As a comment to Mark's blog posts on the wainscot which he found to have very dark coloration on further inspection, here is a Common Wainscot I caught at Lonesome farm, Benson in 2012 that was clearly some aberrant form, showing this dark coloration on the underside. Marc Botham
thanks Marc. I did a bit of digging and saw mention in the Townsend book that the darker underwings (close to impura) were more common in the second generation. My suggestion previously was that mine had ben subjected to temperature variations as the upper wings were also noticebly mottled but not in a symetrical pattern. It's a pity that it was a new tick but on the other hand it's an interesting find.
still a possibility with mine as I kept the specimen. However, I showed it round at the time and no-one suggested any inkling of doubt that it would be anything other than Common Wainscot, and before seeing the underside I wouldn't have thought twice either.
thanks Marc. I did a bit of digging and saw mention in the Townsend book that the darker underwings (close to impura) were more common in the second generation. My suggestion previously was that mine had ben subjected to temperature variations as the upper wings were also noticebly mottled but not in a symetrical pattern.
ReplyDeleteIt's a pity that it was a new tick but on the other hand it's an interesting find.
I think both moths would have been good candidates for checking by genitalia. Oddities are always worth checking as you never know what you might get.
ReplyDeletestill a possibility with mine as I kept the specimen. However, I showed it round at the time and no-one suggested any inkling of doubt that it would be anything other than Common Wainscot, and before seeing the underside I wouldn't have thought twice either.
ReplyDelete