Aethes cnicana       Thyraylia nana
49.128 BF946  –  Tortricidae –  Tortricinae – Aethes rubigana – Burdock Straw – (Treitschke, 1830) Adult Micro:  CAT 2 – Confusion Species –       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Green –  Rare / Uncommon / Scarce   
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Tortricidae  >> Tortricinae
Other Name/s: Burdock Conch
ID Difficulty:  amber  – care required in the identification process, as confusion with similar species is likely – quality photographs required.
Confusion Species:  A.cnicana A.smeathmanniana
ID pointers: Forewing is a creamy whitish buff, blotched with yellow or pale brown with a dark reddish-brown cross-band.
Distribution:  (First record: 16 July 2016 at Kings Newton )  –  (Last record: 18 July 2024 at Cromford, Midway )  –  Another species that is very scarce and Local across the county and found on Burdock. Seems to favour southern localities.
Flight Period: June /  July /  August /  –  On the wing during June – August. Moth Activity: Nocturnal  Crepuscular   – active from dusk into the night Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Tony Davison, Dave Evans  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 7 May 2025 by RP ***
Wingspan: 15-19mm
 Food Plant: Burdock (Arctium).
Last Recorded Year: 2024
First Recorded Year: 2016
Last Recorded By – Clive Ashton & M.Williams(iRecord)
Last Recorded General Area – Cromford, Midway
IMAGES BELOW:  Kings Newton, Derbyshire – Tony Davison© and Belper – Dave Evans©

49.128 BF946 - Tortricidae - Tortricinae - Aethes rubigana
Aethes rubigana – Belper – Dave Evans
Aethes rubigana 16th July 2016 - Kings Newton - Tony Davison - Potential county first trapped by Will Soar
Aethes rubigana 16th July 2016 – Kings Newton – Tony Davison – Potential county first trapped by Will Soar
49.128 BF946 - Tortricidae - Tortricinae - Aethes rubigana
Aethes rubigana 16th July 2016 - Kings Newton - Tony Davison - Potential county first trapped by Will Soar

Aethes rubigana 16th July 2016 - Kings Newton - Tony Davison - Potential county first trapped by Will Soar Aethes rubigana 16th July 2016 - Kings Newton - Tony Davison - Potential county first trapped by Will Soar
49.128 BF946 - Aethes rubigana July14 26 49.128 BF946 - Aethes rubigana - July 2014 Belper, Derbyshire - photo Dave Evans©

Distribution Map for Aethes rubigana

Found 28 records
    ↳ 6 from After 2025
    ↳ 4 from 2020 - 2024
    ↳ 18 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 – Aethes rubigana

⚠️ 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: Aethes rubigana
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


First/Last Recorded Dates: Aethes rubigana
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: Aethes rubigana
( All data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )
Annual Growth Rate (AGR): Aethes rubigana
AGR: 0.77%   |   Total % Change: 16.7%


CUSUM Analysis: Aethes rubigana
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 14 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: Aethes rubigana
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Aethes rubigana
( 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 - Aethes rubigana – 28 records available

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

TaxonSite NameTetradYearDateCountStageSource
Aethes rubiganaupper cromford gardenSK25Y202506/08/20252adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaupper cromford gardenSK25Y202510/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaupper cromford gardenSK25Y202511/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaupper cromford gardenSK25Y202517/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaupper cromford gardenSK25Y202530/06/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaDarwin ForestSK26X202530/06/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaLower Cromford GardenSK25Y202418/07/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaMidway, Derbys.SK32A202418/07/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaBelperSK34U202218/06/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaBuxton SK, UKSK07S202129/06/20211Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaShirland - Hallfieldgate LaneSK35Z201804/07/20181adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaMain Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y201616/07/20161Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaNot givenSK21C201403/07/20141Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaJim Mart Lower NR,Press Lane,AltonSK36S201310/08/20131Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaBuxton SK, UKSK07S201322/06/20131Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaHardhurst Rd, Alvaston, DerbySK33W201026/07/20101Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaHardhurst Rd, Alvaston, DerbySK33W201010/07/20101Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaCalke Park Ticknall Lime YardsSK32R200703/08/20071adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaTicknall Limeyards,TicknallSK32R200703/08/20071Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaMain Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y200708/07/20071Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaCalke Park Ticknall Lime YardsSK32R200722/07/20071adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaTicknall Limeyards,TicknallSK32R200722/07/20071Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaMidway Rd,Midway,SwadlincoteSK32A200716/06/20071Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaRobin WoodSK32M200623/06/20061Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Aethes rubiganaMercaston Marsh, Mercaston, BrailsfordSK24R200617/06/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaRobin Wood (centre area track), TicknallSK32M200623/06/20061Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaSitches, Beeley MoorSK26Y200517/06/20051Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Aethes rubiganaIlkeston (site not precise)SK44R198104/06/19811Adultvc57_danes_bc_data

Aethes cnicana       Thyraylia nana

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