Species Details

ABH: 35.132

BF: 830

Family: Gelechiidae

Subfamily: Gelechiinae

Taxon: Caryocolum fraternella

Authority: (Douglas, 1851)

Vernacular: Stitchwort Groundling

Account: Local in dry grassland, heaths and damp open areas in Britain, as far north as East Lothian, being more common in the south-east (MBGBI Vol 4 part 2) Only C. viscariella and dark forms of C. marmoreum have similar coloration; in C. viscariella the dark bar from the plical spot clearly reaches the costa, whereas in C. fraternella it is lost in the fuscous ground colour of the costa; C. marmoreum has the costal and dorsal white spots much reduced in dark specimens (MBGBI Vol 4 part 2).
According to lepiforum.de, the palps are good for identification to species:

Caryocolum marmorea : brown with white spots, 3rd segment (tip) darker and shorter than 2nd segment
Caryocolum fraternella : 3rd segment black-brown with white tip, 2nd segment yellow-brown, both of equal length

Larva feeds on the terminal shoots of Bog Stitchwort, Lesser Stitchwort, Common Mouse-ear and Field Mouse-ear, living between shoots spun together with silk.

Accounts provided by and used with the kind permission of Mike Wall, Hampshire County Moth Recorder. These will in due course be gradually replaced with species accounts with a Surrey context.

Wingspan: 9 — 13 mm

Surrey Flight Period: 8 Jul (2007) — 14 Aug (2018)

The flight period of overwintering adults are not given. See the flight chart below the distribution map.

Foodplant: Cerastium sp., Stellaria sp.

Foodplant accounts are from the HOSTS database — Natural History Museum, London, UK. (CC0).

Status: Local

UK BAP:

WCA:

Click here to view the full geology map of Surrey.

Verification Grade: 4 — ️‼️Dissection required️‼️
Further Information: https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/caryocolum-fraternella/
Statistics

* Based on adult records only.

Records: 16

Individuals: 0

Earliest Year: 2001

Latest Year: 2018

« Previous Random 🎲 Next »