Over the winter I purchased a full set of clearwing pheromone lures and a pheromone trap from
Anglian Lepidopterist Supplies (ALS) I was keen to see more of these species having only encountered Currant Clearwing and Six-belted Clearwing previously. So with a partial day working at home in Romsey and lovely warm and sunny conditions, I studied the range, flight periods and foodplants of the 16 British species and decided to try for Large Red-belted Clearwing using the 'cul' lure. After an hour or so I popped outside and was amazed to see a clearwing in the trap, expecting it to be a Large Red-belted I was surprised when I captured the animal and realised it was a stunning fresh Red-belted Clearwing. This was an unexpected catch as the species is said to fly from mid-June and comes to the 'myo' lure. Still, I am not complaining, this was a stunning beast!
The Red-belted Clearwing is classified as Nationally Notable B but is actually probably more widespread than this status indicates. The species is found through south-east England roughly south-east of a line from the River Severn to the Wash. The larval foodplant is apple but it has also been recorded from hawthorn, pear, almond, and rowan. The species is found in open woodland, gardens and orchards.
Male Red-belted Clearwing - Romsey
