Species Details

ABH: 73.172

BF: 2341

Family: Noctuidae

Subfamily: Xyleninae

Taxon: Mesoligia furuncula

Authority: ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)

Vernacular: Cloaked Minor

Account: Common in dry grassland, sand-dunes, chalk downland and gardens throughout the British Isles. Generally easy to recognise on account of the straight line which bisects the forewing, and often coloured differently either side of this line, but in a fairly common variant the wing is concolorous. Larva feeds on various grasses, including Sheep's-fescue, Tufted Hair-grass and False Oat-grass.

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: 22 — 28 mm

Surrey Flight Period: 28 Jun (2009) — 3 Sep (1991)

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

Foodplant: Arrhenatherum elatius (False Oat-Grass), Deschampsia cespitosa (Tufted Hair-grass), Gramineae., Lolium arundinaceum.

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/mesoligia-furuncula/

Statistics

* Based on adult records only.

Records: 602

Individuals: 458

Earliest Year: 1883

Latest Year: 2025

« Previous Random 🎲 Next »