Hi there,
These two turned up on Thursday night near Chesham - outside the Robinson on an adjacent white-painted door. From Page 92 in the Berkshire book, I make the first one Stenoptilia bipunctidactyla, but it looks nothing like the illustration of the same species in Sterling and Parsons.
And is the second one just a dark form of Emmelina monodactyla? The first insect was quite a bit bigger than the second.
If I'm right, then are both flying later in the year than usual - maybe due to the mild weather??
Thanks, David
Hi David, I think that these two are both likely to be Common Plume. Apart from the timing (as you say, Twin-spot Plume should not be around now, while Common Plume can be), the markings on the first individual are consistent with Common Plume, while the second is more difficult to see but probably also consistent (as well as the typical resting shape). Did you examine the lengths of the tibial spurs (difficult to see from the photos)?
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