047 Craniophora ligustri (Coronet)

73.047 Craniophora ligustri (Coronet)

fw: 17-19mm; Jun-Jul; ash (Fraxinus excelsior), privet (Ligustrum spp); local throughout GB.

Craniophora ligustri (Coronet) §7 female

ID: Quite atypical of the subfamily in lacking a basal streak in the forewing and in having a much reduced sacculus in the male genitalia (sufficiently aberrant to question its retention in the Acronictinae, in my opinion). According to Waring and Townsend the English name is derived from the appearance of a mark distal to the kidney mark which is said to resemble a crown; however, to me this species usually looks like it is ‘crowned’ due to the white marbling of the thorax - and the genus name clearly implies something going on at the head end ("cranio" - head, "phora" - to carry/bear). Forewing is dark with brownish-purple and olive-green colours. Form coronula has the white markings reduced or absent.

Variation
Dissection
Male genitalia
Female genitalia

Form ligustri
Form coronula

Form ligustri
Form coronula

§1 Cyffdy Farm, Gwynedd; 21/06/2010; form ligustri; fw 17.4mm
§2 Cyffdy Farm, Gwynedd; 22/06/2010; form coronula; male; fw 18.6mm
§3 Cyffdy Farm, Gwynedd; 24/06/2010; form ligustri
§4 Bookham Common, Surrey; 16/07/2013; form coronula; male
§5 Bookham Common, Surrey; 16/07/2013; form coronula; female
§6 Silverdale, Lancashire; 20/06/2014; form coronula
§7 Buttermere, Cumbria; 23/06/2014; form ligustri; female; fw 19.1mm
§8 Bampton Grange, Cumbria; 13/06/2017; form ligustri
§9 Foulness, Essex; 21/07/2018; male; form coronula; fw 15.6mm!
§10 Foulness, Essex; 10/08/2019; female; form ligustri; fw 17.0mm
§11 Foulness, Essex; 07/08/2021; form coronula
All images © Chris Lewis

Page published 05/04/2015 (§1-7) | §8 added 14/03/2018 | §9 added 28/04/2019 | §10 added 29/11/2019 | §11 added 06/12/2021