The discovery of Elophila rivulalis, a member of the ‘China Mark’ group of Crambid moths in 2017, at a site in Leixlip, Co. Kildare, was reported on the Moths Ireland website here (63.1145 Elophila rivulalis – New to Ireland – MothsIreland). The find was especially notable, as the moth is yet to be recorded in Britain.
On Monday 15th July 2024, I went from my home in Ennis Co. Clare to the nearby nature reserve at Dromore Wood, a mosaic of woods and lakes, to look for shore flies. There were significant numbers of small whitish moths flying very low down over the marl, in between the sparse horsetails and water plantain of the lake shore, adjacent to the bridge across to Rabbit Island. I assumed these would be Ringed, or Beautiful China Mark (Parapoynx stratiolata, or Nymphula nitidulata), both of which are regulars in my moth trap at this time of year, and I took a couple of photographs only as an afterthought.
Reviewing the photographs later, it became clear that the moth was, in fact, Elophila rivulalis. A consultation with Eamonn O’Donnell of Moths Ireland revealed that Dromore Wood would be just our second site for this species. The point was well made that the distance from the Leixlip site, which is currently under threat, greatly reduces the likelihood of the moth’s presence in Ireland being the result of a recent introduction, so more sites can be expected to be found over time.
I returned to Dromore Wood on Saturday 20th July 2024 and collected a female specimen for our National Collection.
Nick Larter, Ennis, Co. Clare, July 2024