0642a Metalampra italica Baldizzone, 1977 - (Oecophoridae / Oecophorinae)

 

Notes: Very rare immigrant (less than 10 previous UK records). On 17 August 2003, a worn specimen was found in a moth trap in a garden in Devon. The species had not previously been recorded outside Italy. Another specimen turned up in the same garden on 7 August 2004, and towards the end of July that year three specimens were found in and around a house at Welwyn, Hertfordshire, with one to a lighted window at Studham, Bedfordshire, on 3 July 2006. In Hampshire recorded for the first time at Over Wallop in August 2011. Not recorded from the Isle of Wight to date. Wingspan 13-14 mm. A similar species, M. cinnamomea, which occurs widely on the near continent and which is perhaps a more likely candidate to stray to the UK, has not occurred; neither species is prone to migration, and the origins of the British M. italica remain a mystery. Larva feeds within dead wood of Oak.

Flightime guide
JFM AMJ JAS OND
Web Hosting from Vision Internet Limited