Species Details

ABH: 71.006

BF: 1996

Family: Notodontidae

Subfamily: Cerurinae

Taxon: Furcula bicuspis

Authority: (Borkhausen, 1790)

Vernacular: Alder Kitten

Account: Local in woodland, thickets, copses and gardens, from Cornwall northwards through Wales and the west Midlands to south Lancashire, and in south-east England, Norfolk and Co. Durham Compared with Sallow Kitten F. furcula and Poplar Kitten F. bifida, the central band is almost black (not grey), and distinctly pinched at its mid-point. Larva feeds on Alder, Silver Birch and Downy Birch, over-wintering as a pupa.

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: 40 — 48 mm

Surrey Flight Period: 28 Apr (1990) — 18 Jul (2025)

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

Foodplant: Alnus glutinosa (Alder), Betula sp. (a birch).

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/furcula-bicuspis/
Statistics

* Based on adult records only.

Records: 131

Individuals: 48

Earliest Year: 1938

Latest Year: 2025

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