Brown Scallop - Philereme vetulata

Description

Wingspan 24 to 30 mm. A relatively indistinctly-marked species, which has scalloped edges to both fore and hindwings, but more noticeably on the hindwings.

Identification difficulty
Habitat

Occupying mostly calcareous soils.

When to see it

The moths fly during July, and occasionally come to light.

Life History

The caterpillar is dark grey with paler stripes and orange suffusion. It feeds in spun leaves of Buckthorn.

UK Status

It is distributed throughout England, though scarcer in the more central parts and south-west. It is rare in Wales and Ireland. In a recent survey to determine the status of all macro moths in Britain this species was classified as local.

VC55 Status

Fairly frequent but not common in Leicestershire and Rutland. L&R Moth Group status = B (scarce resident or restricted distribution or regular migrant).

Reference
70.118 BF1791

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2025+ | 2020-2024 | pre-2020

UK Map

Species profile

Common names
Brown Scallop
Species group:
Moths
Kingdom:
Animalia
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Geometridae
Records on NatureSpot:
10
First record:
19/07/2013 (Calow, Graham)
Last record:
01/07/2025 (Ryder Hurn)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

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