I caught this moth at my regular trapping site on the eastern side of Dunwich Forest, overlooking Dingle Marshes, on 14th August 2015. Obviously a Bactra species at first glance, the sight of two well-defined, dark brown and parallel sub-apical streaks rang a few rusty old alarm bells with me. I recalled that this feature may indicate B. lacteana so I photographed and retained the moth.
Jon Clifton has now completed a genitalia determination and confirmed the identification as Bactra lacteana and John Langmaid has informed us that it is the first record for Suffolk and the east of England.
So, is it extending it’s range, is there a small resident population or may it have been a migrant? Well worth looking out for but dissection will probably always be necessary to confirm the identification.
Bactra lacteana, Dunwich, 14 August 2015
Paul
Very good Paul. Literature suggests it is smaller than our usual Bactra species. Was that noticeable?
Thanks Raymond. There were no other Bactra in the same catch for a direct comparison but I did get the impression of it being slightly smaller than the frequent “lancealana”. I believe there’s some degree of overlap though.