Freyer's Pug - Eupithecia intricata

Description

Wingspan 20-24 mm. There are three subspecies of the large, rather distinctive Pug E. intricata in Britain: they are Freyer's Pug (ssp. arceuthata) occurring in the southern half of England; Edinburgh Pug (ssp. millieraria) which occurs in northern England and Scotland and Mere's Pug (ssp. hibernica), occurring only in the Burren region of western Ireland.

Identification difficulty
Habitat

The species inhabits parks, gardens, moorland, or limestone hills, depending on the subspecies.

When to see it

The adults fly in May and June in a single generation.

Life History

Lives on Cypress or Juniper.

UK Status

Reasonably frequent and widespread in Britain. In a recent survey to determine the status of all macro moths in Britain this species was classified as common.

VC55 Status

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

Reference
70.176 BF1827

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

Species group:
Moths
Kingdom:
Animalia
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Geometridae
Records on NatureSpot:
140
First record:
16/06/2002 (Nicholls, David)
Last record:
25/06/2025 (Harding, Ian)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

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