best yet.  At home I recorded 571 moths of 121 species - not bad for a tiny garden.  Among them were two new moths for me, a macro and a micro, both requiring gen detting to confirm so neither fully realised at the time.

The micro was moth of the night, a recent split that has only been recorded once before in Norfolk, and not at all in the western vice-county (VC28), Grey Aspen Bell Epinotia cinereana.  Externally it looked promising, but its sister species Grey Poplar Bell Epinotia nisella can look pretty much identical (I've had candidates before that have turned out to be nisella) so there was no way to be sure without dissecting it.  Well I finally got round to doing that, and with just 21 cornuti in its aedaegus (which translates as 21 spiky bits in its male sex organ) it was clearly cinereana: nisella has around 40.  Bit of a result.

Grey Aspen Bell Epinotia cinereana (male, gen det), North Elmham, 10th July

The macro would have gone down as just another Marbled Minor agg. if I wasn't able to dissect, the three species (Marbled, Tawny Marbled and Rufous) being impossible to separate on external features.  The first two have both proved to be common here but this one turned out to be my first Rufous Minor.  

Rufous Minor (male, gen det), North Elmham, 10th July

Two other macros that were new for the year also required dissection to identify: Grey Dagger and Lesser Common Rustic.

Grey Dagger (male, gen det), North Elmham, 10th July

Lesser Common Rustic (male, gen det), North Elmham, 10th July

A White-headed Ermel Paraswammerdamia albicapitella also needed gen detting, but only because it was such a worn and tatty specimen that there weren't enough scales left on it to identify from external features.  Others new for the year (at least for home) were more straightforward to identify: Crescent Groundling Teleiodes luculella, Holly Tortrix Rhopobota naevana, Bud Moth Spilonota ocellana, Pearl Veneer Agriphila straminella, 3 Dusky Pearls Udea prunalis, Twin-spot Carpet, Scalloped Oak, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing and 3 Light Arches.

Twin-spot Carpet, North Elmham, 10th July

Light Arches, North Elmham, 10th July

Crescent Groundling Teleiodes luculella, North Elmham, 10th July

Bud Moth Spilonota ocellana, North Elmham, 10th July

Other macros were Chinese Character, Peach Blossom, Common Emerald, Small Blood-vein, 8 Small Fan-footed Waves, 5 Dwarf Cream Waves, 2 Small Dusty Waves, 6 Single-dotted Waves, 2 Treble Brown Spots, 12 Riband Waves, 5 Large Twin-spot Carpets, 2 Shaded Broad-bars, Common Carpet, 6 Barred Straws, Foxglove Pug, 5 Green Pugs, 6 Clouded Borders, 2 Brimstone Moths, 3 Early Thorns, Swallow-tailed Moth, 5 Peppered Moths, Willow Beauty, 4 Mottled Beauties, 3 Common White Waves, Common Wave, 5 Clouded Silvers, Light Emerald, Privet Hawkmoth, 4 Elephant Hawkmoths, Lesser Swallow Prominent, Coxcomb Prominent, 3 Buff-tips, 9 Rosy Footmen, Orange Footman, 3 Dingy Footmen, 7 Scarce Footmen, 39 Common Footmen, 9 Buff Ermines, 3 Short-cloaked Moths, Heart and Club, 2 Heart and Darts, 3 Flames, Flame Shoulder, 2 Large Yellow Underwings, 9 Double Square-spots, Dot Moth, 4 Bright-line Brown-eyes, Lychnis, 3 Clays, 11 Smoky Wainscots, Common Wainscot, Brown Rustic, 9 Dark Arches, 2 Common Rustics, 50 Uncertains, 5 Rustics, 3 Mottled Rustics, 2 Marbled White Spots, Cream-bordered Green Pea, 6 Burnished Brasses, 2 Spectacles, 10 Beautiful Hook-tips, 2 Straw Dots, 8 Snouts, 3 Fan-foots and 2 Small Fan-foots.

Cream-bordered Green Pea, North Elmham, 10th July

Privet Hawklmoth, North Elmham, 10th July

The rest of the micros were 6 Bird-cherry Ermines Yponomeuta evonymella, Diamond-back Moth Plutella xylostella, Tipped Oak Case-bearer Coleophora flavipennella, Meadow Case-bearer Coleophora mayrella, Grey Rush Case-bearer Coleophora glaucicolella, Little Dwarf Elachista canapennella, New Tawny Tubic Batia lunaris, Golden-brown Tubic Crassa unitella, Small Dingy Tubic Borkhausenia fuscescens, 2 Brown House-moths Hofmannophila pseudospretella, 4 Burdock Nebs Metzneria lappella, 4 Cinereous Groundlings Bryotropha terrella, Gorse Crest Brachmia blandella, 4 Hook-marked Straw Moths Agapeta hamana, 8 Large Fruit-tree Tortrices Archips podana, Timothy Tortrix Aphelia paleana, 3 Privet Tortrices Clepsis consimilana, 3 Large Ivy Tortrices Lozotaenia forsterana, 3 Red-barred Tortrices Ditula angustiorana, 8 Grey Tortrices Cnephasia stephensiana (plus 2 Cnephasia sp.), 5 Barred Marbles Celypha striana, 13 Common Marbles Celypha lacunana, 4 Marbled Orchard Tortrices Hedya nubiferana, 4 Triangle-marked Rollers Ancylis achatana, 2 Crescent Bells Epinotia bilunana, 2 Common Cloaked Shoots Gypsonoma dealbana, 2 Triple-blotched Bells Notocelia trimaculana, White-foot Bell Epiblema foenella, Hoary Bell Eucosma cana, Many-plumed Moth Alucita hexadactyla, 96 Garden Grass-veneers Chrysoteuchia culmella, 2 Grass-veneers Crambus pascuella, 2 Yellow Satin Veneers Crambus perlella, 5 Common Greys Scoparia ambigualis, 18 Little Greys Eudonia lacustrata, 6 Small Greys Eudonia mercurella, Beautiful China-mark Nymphula stagnata, 9 Small Magpies Eurrhypara hortulata, 2 Elder Pearls Anania coronata, 2 Bee Moths Aphomia sociella and Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla.

Triangle-marked Roller Ancylis achatana, North Elmham, 10th July

Grey Tortrix Cnephasia stephensiana (female, gen det), North Elmham, 10th July

Summer Chafer, North Elmham, 10th July