Phyllonorycter geniculella

Phyllonorycter geniculella

Alternative names
Sycamore Leaf-miner
Sycamore Midget
Description

Phyllonorycter geniculella is a small moth with a wingspan of 8 mm. It is a beautiful but tiny species, having a white base colour with rufous, darker-edged chevrons, the first of which often 'extrudes' into the next.  The larva mines the leaves of Sycamore. The mine is rounded, between the veins.

Identification difficulty

Adult Leafmine

Habitat

It can be found resting on the trunks of Sycamore, but being so small can be difficult to find.

When to see it

The moths are on the wing in May and August.

Life History

The larva feeds in a leaf mine in a Sycamore leaf, sometimes causing it to curl at the edge.

UK Status

It is a common species over much of Britain. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as common.

VC55 Status

Increasingly well recorded in Leicestershire and Rutland, mainly from leafmines on Sycamore.

Reference
15.086 BF364

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2025+ | 2020-2024 | pre-2020

UK Map

Additional images

No additional images available for this species.

All NatureSpot records