4.076 BF20  – Sycamore Seed Dot – Etainia decentella – (Herrich-Schäffer, 1855) Adult Micro:  CAT 2 – Can be confused with other species –       Leaf-miner:  CAT A – Recorded accepted without the leaf or a photo –       Larval Case:  C1 – Distinctive Species –       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Black – Uncertain/Unknown – Insufficient Data        purple – Leaf-miner
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Nepticulidae  >> Nepticulinae
Other Name/s: Sycamore-seed Pigmy
ID Difficulty:  Red – difficult to identify – detailed examination required, often a Gen Det and/or specimen and quality photographs are required.
Confusion Species: Etainia louisella, Stigmella trimaculella
ID pointers: One of a few Neptaculinae species that can be identified by forewing markings. Head black, forewing black with bright shiny white markings that includes a broad cross-band, white tornal and dorsal spots
Distribution:  (First record: 1996 at Cressbrook Dale )  –  (Last record: 30 June 2025 at Buxton )  –  Uncertain due to insufficient data – first record Cressbrook Dale 1996 ; Norton Lees 2019 ; VC57 Sheffield 2024. one recorded 30/6/2025 Buxton
General Comment: None
Flight Period: June /  August –  Two Generations Mine Period: Not Recorded
Mine Period Additional: The larvae mine the seed keys of Sycamore
Mine ID Difficulty:  Red Mine Leaf – Mine cannot be identified without breeding through and then adult may need to be examined by Gen Det Prep.
Mine Type/s: Not Recorded
Mine Feeding Method/s: Not Recorded
Mine Comment: None.
Moth Activity: Cathemeral   – occasionally attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Steve Orridge  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 3 February 2026 by RP ***
Wingspan: 5-8mm
Food Plant: Sycamore
Last Recorded Year: 2025
First Recorded Year: 1996
Last Recorded By – Steve Orridge
Last Recorded General Area – Buxton

Selected Images:  

Buxton 30/6/2025 – Steve Orridge© / Norton Lees June 2024 – Pete Mella©



Occurrence Distribution From All Available Data (Adult & Immature)
(click legend below to show/hide datasets)

Distribution Map for Etainia decentella

Found 4 records
    ↳ from 2026+
    ↳ 3 from 2020 - 2025
    ↳ 1 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 – Etainia decentella

⚠️ Please wait for the map to load fully – do not click the link shown.


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: Etainia decentella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


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

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Etainia decentella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Etainia decentella

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
Etainia decentella
( 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 - Etainia decentella – 4 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
Ladycroft Ave, BuxtonSK07S30/06/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton Lees, Sheffield, UKSK38L24/06/20241Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Havercroft RoadSK38L17/06/20231Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Norton LeesSK38L05/07/20191adultDanes_2019-2021

Scroll to Top