Species Details

ABH: 73.195

BF: 2259

Family: Noctuidae

Subfamily: Xyleninae

Taxon: Conistra ligula

Authority: (Esper, 1791)

Vernacular: Dark Chestnut

Account: Common in woodland, farmland and gardens throughout England and southern Scotland. Widespread but rather uncommon in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight. Wingspan 31-35 mm. Distinguished from the more numerous Chestnut C. vaccinii by the shape of the termen and angle subtended by the apex, but care needs to be taken with worn individuals after they have hibernated. Larva feeds on various deciduous trees and shrubs, such as Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Sessile and Pedunculate Oak, and Sallow, and when nearly fully grown on various herbaceous plants, such as Dandelion and Dock.

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: 31 — 35 mm

Surrey Flight Period: —

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

Foodplant: Prunus sp., Salix sp. (a sallow).

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

Status: Least Concern (LC)

UK BAP:

WCA:

Click here to view the full geology map of Surrey.

Verification Grade: 2 — Care needed to identify, an image may be required 🤔
Further Information: https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/conistra-ligula/
Statistics

* Based on adult records only.

Records: 323

Individuals: 104

Earliest Year: 1833

Latest Year: 2025

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