Variability

Two July Highflyers, Hydriomena furcata.  Jubilee Country Park, 6 July 2012.

One of the tricky parts about identifying moths is that some of them are very variable. We saw these two moths at Jubilee Country Park, and they are both the same species.

The one on the left is what you might normally expect to see. The green and brown patterning can vary quite a bit, but the shape and general impression stay the same. On the right is an all-dark variant, with just a tiny hint of green here and there if you see it close up.

You can still see the shape of the wings, and the darker stripes have the same shape and position.  But it takes an expert to look at these and know at once that they are the same.

And next time, I'll show three moths that look the same, but are not.