Striped Lychnis ?

[Gruditch]

Can anyone confirm this as a early instar Striped Lychnis larvae.

Regards Guditch

[ChrisC]

Hi Gruditch,
assuming it was on verbascum it could very well be, I compared yours to the striped lychnis on UKLeps website, but unfortunately it doesn't show an early instar Mullein to compare it to. so i can neither confirm nor deny but like i say it did look similar
from the Hants moths website assuming you haven't read it already "Nationally scarce, and a priority species under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan, on calcareous grassland and roadside verges. Found throughout much of the chalk outcrop of central Hampshire, extending from the South Downs of West Sussex virtually to the border with Wiltshire. It is also breeding in Oxfordshire, Berkshire and in small scattered sites over a wide area in south Buckinghamshire. Hampshire is an important national stronghold for the species, and in 2000 the moth was discovered to have colonised the recently re-seeded extension of the Magdalen Hill Down Reserve near Winchester."

Chris

[Gruditch]

Cheers Chris, I'm sure it is too, but I can't find an early instar pic anywhere.

Regards Gruditch

[Nigel P]

Hi Gruditch,

The ID looks good to me as well. Scroll down this link to Striped Lychnis:
http://www.ukleps.org/CommNamesAlphabetical.html

Also page 2 of this report:
http://upperthames-butterflies.org.uk/R ... _PHall.pdf

N

Edit: Also it's getting quite late for Mullein larvae and to find an early instar of one now would be unusual.

[Gruditch]

Yep that's it in the second image.

We just checked out another site of extensive Dark Mullein. We found half a dozen more larva, some are quite large already. There was even a late Mullein Moth larva, just to help confirm the differences in ID.

Regards Gruditch