62.005 BF1426  –  Pyralidae –  Galleriinae – Achroia grisella – Lesser Wax Moth – (Fabricius, 1794) Adult Micro:  CAT 1 – Distinctive species unlikely to be confused with others –       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Blue –  Generally Common / Widespread   
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Pyralidae  >> Galleriinae
ID Difficulty:  green  – easy to identify, generally distinctive and unlikely to be confused with other species.
ID pointers: Distinctive oval shaped at rest. Female larger than male. Head a golden yellow. Overall pale shining greyish yellow-brown to forewings, otherwise clean and unmarked.
Distribution:  Widely distributed and locally common across the county. On wax in bee hives.
General Comment: None
Flight Period: June /  July /  August –  On the wing during June – August. Moth Activity: Nocturnal   – occasionally attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Paul Buxton  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 2 October 2025 by RP ***
Wingspan: 16-24mm
Food Plant: Bee-hives.
Specific Recorded History Dates for Common [Blue code Blue-coded] moths is not displayed/updated in this tab. However, all verified records for this moth are listed in the RECORDS tab below.

Selected Images:  Long Eaton, Derbyshire – Paul Buxton©



Distribution Map for Achroia grisella

Found 19 records
    ↳ from 2026+
    ↳ 14 from 2020 - 2025
    ↳ 5 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 – Achroia grisella

⚠️ 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: Achroia grisella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


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

Hectad (10kmx10km) Coverage: Achroia grisella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Achroia grisella
( 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 2020-2026.

Records Behind the Map and Charts - Achroia grisella – 19 records available

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

Site NameTetradDateCountStageSource
BelperSK34N25/08/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Belper, DerbyshireSK34N15/08/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Derby DESK33I14/08/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Derby DESK33I18/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Midway, Derbys.SK32A30/06/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
upper cromford gardenSK25Y19/06/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Markham Vale South TipSK47K26/06/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P21/06/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P21/06/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Allestree, DerbySK33P10/10/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Staveley DerbyshireSK47H05/09/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Woodland AveSK43R02/07/20211adultvc57_irecords_extract
Woodland AveSK43R08/04/20211adultvc57_irecords_extract
Woodland AveSK43R29/07/20201adultvc57_irecords_extract
Main Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y07/10/20131Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Rose Av,ClowneSK57D09/08/20101Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Bristol Rd,IlkestonSK44R06/10/20091Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Bristol Rd,IlkestonSK44R07/09/20091Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Shardlow Hall, Shardlow, DerbySK43F28/10/19712Larvaevc57_danes_bc_data

Scroll to Top