32.034 Agonopterix cnicella (Sea-holly Brown)
ws: 18-22mm; Jun-Jul; sea-holly (Eryngium maritimum); NS-A - coastal sandhills in England
Agonopterix cnicella §1 male
ID: Forewing with more than one white dot in disc; forewing base irrorate with white scales.
It was the straight white basal line extending to the costa that led me to think §1 might be something other than A.heracliana. In both species there are alternating black and pale blotches along the costal margin which renders this margin somewhat distinct from the rest of the forerwing; in A.heracliana the whitish basal line is less white and curves subcostally around the dorsal edge of this costal margin.
Male genitalia: The cuiller has a narrow stalk in its basal ¼, then broadens before tapering to a bluntly rounded apex.
Female genitalia:
It was the straight white basal line extending to the costa that led me to think §1 might be something other than A.heracliana. In both species there are alternating black and pale blotches along the costal margin which renders this margin somewhat distinct from the rest of the forerwing; in A.heracliana the whitish basal line is less white and curves subcostally around the dorsal edge of this costal margin.
Male genitalia: The cuiller has a narrow stalk in its basal ¼, then broadens before tapering to a bluntly rounded apex.
Female genitalia:
§1 St Mary's, Isles of Scilly; 27/09/2023; male; fw 9.5mm
All images © Chris Lewis
All images © Chris Lewis
Page published 15/10/2023 (§1)
