Schoenobius gigantella       Donacaula mucronella
63.121 BF1329  –  Crambidae –  Schoenobiinae – Donacaula forficella – Pale Water-veneer – (Thunberg, 1794) Adult Micro:  CAT 1 – Distinctive Species –       PDF Icon – click for General Verification Guidelines  |   PDF Icon – click for Specific Verification Guidelines
Green –  Rare / Uncommon / Scarce   
Taxonomy:   Micro   >>  Crambidae  >> Schoenobiinae
ID Difficulty:  green  – easy to identify, generally distinctive and unlikely to be confused with other species.
ID pointers: Male forewing is a pale straw yellow with a black dot at around two-thirds. The female is usually larger than the male. There is a brownish longitudinal streak that runs below the costa and a dark subapical streak, curving to meet the forewing apex.
Distribution:  (Last record: 12 June 2024 at Long Eaton )  –  According to the 1986 publication of Micro Moths in Derbyshire by Harrison and Sterling, this species was described as very rare, with evidence that it was hanging on in southern wetlands. Only appears to be a handful of records, with two in the 1800’s and a record in 1973 & 1981. This one on 27/6/2005 maybe the first since 1981.
Flight Period: May /  June /  July /  –  Single brooded and on the wing from May – July. Moth Activity: Nocturnal   – and is attracted to light Photographed: Yes –  Photographed By: Will Soar  © All Rights Reserved
*** Last updated on 21 June 2025 by TD ***
Wingspan: 24-32mm
 Food Plant: Common Reed Phragmites australis
Last Recorded Year: 2024
Last Recorded By – Marion Bryce
Last Recorded General Area – Long Eaton
IMAGES BELOW:  Kings Newton, Derbyshire – Image by Will Soar©

63.121 BF1329 - Crambidae - Schoenobiidae - Donacaula forficella
Donacaula forficella – King’s Newton – Will Soar
63.121 BF1329 - Crambidae - Schoenobiidae - Donacaula forficella

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Distribution Map for Donacaula forficella

Found 30 records
    ↳ 2 from After 2025
    ↳ 12 from 2020 - 2024
    ↳ 16 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 – Donacaula forficella

⚠️ 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: Donacaula forficella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

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


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


CUSUM Analysis: Donacaula forficella
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 12 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 2016, reaching above average levels. The lowest population point occurred near 2014, 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: Donacaula forficella
( data includes both Larvae and Adult Stages )

Flight Periods – Indicative –vs– Recorded Data
Donacaula forficella
( 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 - Donacaula forficella – 30 records available

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

TaxonSite NameTetradYearDateCountStageSource
Donacaula forficellaBelperSK34U202510/07/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaStonebroom.SK45E202530/05/20251adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaSandiacre GardenSK43T202420/07/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWest Park Fox Covert LNRSK43W202412/06/20241adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodland AveSK43R202307/07/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaStaveley DerbyshireSK47H202311/06/20231adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodland AveSK43R202223/08/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodland AveSK43R202216/07/20221Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaLong Eaton , Wensleydale RoadSK43R202216/06/20221adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaNot givenSK43W202109/07/20211Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodland AveSK43R202102/07/20212adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaFindern, Derbyshire, DEAZSK33A202119/07/20211adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodland AveSK43R202024/06/20201adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWood Lane, Newhall, SwadlincoteSK22V202026/06/20201AdultDanes_2019-2021
Donacaula forficellaLang Rd, Alvaston, DerbySK33R201924/07/20191adultDanes_2019-2021
Donacaula forficellaToton Fields LNRSK43X201801/09/20181adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodhouse Wash lands NRSK48H201618/08/20163Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaWoodhouse WashlandsSK48H201618/08/20163Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaTrent LockSK43V201616/07/20162not recordedvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaBackgarden MarehaySK34Z201425/07/20141adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaDrakelow NR (Minton's Lagoon), Burton on TrentSK22F201329/06/20131Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaMain Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y201225/07/20121Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaMain St,Kings Newton,MelbourneSK32Y201225/07/20121Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaDuffield Rd, Allestree, DerbySK34K201226/07/20121Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaTicknall Limeyards, Calke ParkSK32R200517/06/20051Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaMain Street, Kings NewtonSK32Y200527/06/20051Adultvc57_irecords_extract
Donacaula forficellaMain St,Kings Newton,MelbourneSK32Y200527/06/20051Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaTicknall Limeyards,TicknallSK32R200517/06/20051Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaMidway Rd,Midway,SwadlincoteSK32A200421/07/20041Adultvc57_danes_bc_data
Donacaula forficellaWilmot St, Sawley, Long EatonSK43R199729/07/19971Adultvc57_danes_bc_data

Schoenobius gigantella       Donacaula mucronella

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