Until recently this was only a rare immigrant to mainland Britain, but it is now resident in small numbers in Devon. It also appears occasionally elsewhere on the south-west coast and is resident in the Channel Islands.
Flies in July and August, and then in September and October. The second brood overwinters as an adult and reappears in the spring.
Family – Erebidae
Small Sized
A variable species but most often encountered as a reddish-brown ground colour with white or orange reniform stigmata. The small 'satellites' either side of the stigma can be obscure, especially in worn individuals.
Adult moths are attracted to sugar and light.
Flies from September through to April in one generation.
A variable species, with some strongly-banded individuals, others plain brownish with darker speckling. The females are completely wingless. Overwinter as an egg.
Flies from October into December in one generation.
The Vestal is a migrant species, occurring primarily in southern England but in varying numbers. In good immigration years, several hundred may appear, almost anywhere in Britain.
The amount and intensity of the pink pigmentation varies. Native to southern Europe and North Africa.
It flies mainly at night and is regularly attracted to light.
Most UK records are from August to October.
The Small Chocolate-tip occasionally flies in the daytime and can be found across a large part of Britain.
Flies between May and August in one or two generations.
Caterpillars feed on eared willow (Salix aurata), creeping willow (Salix repens), and similar trees.
The Mullein is more often found in the caterpillar stage than as an adult but can be seen when attracted to light.
Flies from April to May in one generation.
Caterpillars in the wild feed on species of mullein (Verbascum) and in gardens, on Buddleia.
The English population has two generations, with adults at large in April and May, and again in August and September. In Scotland the species is single-brooded, flying from June to July.
The caterpillars feed on poplar (Populus), especially aspen (P. tremula) as well as sallow (Salix).
Woodland
Not found in the UK.
Until recently, and as its name suggests, this butterfly was confined to southern and especially south-eastern Europe, but it is now spreading rapidly in a north-westerly direction, at the rate over 100 km per year. It was first found north of the Alps in France and in Germany in 2008 and has since gradually extended its range and was first sighted in the southern Netherlands in 2015. In 2019 it was reliably recorded near Calais in France. So there is only the matter of the 22 miles of English Channel to cross before it arrives on our shores!
Not found in the UK.
Caterpillars feed on stonecrop (Sedum species)
Diverse - rocky and stony places and vineyards in hills and mountains.
Extinct from the UK. The Black-veined White was first listed as a British species in 1667 but this large butterfly became extinct in the British Isles around 1925 with its last remaining stronghold in the south-east of England.
It was always considered a rarity in the British Isles but on the continent, it is often very common.
The female is known to rub her wings together and loses many of her scales by doing so, resulting in an almost-transparent look when compared with the white wings of the male. The reason behind this unusual behaviour is not known.
