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Moths

Last updated: 07 April 2008

Wales is home to four species of moth - Ashworth's Rustic, Weaver's Wave, Rosy Marsh moth and the Silurian - which are not found anywhere else in Britain.

In 1999 the government launched an ongoing National Action Campaign to safeguard important Welsh habitats for butterflies and moths and prevent any more species from joining the 13 that went extinct in the 20th century.

There are a number of ways to help distinguish between a butterfly and a moth, but as always, there are exceptions to every rule.

Moths tend to be nocturnal, but there are some species which fly in the day, and equally, some butterflies which have been known to fly at night.

Moths generally have feathery antennae, whereas butterflies have knobs at the end of theirs

With nearly 2,500 species of moths in Britain, and between 1,500 and 2,000 of those in Wales, it's not surprising that they are so varied. Moths are found wherever they can find appropriate food.

Some require particular plants, but others will eat fungi, animal litter found in bird, mammal and insect nests, and even dung.


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