35.071 BF736  –  Gelechiidae –  Anomologinae – Monochroa lucidella – Spike-rush Borer – (Stephens, 1834) Adult Micro:  CAT 2 – Confusion Species –       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Black – Uncertain/Unknown – Insufficient Data        day-flying – Day-flying
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Gelechiidae  >> Anomologinae
Other Name/s: Buff-marked Neb
ID Difficulty:  amber  – care required in the identification process, as confusion with similar species is likely – quality photographs required.
ID pointers: The forewings are very pointed, brownish-grey, sprinkled with ochreous-whitish, sometimes forming indistinct darker and lighter banding ; an oblong ochreous-whitish suffusion cilia, followed by a dark brownish-grey dot; a very indistinct ochreous-whitish tornal spot beneath this, and costal spot beyond it. Hind-wings are grey.
Distribution:  (Last record: 10 July 2025 at Belper )  –  Unknown/Uncertain only 2 modern day records. One recorded from Belper 10th July 2025
Flight Period: June /  July /  –  On the wing during the afternoon in June and July Moth Activity: Diurnal  – can be seen flying late afternoon around the foodplant. Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Dave Evans  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 26 July 2025 by TD ***
Wingspan: 12-14mm
Food Plant: Common Spike-rush
Last Recorded Year: 2025
Last Recorded By – Dave Evans
Last Recorded General Area – Belper

IMAGES BELOW:  Belper, Derbyshire – Dave Evans ©

 

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Distribution Map for Monochroa lucidella

Found 3 records
    ↳ 1 from After 2025
    ↳ 2 from 2020 - 2024
    ↳ 0 from Before 2020

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.

******* Choose ONLY one at a time, of either Monad, Tetrad or Hectad Distribution - each has it's own set of data. Also, the distribution maps cover ALL recorded data. *******

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.

Land-cover * shows the variety of land-cover within the VC57 area, based on the CORINE (Coordination of Information on the Environment) forty-four thematic classes of land-cover. This will show, to a greater or lesser degree, the number and variety of moths found in different land-cover types. The UK continues to operate within the Copernicus programme, with the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) providing Corine Land Cover (CLC) datasets for the UK and its territories.


NBN Atlas UK Distribution for – Monochroa lucidella

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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: Monochroa lucidella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


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


CUSUM Analysis: Monochroa lucidella
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 24 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 7 (July) 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 2025, reaching above average levels. The lowest population point occurred near 2024, 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: Monochroa lucidella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Monochroa lucidella
( 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 - Monochroa lucidella – 3 records available

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

TaxonSite NameTetradYearDateCountStageSource
Monochroa lucidellaBelperSK34N202521/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Monochroa lucidellaSandiacreSK43S202409/07/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Monochroa lucidellaSandiacreSK43S202417/07/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract

 
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