A Forester moth feeding on ox-eye daisy at Ashlawn Cutting. © 2003 - 2024 Phil Parr.
The Forester
Adscita statices (54.002)
The Forester is a striking and distinctive day-flying moth with metallic, iridescent green or blue wings. It is on the wing during June and July. It occurs on short grasslands where the larval foodplants are present.
Ashlawn Cutting in Rugby supported Warwickshire's only remaining colony of the Forester for many years with annual sightings between the 1980's and 2005. Despite a great deal of effort by a small team of dedicated volunteers who battled to preserve the remaining grassland habitat here, it appears that the Forester is lost with the last sighting in June 2004. It is now believed to be extinct in Warwickshire. The species once graced at a handful of sites in the county with records from Clowes Wood, Wappenbury Wood, Bubbenhall Glade, Easenhall, Coleshill, Ashorne Wood, Marston Green, Hillmorton Blast Pits and Ashlawn Cutting.
The similar Cistus Forester (Adscita geryon) only occurs on calcareous grasslands where Common Rock-rose (Helianthemum nummularium) occurs.
Please note: From February 2023 all sightings records should be submitted via the iRecord Butterflies app available via the iTunes or Google Store. Find out more here: iRecord at Butterfly Conservation.