A rare migrant moth

Yesterday I caught this moth in my trap in the garden in Exton. It is a Ni Moth – a species I have never seen before – it is related to the Silver Y which is a fairly common species. Both the Ni Moth and the Silver Y are migrants coming over to Britain on favourable winds from the Continent. The individual was released after photographing.

Ni Moth photographed in the shade

Photographed in the sunshine

 

Here is a close up of the wing showing the characteristic ‘n’ marking

It is a very rare migrant to Devon with only a handful of records in recent years, none were recorded in 2014.

Thanks to Richard Fox, from Butterfly Conservation for help with the ID