White and Brown Plume Moths.

White Plume Moth, Pterophorus pendtadactyla
Plume Moths are fascinating, I think. Their wings have 4 or 5 segments which have tiny 'feathers' attached.

They are attracted by the Convolvulus (Bindweed) in my garden, and I will often find either a white or a Brown Plume Moth about.
Usually White Plume Moths have a wingspan between 2.5-3cm, but this week I caught a little one of say, 1.5cm.

I have been wondering what the advantages would be for a Moth to have wings like these, in contrast to the more common wing of our ordinary Moths. And where do these wings stand in the long list of evolution.. A kind of "Which came first.. the plumed, and segmented, wing or the structure of a wing consisting of just the one piece. This is all playing around in my head but I just do not have the time to try and find a proper answer to all this.
I'm just hoping to wake up and find that the famous One Day has arrived. Will I be able to finish everything that I hope to do One Day?


Large White plume Moth in my kitchen in July 2009.



This is the usual view of the Wood Brown Plume Moth,. A T shaped Insect, and in fact it looks more like a stick Insect than a Moth!


The Brown Plume Moth, or Wood Brown, as it is called more properly, I believe.
I am glad that I turned back and took a photo from the other side, as I had no idea that some of the wings was visible.



It is surprising that despite their size, Plume Moths (at least in the UK/Ireland) are classified as micro moths.