Blastobasis lacticolella
London Dowd
Wakely's Dowd
Wingspan 18-21 mm. Light buff with browner markings but very variable in the degree of markings, with unmarked examples common.
Hedgerows, woodland and gardens.
The adult is nocturnal and comes readily to light in May and June and again in the autumn.
Larva feeds on various mosses, dead insects, detritus, decaying vegetable matter, also on seedpods of Tree Lupin and Tansy.
Originally not a British species, this moth was accidentally introduced with fruit and vegetables and appears to be established and expanding its range. It was first recorded in Kent in 1946 (as B. decolorella). In the Butterfly Conservation’s Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as common.
Occasional but probably increasing in Leicestershire and Rutland. L&R Moth Group status = C (very scarce resident or rare migrant)
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Species profile
- Common names
- London Dowd, Wakely's Dowd
- Species group:
- Moths
- Kingdom:
- Animalia
- Order:
- Lepidoptera
- Family:
- Blastobasidae
- Records on NatureSpot:
- 260
- First record:
- 13/06/2003 (Skevington, Mark)
- Last record:
- 11/08/2024 (Cooper, Barbara)
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% of records within its species group
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