The Waved Black was discovered as a British species in London, where it had evidently adapted to feeding on the fungi growing on rotting timbers in cellars and other dark places. For many years it was regarded as a London speciality as it exploited this habitat; more recently, damp timbers have become a thing of the past and the moth has had to revert to its natural habit of feeding on fungi under fallen logs and other timber. There are no Hertfordshire reports until 1954, and again in 1957, at Arkley, taken by T. G. Howarth and reported in de Worms (1966). Later, Bell (1977) in his final review of the county's macrolepidoptera, records one taken by N. E. Gammon 'lurking in an old greenhouse' on 18th May 1975. Regrettably, in spite of believing this to be a new species to the Hertfordshire fauna he omitted to say where in the county Mr Gammon had made this important discovery; it was probably in Hemel Hempstead, where Gammon resided. A published record for Whetstone, on 16th July 1964, relates to Middlesex, not Hertfordshire. There are no more reports until the mid-1980s when it was again found in the south of the county and there are then occasional records from the same general area for the next few years until the mid-1990s when suddenly adults started to appear in light traps at new sites across the county, with a drastic rise in numbers during 2000. It has been suggested that fungal infestations of the timber left lying after the October 1987 hurricane might, by the mid-1990s, have achieved optimum conditions for the larvae of the moth to feed. This would not be unexpected for a strictly saproxylic species; its numbers may be expected to decline then rise again over the coming years.
For Middlesex ... at the end of the nineteenth century the moth was supposedly common in 'East London', which may or may not have included Middlesex. The larvae feed on fungi on rotting timber. They became extremely rare after the turn of the twentieth century and remained so until the turn of the next - with year 2000 generating several surprise records. It is currently an expected species in woodlands where dead logs are permitted to remain and decay.
Retained Specimen / Photograph will be Required.
Recorded in 24 (59%) of 41 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1940. Last Recorded in 2023. Additional Stats
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