15.007 BF285  –  Gracillariidae –  Gracillariinae – Caloptilia azaleella – Azalea Leaf-miner – (Brants, 1913) Adult Micro:  CAT 1 – Distinctive species unlikely to be confused with others –       Leaf-miner:  CAT L – The leaf or a Photo required – reared and possibly dissected       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Green –  Rare / Uncommon / Scarce        purple – Leaf Miner
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Gracillariidae  >> Gracillariinae
ID Difficulty:  green  – easy to identify, generally distinctive and unlikely to be confused with other species.
ID pointers: Very attractively marked and distinctive species. Dark brown forewings broken by a yellow band along the costa
Distribution:  (Last record: 26 February 2025 at Belper )  –  Introduced with Azaleas and rhodedendrons – Generally uncommon across the recording area with scattered records from currently just two sites – one in Belper and one in Norton Lees. Expanding its range
General Comment: None
Flight Period: May /  June /  July /  August /  September /  October –  Two to three generations between May – October Mine Period:  June /  September
Mine Period Additional: The larvae mine the leaves of azaleas, later rolling the leaf downwards and forming a cone
Mine ID Difficulty: Not Recorded
Mine Type/s: Not Recorded
Mine Feeding Method/s: Not Recorded
Mine Comment: None.
Moth Activity: Cathemeral   – and is attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Dave Evans  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 2 October 2025 by RP ***
Wingspan: 10-11mm
Food Plant: Azaleas
Last Recorded Year: 2024
Last Recorded By – Dave Evans
Last Recorded General Area – Belper

Selected Images:  

Belper 2024- Dave Evans©



Distribution Map for Caloptilia azaleella

Found 26 records
    ↳ from 2026+
    ↳ 18 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 – Caloptilia azaleella

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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: Caloptilia azaleella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Monthly Counts By Year: Caloptilia azaleella
( data is based on 'Adult' stage records only. )


First/Last Recorded Dates: Caloptilia azaleella
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: Caloptilia azaleella
( All data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
Annual Growth Rate (AGR): Caloptilia azaleella
AGR: 2.23%   |   Total % Change: 16.7%

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Caloptilia azaleella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Caloptilia azaleella
( data includes Adult Stage only )

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
Caloptilia azaleella
( 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 - Caloptilia azaleella – 26 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
sheffieldSK38M13/10/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
sheffieldSK38M07/10/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P30/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Mickleover gardenSK33C09/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
sheffieldSK38M31/05/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
sheffieldSK38M29/05/20252adultvc57_irecords_extract
BelperSK34N26/08/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
BelperSK34U25/05/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
BelperSK34U19/05/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
BelperSK34U18/05/20242adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P12/05/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees, Sheffield (VC)SK38L10/05/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees, Sheffield, UKSK38L10/05/20241Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Sandiacre GardenSK43T06/05/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Belper GardenSK34P20/08/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Belper GardenSK34P28/05/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P20/05/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P20/05/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton LeesSK38L31/05/20181Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L28/08/20162not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L26/08/20162not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L23/08/20162not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L22/08/20161not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L22/06/20161not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L14/06/20161not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees gardenSK38L14/06/20161not recordedvc57_irecords_extract

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