4.1 BF35  – Barred Birch Dot – Ectoedemia minimella – (Zetterstedt, 1839) Adult Micro:  CAT 4 – Dissection required – Gen-Det-Reqd       Leaf-miner:  CAT L – The leaf or a Photo required – reared and possibly dissected       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: Broken-barred Pigmy
ID Difficulty:  Red – difficult to identify – detailed examination required, often a Gen Det and/or specimen and quality photographs are required.
Confusion Species: Ectoedemia occultella
ID pointers: A small blackish-grey colour with a central whitish band at halfway running vertically. Also whitish eye-caps
Distribution:  (First record: 12 July 2006 at Carr Wood, Ogston )  –  (Last record: 26 October 2025 at Markham Vale )  –  Uncertain in the county due to insufficient data – Nine records between 2006 and 2024; 10th record from Belper 2/9/2025(leaf mine), and further Leaf mines discovered at Markham Vale 26/10/ 2025.
General Comment: Notes by Christian Heintzen on image dated 25/10/2025 – on Birch (Betula) > contorted gallery (a) becomes part of a blotch between two lateral veins filled with dispersed frass (b)
Flight Period: May /  June –  One generation May-June Mine Period:  July /  August /  September
Mine Period Additional: None.
Mine ID Difficulty:  Amber Mine Leaf – Care required in ID process as confusion with similar leaf mines. Quality photos of the mine required.
Mine Type/s:  Gallery, Blotch
Mine Feeding Method/s:  N/A
Mine Comment: The larvae mine the leaves of Birch, beginning as a contorted gallery, when the young larva can be seen to have dark plates on each segment. These plates are later lost and the gallery becomes a blotch with scattered frass.
Moth Activity: Cathemeral   – occasionally attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Dave Evans (leaf mine), Mark Radford (leaf mine), Christian Heintzen (leaf mine)  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 8 December 2025 by TD ***
Wingspan: 5-6mm
Food Plant: Birch and Hazel
Last Recorded Year: 2025
First Recorded Year: 2006
Last Recorded By – Mark Radford
Last Recorded General Area – Markham Vale

Selected Images:  

Belper – Sept 2025 Dave Evans© / Markham Vale 26/10/2025 – Mark Radford© / Glossop 25/10/2025 Christian Heintzen©



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

Distribution Map for Ectoedemia minimella

Found 12 records
    ↳ from 2026+
    ↳ 3 from 2020 - 2025
    ↳ 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

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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 – Ectoedemia minimella

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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: Ectoedemia minimella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
No data returned from the database.

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


First/Last Recorded Dates: Ectoedemia minimella
Adult-only & Anything [Larvae, Pupae, Adult, Mines]

Shading shows moth presence between dates

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Recordings By Year: Ectoedemia minimella
( All data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
Annual Growth Rate (AGR): Ectoedemia minimella
AGR: -0.62%   |   Total % Change: -11.1%

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Ectoedemia minimella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Ectoedemia minimella

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
Ectoedemia minimella
( 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 - Ectoedemia minimella – 12 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
Markham Vale North TipSK47L26/10/20251minevc57_irecords_extract
Glossop, Shawmoor PlantationSK09F25/10/20251Leaf-minevc57_irecords_extract
DWT Wyver LaneSK34P02/09/20252mine (tenantvc57_irecords_extract
Ladybower ResrSK18U03/09/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Howden ResrSK19S25/08/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Slippery Stones,Upper DerwentSK19S25/08/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Howden ResrSK19L25/08/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Padley Gorge, Nether PadleySK27P19/08/20101Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
HopeSK18R07/10/20091Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Monsall Trail, BuxtonSK17L14/09/20081Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Shallcross Wood, Goyt Valley, Whaley BridgeSK07E26/09/20061Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data
Ogston Carr Wood,nr Ogston ResSK35U12/07/20062Larval Minevc57_danes_bc_data

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