Noctuidae. About 350 species, many of which live secretively. Split into three pages. Page 1 Page 2 Page 3

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Common Name   Latin Name   Food plant(s)   Description
Slender Brindle   Apamea scolopacina   Woodland grasses   Dark olive-green, pale narrow dorsal line, greenish-white underparts, black pinacula. Southern half of Britain.
Double Lobed   Apamea ophiogramma   Reed canary-grass   Dull pink and wrinkled, small brown dorsal pinacula Widespread, but local, throughout much of England and Wales.
Marbled Minor   Oligia strigilis   Cock's-foot, reed canary-grass and other species   Pinkish-grey, fine pale dorsal line, black spiracles. Widespread and common over most of England and Wales, local in parts of Scotland.
Rufous Minor   Oligia versicolor   Cock's-foot   Dark Pinkish-grey, pale dorsal line, broad pale grey spiracular stripe. Widespread, but local, throughout England, Wales and parts of Scotland.
Tawny Marbled Minor   Oligia latruncula   Cock's-foot   Pinkish-grey to ochreous, pale dorsal line, indistinct subdorsal line, similar to Marbled Minor. Most of the British Isles.
Middle-barred Minor   Oligia fasciuncula   Various grasses   Flesh-coloured, darker dorsal line, pinkish-brown subdorsal and lateral lines. Most of Britain.
Cloaked Minor   Mesoligia furuncula   Various grasses   Flesh-coloured or yellowish, plump. Much of the British Isles.
Rosy Minor   Mesoligia literosa   Grasses   Yellowish or pinkish-brown, pale dorsal line, black spiracles. Widespread.
Common Rustic   Mesapamea secalis   Grasses   Green with dull pink subdorsal markings. Generally common.
Lesser Common Rustic   Mesapamea didyama   Grasses   Green with pink or purplish-red subdorsal markings. Much of the British Isles.
Least Minor   Photedes captiuncula   Glaucous sedge   Dull ochreous, purplish-red dorsally. Limestone areas of northern England, and in the Burren district, Ireland.
Small Dotted Buff   Photedes minima   Tufted hair-grass   Ochreous or creamy, black spiracles, indistinct dorsal line. Much of the British Isles.
Morris's Wainscot   Photedes morrisii   Tall fescue   Ochreous or cream coloured without distinct markings. Present only on the coasts of west Dorset and south-eastern Devon.
The Concolorous   Photedes extrema   Wood small-reed and purple small reed   Pale ochreous, vague purplish tinge dorsally, pale dorsal line. Damp woods and fens of Northamptonshire and Huntingdonshire.
Lyme Grass   Photedes elymi   Lyme-grass   Pale ochreous, dorsal vessel showing as dark line. Sandhills of eastern England and eastern Scotland.
Mere Wainscot   Photedes fluxa   Wood small-reed   Pale ochreous, vaguely purplish dorsally. Damp woods and fens of Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Huntingdonshire.
Small Wainscot   Photedes pygmina   Various grasses   Slender, flesh-coloured vague purplish tinge dorsally, black spiracles. Much of the British Isles.
Fenn's Wainscot   Photedes brevilinea   Common reed   Grey, broad pale-edged brownish dorsal and subdorsal stripes. Reed beds of the Norfolk Broads and on the Suffolk coast.
Dusky Sallow   Eremobia ochroleuca   Cock's-foot, couch and other grasses   Pale bluish-green, whitish-green subdorsal and spiracular stripes, small black pinacula. Southern and eastern England.
Flounced Rustic   Luperina testacea   Various grasses   Yellowish-brown, transverse darker banding. Much of the British Isles.
Sandhill Rustic   Luperina nickerliii   Various grasses   Glossy yellowish-brown, internal parts greyish and visible. Four different species, various locations.
Dumeril's Rustic   Luperina dumerlii   Grasses   Undescribed. Rare immigrant.
Scarce Arches   Luperina zollikoferi   Possibly grasses   As above.
Following four   species apparently   similar and difficult to   distinguish from each other
Large Ear   Amphipoea lucens   Grasses   Grey, maroon dorsolateral stripe, less distinct wavy line. Parts of northern and western Britain.
Saltern Ear   Amphipoea fucosa   Grasses   Grey, maroon dorsolateral stripe, less distinct wavy line. Southern half of Britain.
Crinan Ear   Amphipoea crinanensis   Grasses   Grey, maroon dorsolateral stripe, less distinct wavy line. Ireland and mainland of Scotland.
Ear Moth   Amphipoea oculea   Grasses   Grey, maroon dorsolateral stripe, less distinct wavy line. Most parts of Britain.
Rosy Rustic   Hydraecia micacea   Dock, burdock and horse-tail   Flesh-coloured, brownish transverse banding, large pinacula. Most of Britain.
The Butterbur   Hydraecia petastitis   Butterbur   Yellowish-white, dorsal vessel visible through the skin. Much of England, parts of Wales and southern Scotland.
Marsh Mallow Moth   Hydraecia osseola   Marsh-mallow   Flesh-coloured with dorsal vessel visible through the skin. Local and vulnerable restricted to the Meday Valley of Kent.
Frosted Orange   Gortyna flavago   Thistles, burdock, foxglove, hemp-agrimony and common nettle.   Pinkish-flesh-coloured, large black pinacula. Fairly common in England and Wales.
Fisher's Estuarine Moth   Gortyna borelii   Hog's fennel   Whitish with pinkish-grey transverse banding. Local and vulnerable, found on the Essex coast.
Burren Green   Calamia tridens   Blue moorgrass   Greyish-white with dull purplish banding. Burren district in Ireland.
Haworth's Minor   Celaena haworthii   Rushes and clubrush   Purplish-brown, paler dorsal and subdorsal lines. Moorland and damp places over northern Britain.
The Crescent   Calaena leucostigma   Yellow iris, great fen-sedge and similar plants.   Flesh-coloured, heavily tones with greyish-brown. Damp places in British Isles.
Bulrush Wainscot   Nonagria tyohae   Reedmace   Slender, pinkish, darker banding. Locally common in England, Wales and parts of Ireland.
Twin-spotted Wainscot   Archanara geminipuncta   Common reed   Whitish with dorsal vessel showing through the skin. South of a line between the Severn and the Wash.
Brown-veined Wainscot   Archanara dissoluta   Common reed   Flesh-coloured. Southern and eastern England north to Yorkshire.
White-mantled Wainscot   Archanara neurica   Reed   Flesh-coloured, vague paler lines. Coastal reed-beds of Suffolk.
Webb's Wainscot   Archanara sparganii   Reedmace, common club-rush and yellow iris.   Green, with internal parts visible. South-eastern coast of England.
Rush Wainscot   Archanara algae   Reedmace, common club-rush and yellow iris   Pale green, darker at the segment divisions. Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Sussex, Surrey and parts of Ireland.
Large Wainscot   Rhizedra lutosa   Common reed   Dull pinkish-white, inner parts visible. Most of British Isles.
Blair's Wainscot   Sedina buetneri   Lesser pond-sedge   Yellowish-white, purplish or maroon stripes. Resident until the destruction of its habitat in the early 1950's.
Fen Wainscot   Arenostola phragmitidis   Common reed   Yellowish-white, purplish blotchings, black pinacula. Southern and eastern England.
Brighton Wainscot   Oria musculosa   Wheat, barley and various grasses   Pale green, darker green stripes, black pinacula. Salisbury Plain of Wiltshire.
Small Rufous   Coenobia rufa   Jointed rush and soft rush   Flesh-pink, whitish underparts. Southern England and East Anglia.
Treble Lines   Charanyca trigrammica   Herbaceous plants   Shades of brown, narrow dark-edged dorsal line, series of dark-edged markings subdorsally, indistinct dark wavy line. Much of England, Ireland and Wales.
The Uncertain   Hoplodrina alsines   Various herbaceous plants   Shades of brown, dark-edged pale dorsal line, broad pale spiracular line. Much of the British Isles.
The Rustic   Hoplodrina blanda   Various herbaceous plants   Ochreous-brown, dark lines emanating from dark brown spots, paler subdorsal line, broad greyish strip beneath black spiracles. Most parts of British Isles.
Powdered Rustic   Hoplodrina superstes   Various herbaceous plants   Ochreous-brown, dark brown lines, white pinacula. Immigrant.
Vine's Rustic   Hoplodrina ambigua   Various herbaceous plants   Pale straw-ochreous, greyish shading and a series of distinct V-shaped markings. Southern England and East Anglia.
Small Mottled Willow   Spodoptera exigua   Various herbaceous plants   Green with broken darker dorsal line, pairs of white dorsal pinacula, dark-edged spiracular line. Immigrant.
Mediterranean Brocade   Spodoptera littoralis   Great variety of plants   Purplish-grey, white speckling. Tropical pest, possible immigrant.
Dark Mottled Willow   Spodoptera cilium   Grasses   Grey with ochreous stripes. Scarce immigrant.
Mottled Rustic   Caradrina morpheus   Herbaceous plants   Greyish-brown, black speckling. Much of England and Wales, local and less frequent in Scotland.
Pale Mottled Willow   Caradrina clavipalpis   Grasses   Greyish-brown, pale dorsal line, greyish spiracular stripe. Most of British Isles.
Silky Wainscot   Chilodes maritimus   Vegetable and animal matter   Dull ochreous, pinkish tinge, pale dorsal line. Southern England and East Anglia.
Marsh Moth   Athetis pallustris   Meadow-sweet and plantain   Velvety, shades of brown, pale lines, wavy pinkish-brown spiracular stripe,Lincolnshire and Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk.
Porter's Rustic   Athetis hospes   Herbaceous plants   Dark grey, almost black dorsally. Irregular vagrant.
Reddish Buff   Acosmetia caliginosa   Saw-wort   Bright green, yellowish lines, bold spiracular line. Isle of Wight.
The Anomalous   Stilbia anomola   Wavy hair-grass   Yellowish-green or chestnut brown, pale lines and broad stripe. Much of Scotland, Wales and northern and south-western England.
Rosy Marbled   Elaphria venustula   Cinquefoil, tormentil, bramble and broom in captivity   Dark reddish-brown, swollen segments 2-5, diamond-shaped markings dorsally. South-eastern England.
Small Yellow Underwing   Panemeria tenebrata   Common mouse-ear   Whitish-green, darker dorsal line, white subdorsal line. England and Wales.
Pease Blossom   Periphanes delphinii   Larkspur and monks-hood   Violet-grey, black dorsal line and streaks. Uncertain status.
Bordered Sallow   Pyrrhia umbria   Common restharrow   Shades of green, also having other colour forms, pale lines. Southern half of England.
Scarce Bordered Straw   Heliothis armigera   Geranium, marigold, carnation and tomato in captivity   Shades of green or brown, also orange or yellow, darker dorsal lines. Immigrant.
Marbled Clover   Heliothis viriplaca   Hawk's beard, clover, white campion and other plants   Green or pinkish-brown, darker dorsal line, yellowish-white subdorsal and spiracular lines. East Anglia.
Shoulder-striped Clover   Heliothis maritima   Bell heather and heather   Olive-green, darker dorsal line, yellowish-white subdorsal line and white stripe, Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.
Bordered Straw   Heliothis peltigera   Groundsel, garden marigolds and restharrow   Pale green, pink banding, yellow lines. Immigrant.
Eastern Bordered Straw   Heliothis nubigera   Tomato and cultivated plants   Reddish-brown, darker dorsal line, whitish subdorsal lines. Immigrant.
Spotted Clover   Protoschinia scutosa   Field wormwood   Green, darker lines. Scarce immigrant
Purple Marbled   Eublemma ostrina   Thistles   Yellowish-grey, dull yellow dorsal line, short setae. Scarce immigrant.
Small Marbled   Eublemma parva   Fleabane   Yellowish-green, purplish-red dorsal line. Scarce immigrant.
Marbled White Spot   Protodeltote pygarga   False-brome and purple moor-grass   Reddish-brown, dark brown dorsal line, wavy subspiracular line. Southern England and north-west Wales.
Pretty Marbled   Deltote decptoria   Grasses   Scarce immigrant.
Silver Hook   Deltote unucala   Wood-sedge   Pale green, dark grey dorsal line, yellowish-white subdorsal lines. West Wales, south-western and western Scotland.
Silver Barred   Deltote bankiana   Purple moor-grass   Darkish green, darker dorsal line, white subdorsal line. Fens of Cambridgeshire, south-western Ireland.
Spotted Sulphur   Emmelia trabealis   Field bindweed   Dark brown, darker lines, yellow subspiracular stripe. Last seen in 1960.
Pale Shoulder   Acontia lucida   Field bindweed and mallow   Reddish-brown, small dorsal hump on segment 11. Not seen.
Cream-bordered Green Pea   Earias clorana   Sallow, willow and osier   Plump, reddish-brown, broad stripe, dark brown pinacula. Eastern half of England.
Spiny Bollworm   Earis biplaga   Cotton   Undescribed. Immigrant
Egyptian Bollworm   Earias insulana   Cotton   Ochreous, greyish markings. Immigrant, can be a serious pest.
Scarce Silver-lines  

Bena bicolorana

   Oak   Yellowish-green, dorsal hump on second segment, yellowish lines. Much of England and Wales.
Green Silver-lines   Pseudoips prasinana   Oak, beech, hazel and birch   Green, heavily mottled with yellow markings. Much of England and Wales.
Oak Nycetoline   Nycteola revayana   Oak   Green, yellow segmental divisions. Southern half of Britain.
Nut-tree Tussock   Colocasia coryli   Birch, beech, hazel and field maple   Variable in colour, black dorsal strip, long thin white setae. Southern half of Britain.
Golden Twin-spot   Chrysodeixis chalcites   Chrysanthemum and other plants.   Pale yellowish-green, narrow white dorsal stripes. Very scarce immigrant.
Tunbridge Wells Gem   Chrysodeixis acuta   Abroad on tomato, honeysuckle and kidney bean.   Pale green, white-edged darker dorsl line. Very scarce immigrant.
Scar Bank Gem   Ctenoplusia limbirena       Undescribed, subtropical species, immigrant.
The Ni Moth   Trichoplusia ni   Marigold   Bluish-green, greenish-white lines, black wart above each white spiracle. Scarce immigrant.
Slender Burnished Brass   Diachrysia orichalcea   Potato and dandelion in captivity   Bright green, dark green dorsal line bordered by wavy lines, whitish setae. Rare immigrant.
Burnished Brass   Diachrysia chrysitis   Common nettle, white dead-nettle and other plants.   Green with white chevrons, white subdorsal line, white setae. Much of British Isles.
Scarce Burnished Brass   Diachrysia chryson   Hemp-agrimony   Yellowish-green, series of white broken dorsal lines, yellowish-white subdorsal line, white spiracular line. Hampshire, Berkshire, West Sussex and south-west Wales.
Dewick's Plusia   Macdunnoughia confusa   Nettle, yarrow, mayweed and other plants   Green, white dorsal lines, broad white spiracular line, black pinacula. Scarce immigrant.
Golden Plusia   Polychrysia moneta   Delphinium and monk's-hood   Plump, bright green with white dorsal lines. Much of England and Wales.
Purple-shaded Gem   Euchalcia varablis   Monk's-hood and larkspur   Green, bold yellow spiracular stripe. Unknown status.
Gold Spot   Plusia festucae   Grasses   Green, six thin yellowish-white lines dorsally. Much of the British Isles.
Lempke's Gold Spot   Plusia putnami   Yorkshire-fog and other grasses   Green, six thin yellowish-white lines, similar to above. East Anglia.
Silver Y   Autographa gamma   Various herbaceous plants   Shades of green, darker dorsal line edged with wavy line, broader subdorsal line. Frequent immigrant.
Beautiful Golden Y   Autographa pulchrina   Various herbaceous plants   Green with darker dorsal line edged by series of white lines, bold white stripe above spiracles, gingery setae. Failry common.
Plain Golden Y   Autographa jota   Various herbaceous plants   Green, darker dorsal line edged by wavy lines, yellowish subdorsal line, short setae. Much of England, Wales and parts of Ireland.
Gold Spangle   Autographa bractea   Various herbaceous plants   Green, six rows of thin wavy lines along the dorsal area, gingery setae. Midlands, northern half of England and Scotland, much of Wales and Ireland.
Stephen's Gem   Autographa bilboba   Lettuce and clover   Green with white dorsal and subdorsal stripe. North American.
Scarce Silver Y   Syngrapha interrogationis   Heather and bilberry   Green, dark dorsal line edged on each side by three wavy white lines. Most of Scotland, northern parts of England and parts of Wales.
Dark Spectacle   Abrostola triplasia   Nettle and hop   Greenish-brown, white dorsal line and dark blotches on humped 4th, 5th and 11th segments. Much of England, Wales and Ireland.
The Spectacle   Abrostola tripartita   Nettle   Olive green or green, white dorsal line, similar to above. Much of the British Isles.
Clifden Nonpareil   Catocala fraxini   Aspen   Pale greyish-brown, minute brown pinacula, humped eight segment. Immigrant.
Red Underwing   Catocala nupta   Willows, poplars and aspen   Pale grey, raised hump and brown band on segment 8. Southern half of Britain.
Rosy Underwing   Catocala electa   Willow, sallow and poplar   Grey, lighter and darker mottlings. Recorded in Britain about 6 times.
Light Crimson Underwing   Catocala promissa   Oak   Greyish-green, black markings, white dorsal pinacula. New Forest, Hampshire, Wiltshire and West Sussex.
Dark Crimson Underwing   Catocala sponsa   Oak   Brownish-grey, faint greyish dorsal line, series of reddish=brown conical subdorsal pinacula. Could still exist in Wiltshire, Sussex and Kent areas.
Oak Yellow Underwing   Catocala nymphagoga   Oak   Grey, heavily speckled, black-edged white dorsal projection on segment 8. Last recorded July 1982.
Lunar Double-stripe   Minucia lunaris   Oak   Greyish-brown, darker stripes, subspiracular stripe bold and blackish. Immigrant.
The Passenger   Dysgonia algira   Bramble, sallow and Genista   Brown, reddish-brown dorsal stripe, Immigrant.
Burent Companion   Euclidia glyphica   Bird'sfoot trefoil, clovers and trefoil   Pale brown, pale dorsal lines, darker mottlings. Southern half of England.
The Alchymist   Catephia alchymista   Sapling oaks   Pale brown or grey with small black pinacula and projecting structures dorsally. Scarce immigrant.
The Blackneck   Lygephila pastinum   Tufted vetch   Purplish-grey, covered in small black spots, narrow orange dorsal line. Southern half of England and parts of South Wales.
Scarce Blackneck   Lygephila craccae   Wood vetch   Pale brown, dull purplish dorsal stripe enclosing pale-edged dorsal line. North Cornwall and Devon, and Somerset.
Levant Blackneck   Tathorhynchus exsiccata   Lucerne   Pale reddish-brown, narrow darker dorsal and lateral lines. Tropical/subtropical.
The Herald   Scoliopteryx libatrix   Sallow, willow and aspen   Bright green, yellow segmental divisions. Most of British Isles.
Small Purple-barred   Phytometra viridaria   Common milkwort   Green, darker dorsal line, indistinct orange spot on segment 8. Much of British Isles woodland, moors and heaths.
Lesser Belle   Colobochyla salicalis   Aspen   Green, darker dorsal line, yellow segmental divisions, tiny orange-ringed spiracles. Not recorded since 1970's.
Beautiful Hook-tip   Laspeyria flexula   Lichens   Greyish-green, darker dorsal line and diamond-shaped mottlings, small black subdorsal pinacula. Southern half of England and South Wales.
Straw Dot   Rivula sericealis   Grasses   Green, dark green dorsal line, bold white subdorsal lines and yellow dorsal patch. Southern half of Britain and Ireland.
Waved Black   Parascotia fuliginaria   Fungi   Velvety brown-black, greyish dorsal lines, orange pinacula. Heaths and moorlands of Surrey, north Hampshire, Berkshire and parts of Middlesex and Worcestershire.
Beautiful Snout   Hypena crassalis   Bilberry   Bright green, yellow segmental divisions, black pinacula, black setae. Woodland species southern England and Wales.
The Snout   Hypena proboscidalis   Common nettle   Green, yellow segmental divisions, long black setae. Most of British Isles.
Bloxworth Snout   Hypena obsitilas   Common nettle   Green, darker dorsal line, yellowish-white subdorsal lines, greyish-black pinacula. South Devon
Paignton Snout   Hypena obesalis   Common nettle   Pale green, whitish spiracular line. Recorded in Britain 3 times.
Buttoned Snout   Hypena rostralis   Hop   Pale green, white or yellowish lines, greyish setae, small black pinacula. Outer suburbs of London, Surrey, Middlesex, Essex, Kent and Berkshire.
White-line Snout   Schranka taenialis   Unknown in the wild   Pinkish-brown, darker on segments 3 and 8. Southern England.
Pinion-streaked Snout   Schranka costaestrigalis   Unknown   Purplish-brown, swollen segments 4 to 7. Damp place over England, Wales and parts of western Scotland.
Marsh Oblique-barred   Hypenodes humidalis   Unknown   Brown, segments 4 to 7 swollen, prolegs absent on sixth and seventh rings. Boggy heath and moorland in Britain.
Common Fan-foot   Pechipogo strigilata   Withered oak leaves   Pale reddish-brown, vague oblique darker specklings subdorsally. Much decreased, southern Britain.
The Fan-foot   Herminia tarsipennalis   Withered oak leaves   Brown, pale ringed black pinacula. Much of England, Wales and parts of Ireland.
Jubille Fan-foot   Herminia lunalis   Withered oak leaves and other plants   Pale yellowish-brown, reddish dorsal line, small black pinacular. Recorded once in Britain.
Shaded Fan-foot   Herminia tarsicrinalis   Withered bramble leaves and others   Warm reddish-brown, darker dorsal chevrons. Resident since 1982 at a site in Suffolk.
Small Fan-foot   Herminia grisealis   Oak, alder and bramble   Light reddish-brown, darker dorsal line. Parts of England and Wales and Ireland.
Dotted Fan-foot   Macrochilo cribrumalis   Marsh grasses   Light reddish-brown, purplish lines, small pinacular. Fens and marshes of East Anglia, Essex, Kent, East Sussex and Hampshire.
Clay Fan-foot   Paracolax tristalis   Withered oak leaves and others   Dark brown, velvety pubescence and indistinct darker lines. Local, mainly found in woodlands of Sussex, Kent, Surrey and Essex.
Olive Crescent   Trisateles emortulais   Withered oak leaves and others   Reddish-brown, dull orange segmental divisions, small pinacular. Seems to have disappeared since recorded in the Chilterns and north Essex in 1976.
Mother Shipton   Callistege mi   Clovers   Whitish, fine pinkish-brown lines, broad yellowish-white spiracular stripe. Much of British Isles.
The Four-spotted   Tyta luctuosa   Bindweed   Brown, darker dorsal lines, thin pale spiracular line edged above with a grey-centred dark brown stripe. Very local recorded from Dorset, Breck district of Suffolk.