Hello, from Steve Garten and welcome to my weird and wonderful world of moths.
I’m amateur Lepidopterist, I trap and record moth species on my six acre wildlife meadow at Tibenham Norfolk, UK.
The list of moths listed in this Macro-moths blog and the Micro Moths blog are the species I have recorded since 2015.
Autumnal Moth, (Epirrita autumnata).
The Moth Is from the family of Geometridae, subfamily, Larentiinae.
The Moth is medium-sized and has a wingspan of 42 mm.
This species of the Epirrita genus trio is complicated to separate on the markings alone.
And identification is usually only possible by examining the genitalia.
In general, the Autumnal is the least variable of the three forms occurring less often.
It is also generally on the wing earlier in the year, although all three species' flight seasons overlap.
The moths are in flight from September to October.
The species habitat is mainly heaths and woods.
It overwinters as an egg on a twig or bark.
The larva appears from late-April to June.
It pupates underground.
The larval foodplant is a variety of trees and shrubs but mainly Birch and Alder.
The Moth is classed as a common species of the UK,
but its exact distribution is confusing with the other Epirrita species.