70.068 BF1748  –  Geometridae –  Larentiinae – Mesoleuca albicillata – Beautiful Carpet – (Linnaeus, 1758) Adult Macro:  CAT 1 – Distinctive species unlikely to be confused with others –       PDF Icon – click for Adult Macro Verification Guidelines

Green –  Rare / Uncommon / Scarce   
Taxonomy:   Macro   >>  Geometridae  >> Larentiinae
ID Difficulty:  green  – easy to identify, generally distinctive and unlikely to be confused with other species.
ID pointers: As the name suggests, it is a very attractive carpet moth. The ground colour is a rich cream with a huge white central cross band with a dark basal area finely marked. A large dark patch near the wing tip and blue grey markings along the trailing edge for the forewing. As there is no dark central cross-band, this is a key ID feature that separates it from other White Carpet moths.
Distribution:  (Last record: 19 July 2022 at Darley Dale )  –  A resident species, that is locally rare in Derbyshire. It is mainly found at scattered sites in the south and central regions of the county with populations being small.
General Comment: None
Flight Period: June /  July /  August –  On the wing between  June-August. Moth Activity: Nocturnal   – occasionally attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Tony Davison  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 2 October 2025 by RP ***
Wingspan: 34-38mm
Forewing: 15-18mm
Food Plant: Bramble, Dewberry, Raspberry and Hazel.
Last Recorded Year: 2022
Last Recorded By – Simon Roddis
Last Recorded General Area – Darley Dale

Selected Images:  Melbourne – Images by Tony Davison ©



Distribution Map for Mesoleuca albicillata

Found 43 records
    ↳ 0 from After 2025
    ↳ 3 from 2020 - 2024
    ↳ 40 from Before 2020
Flying
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 – Mesoleuca albicillata

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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: Mesoleuca albicillata
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


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


CUSUM Analysis: Mesoleuca albicillata
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 11 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 10 (October) 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 2017, reaching above average levels. The lowest population point occurred near 2011, 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: Mesoleuca albicillata
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Mesoleuca albicillata
( 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.

Records Behind the Map and Charts - Mesoleuca albicillata – 43 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
Station Road, Darley DaleSK26R19/07/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Rydal Close, Dronfield Woodhouse, DronfieldSK37J12/06/20211adultDanes_2019-2021
AmbergateSK35K04/07/20201adultvc57_irecords_extract
Whitwell Wood (centre area), Whitwell, WorksopSK57J17/06/20173Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
gardenSK32R29/07/20161adultvc57_irecords_extract
Coal Aston, Owler Carr LaneSK38Q01/07/20161adultvc57_irecords_extract
DRONFIELD WOODHOUSESK37J18/08/20151adultvc57_irecords_extract
Not givenSK25T03/07/20141Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Sheffield Rd, Sheepbridge, ChesterfieldSK37S25/07/20122Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Sheffield Rd, Sheepbridge, ChesterfieldSK37S25/07/20122Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
School Close,Parkway Gardens,Darley DaleSK26R25/06/20111Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Flash Lane,Beeley MoorSK26X09/06/20111Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Meynell Langley,Kirk LangleySK23Z04/06/20111Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Main Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y05/07/20101Adultvc57_irecords_extract
School Close,Parkway Gardens,Darley DaleSK26R23/05/20101Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
The Hollies,Station Rd,Darley DaleSK26R22/05/20101Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
School Close,Parkway Gardens,Darley DaleSK26R30/06/20091Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Calke Park Ticknall Lime YardsSK32R22/07/20071adultvc57_irecords_extract
Ticknall Limeyards,TicknallSK32R22/07/20071Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Main St,TicknallSK32R17/07/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Flash Lane,Beeley MoorSK26X16/07/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Spinney Hill,MelbourneSK32X07/07/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Bryan's Wood, Calke, TicknallSK31U24/06/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Robin WoodSK32M23/06/20061adultvc57_irecords_extract
Robin Wood (centre area track), TicknallSK32M23/06/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Crich Chase,AmbergateSK35L18/06/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Clough Wood/Darley BridgeSK26Q21/06/20031Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Matlock Forest, Matlock (site not precise)SK36A22/06/20021Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Hall Dale, Darley Dale (site not precise)SK26X16/06/20021Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linacre Res, ChesterfieldSK37G25/06/19952Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linacre Resr, Chesterfield (site not precise)SK37G26/06/19941Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linacre Resr, Chesterfield (site not precise)SK37G26/06/19941Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linacre Res, ChesterfieldSK37G11/06/19941Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linacre Res, ChesterfieldSK37G11/06/19941Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linnet Clough, Mellor, MarpleSJ98U13/06/19921Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Crich Chase,AmbergateSK35L13/06/19921Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Crich Chase,AmbergateSK35L13/06/19921Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Linnet Clough, Mellor, MarpleSJ98U13/06/19921Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Clough Wood,Darley DaleSK26K15/06/19901Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Clough Wood,Darley DaleSK26K15/06/19901Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Allestree ParkSK33J12/07/19851adultvc57_irecords_extract
Clough Wood,Darley DaleSK26K16/06/19841Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Carvers Rocks NR, Hartshorne, Swadlincote (site not precise)SK32G19/08/19791Adultvc57_danes_bc_data

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