Species Details

ABH: 70.016

BF: 1713

Family: Geometridae

Subfamily: Sterrhinae

Taxon: Idaea aversata

=Idaea aversata ab. remutata

Authority: (Linnaeus, 1758)

Vernacular: Riband Wave

Account: Extremely common in a wide range of habitats, including gardens, hedgerows, woodland, heathland, calcareous grassland and fens throughout the British Isles, more numerous in the south. Occurs in two distinct forms, the plain form remutata often outnumbering the typical banded form. The main confusion species are the very much more uncommon Plain Wave I. straminata and Portland Ribbon Wave I. degeneraria, which see. Larva feeds on various herbaceous plants.

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: 30 — 35 mm

Surrey Flight Period: 25 May (1992) — 26 Oct (2015)

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

Foodplant: Galium sp., Polygonum sp., Stellaria sp.

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: 1 — Relatively easily identified 👌

Further Information: https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/idaea-aversata/

Statistics

* Based on adult records only.

Records: 2051

Individuals: 6808

Earliest Year: 1882

Latest Year: 2025

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