14.01 BF274 - Bucculatricidae - Bucculatrix ulmella
14.01 BF274  – Oak Tuft  – Bucculatrix ulmella  – (Zeller, 1848)
Adult Micro:  CAT 2 – Can be confused with other species –       Leaf-miner:  CAT L – The leaf or a Photo required – reared and possibly dissected       Larval Case:  C1 – Distinctive Species –      
PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Blue –  Generally Common / Widespread        purple – Leaf-miner
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Bucculatricidae
Other Name/s: Oak Bent-wing
ID Difficulty:  amber  – care required in the identification process, as confusion with similar species is likely – quality photographs required.
ID pointers: A tiny moth with an orange tufted head and forewing yellowish white, mottled greyish-brown, with raised blackish scale tufts. Pale buff cilia.
Distribution:  Most probably a common and local species in the county, wherever there are Oak trees. Under-recorded
General Comment: None
Flight Period: April /  May /  June /  August –  On the wing April-June and August Mine Period:  July /  September /  October
Mine Period Additional: The mine is a short contorted gallery close to the midrib of a leaf, containing broken black frass.
Mine ID Difficulty: Not Recorded
Mine Type/s: Not Recorded
Mine Feeding Method/s: Not Recorded
Mine Comment: None.
 – but can be disturbed during the day Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Will Soar  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 9 November 2025 by TD ***
Wingspan: 7-8mm
Food Plant: Deciduous Oak (Quercus) and sometimes Hornbeam
Specific Recorded History Dates for Common [Blue code Blue-coded] moths is not displayed/updated in this tab. However, all verified records for this moth are listed in the RECORDS tab below.

Selected Images:  Kings Newton, Derbyshire – Will Soar © / Markham Vale 4/11/2025 – Mark Radford©



Temporal Distribution Chart
Adults: (between 2011 - 2025)  |  Immatures: (between 2006 - 2024)
(click legend below to show/hide datasets)
This chart summarises all available historical occurrence records collated by ISO week of the year. It reflects recorder effort and sampling distribution as well as true biological activity, and should be interpreted as an indicative pattern of seasonal occurrence rather than a statistically controlled abundance or phenology model.

 

Distribution Map for Bucculatrix ulmella

Found 19 records
    ↳ from 2026+
    ↳ 11 from 2020 - 2025
    ↳ 8 from Before 2020
Flying
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Mining
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

If the Map Layers function fails, just refresh the page and it should be OK after. Use the +- zoom on the top left, or on a tablet, use two fingers to zoom. Remember, the last layer you ticked is the one which displays the popup information - they sit on top of each other - de-select then re-select, to see the popup values.

Bedrock Geology ** indirectly affects moth distribution by influencing the type of habitat and food plants available in an area. In turn, this may affect the types of moths that can thrive, or where they can most likely be found.


NBN Atlas UK Distribution for – Bucculatrix ulmella

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Note – the NBN Atlas datasets are listed in the map below and vary in their currency (uptodateness) – however, the map does give a general indication of the moth's distribution across the UK.

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Monthly Records By Year: Bucculatrix ulmella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Monthly Counts By Year: Bucculatrix ulmella
( data is based on 'Adult' stage records only )

First/Last Recorded Dates: Bucculatrix ulmella
Adult-only & Anything [Larvae, Pupae, Adult, Mines]

Shading shows moth presence between dates

Click the colour discs below to Select/De-select as Required

Recordings By Year: Bucculatrix ulmella
( All data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
Annual Growth Rate (AGR): Bucculatrix ulmella
AGR: 0%   |   Total % Change: 0%

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Bucculatrix ulmella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Bucculatrix ulmella

Flight Period chart – the grey hatched area above, which can cross one or more months, pictorially represents the best guess we have for this moth's flight periods [month/s]. The coloured lines represent the actual months seen in flight, from site observation records received between 2020-2026.

Mine Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Bucculatrix ulmella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Mine Period chart – the grey hatched area above, which can cross one or more months, pictorially represents the best guess we have for this moth's mine periods [month/s]. The coloured lines represent the actual months seen mining, from site observation records received between 2020-2026.

Records Behind the Map and Charts - Bucculatrix ulmella – 19 records available

Listed by Year - descending - scroll across to see all table columns

Site Name Tetrad Date Count Stage Recorder Source RecordKey
Norton Lees, Sheffield SK38L 11/08/2025 1 adult Mella, Pete vc57_irecords_extract iBRC44387175
Darwin Forest SK26X 05/07/2025 1 adult Evans, Dave vc57_irecords_extract iBRC43066132
Burton upon Trent SK32P 05/11/2024 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC41038908
Poppy Wood SK32S 22/11/2023 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35107055
Calke Park SK32R 07/10/2023 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35105504
Calke Park SK32R 01/10/2023 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35105533
Carver's Rocks SK32G 30/09/2023 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35106078
Carver's Rocks SK32H 21/09/2023 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35106106
Allestree Park SK34K 25/09/2022 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35105364
Belper SK34U 29/07/2022 1 adult Evans, Dave vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35317031
Main Street, Kings Newton SK32Y 07/08/2020 1 Adult Soar, Will vc57_irecords_extract iBRC34059805
Grange Wood SK21S 13/09/2018 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35106436
Backgarden Marehay SK34Z 08/09/2011 1 adult Thorpe, Steve vc57_irecords_extract iBRC33514047
Bamford SK28B 21/09/2010 1 Larval Mine K. McCabe;S.H. Hind vc57_danes_bc_data LC000334001CP6NZ
Howden Resr SK19L 25/08/2010 1 Larval Mine S.H. Hind vc57_danes_bc_data LC000334001CP08S
Calke Park SK32L 25/10/2008 1 Mine Finch, Graham Leonard vc57_irecords_extract iBRC35105478
Calke Park,Ticknall SK32R 25/10/2008 1 Larval Mine VC57 Derbyshire Recorder vc57_danes_bc_data LC000334001COSOZ
Broomfield Hall, Morley, Derby SK34V 14/11/2006 1 Larval Mine S.H. Hind vc57_danes_bc_data LC000334001COWAI
Carr Vale NR,Bolsover SK47K 13/09/2006 1 Larval Mine S.H. Hind vc57_danes_bc_data LC000334001CP3MQ

 
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