15.049 BF329  –  Gracillariidae –  Lithocolletinae – Phyllonorycter spinicolella – Blackthorn Leaf-miner – (Zeller, 1846) Adult Micro:  CAT 4 – Gen. Det. Required – Gen-Det-Reqd       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
Black – Uncertain/Unknown – Insufficient Data        purple – Leaf Miner
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Gracillariidae  >> Lithocolletinae
** Identification write up required **
Other Name/s: Sloe Midget
ID Difficulty:  Red – difficult to identify – detailed examination required, often a Gen Det and/or specimen and quality photographs are required.
Confusion Species: Phyllonorycter cerasicolella (Cherry Leaf-miner); Phyllonorycter hostis (Cryptic Apple Leaf-miner)
ID pointers: None at this time
Distribution:  (Last record: 1 March 2025 at Poppy Wood )  –  Uncertain as insufficient data – Leaf Mines found in 2009 & 2023.
Flight Period: May /  August /  –  Two generations Mine Period: January /  February /  March /  April /  July /  September /  October /  November /  December /   – The mines are found on Blackthorn and sometimes Wild Plum, they narrow and arch or fold over Moth Activity: Cathemeral  Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Steve Orridge – Leaf Mine  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 12 October 2025 by TD ***
Wingspan: 6-8mm
Food Plant: Blackthorn sometimes Wild Plum
Last Recorded Year: 2023
Last Recorded By – Graham Finch
Last Recorded General Area – Poppy Wood

Selected Images:  

Rose End Meadows – 16/10/2009 – Steve Orridge©



Distribution Map for Phyllonorycter spinicolella

Found 11 records
    ↳ 1 from After 2025
    ↳ 1 from 2020 - 2024
    ↳ 9 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 – Phyllonorycter spinicolella

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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.

Visit NBN Site


Monthly Records By Year: Phyllonorycter spinicolella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
No data returned from the database.

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


First/Last Recorded Dates: Phyllonorycter spinicolella
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: Phyllonorycter spinicolella
( All data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
Annual Growth Rate (AGR): Phyllonorycter spinicolella
AGR: 0%   |   Total % Change: 0%


CUSUM Analysis: Phyllonorycter spinicolella
About this chart: CUSUM (Cumulative Sum) charts track long-term trends in moth populations [ filtered by 'Adult' and 'Mine' life stages ] by showing whether each year’s counts are above or below the historical average. Even small shifts build up over time, making trends of growth, stability, or decline easier to see. CUSUM highlights trend-consistency — asking: “Across the years, have moth counts mostly stayed above or below average?”
The data sample has 22 gap year/s here (zero records) between 2000 and 2025. The moth may have been present in those gap years, but no data was available. Too many year-gaps may exaggerate or skew the chart.

Counts for the current year (2025) are pro-rated based on data available up to month 8 (August) to provide a full-year equivalent.

Purple line rises = years better than average; falls = years worse than average.
Peak (best year) Trough (worst year) Growth periods Decline periods
Population peaked around 2002, reaching above average levels. The lowest population point occurred near 2002, showing a significant decline.

What the Y-axis "Cumulative Deviation" means: Cumulative Deviation shows the running total of how each year’s moth population count differs from the long-term average. i

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Phyllonorycter spinicolella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Phyllonorycter spinicolella
( 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 2020-2025.

Mine Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Phyllonorycter spinicolella
( 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 2020-2025.

Records Behind the Map and Charts - Phyllonorycter spinicolella – 11 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
Moor Lsne, SinfinSK32U21/09/20253larvavc57_irecords_extract
Poppy WoodSK32S22/11/20231Minevc57_irecords_extract
Thorpe, DovedaleSK15K13/10/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Rose End MeadowSK25Y16/10/20091minevc57_irecords_extract
Coombs Dale,Stoney MiddletonSK27H12/10/20091Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Stoney MiddletonSK27H12/10/20091Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Coombs Dale,Stoney MiddletonSK27H12/10/20091Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
CromfordSK25Y16/10/20091Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Hillclifflane, nr IdridgehaySK24Y02/11/20021Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Clough Wood,Darley DaleSK26K12/11/19831Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Willington area (spinney), DerbySK22Z02/04/19051Adultvc57_danes_bc_data

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