Common Quaker

Fascinating facts about the Common Quaker

• The common Quaker's forewings display a striking range of colours, shifting from muted grey tones to a warm orangey brown. In some individuals the ground colour even carries a broad dark band that cuts across the wing, adding further contrast. This variability is a hallmark of the species, making each moth appear distinct from the next. Such colour changes are linked to the many forms described by lepidopterists, from the pale ab. pallida to the darker obliqua.
• Two oversized stigmata dominate each wing of the common Quaker, each outlined by a thin pale border and paired with a subterminal line of the same colour. These markings are the most distinctive features used to identify the moth in the field. Occasionally the upper stigmata fuse, a condition noted in the form junctus where they become coherent across all colour variants. In the rarer ab.
• Adults of the common Quaker take to the night skies in March and April, a period when they are most active. They are strongly attracted to artificial light sources and to sugary baits, behaviours that aid collectors in locating them. While on the wing they feed on flower nectar, favouring the fluffy catkins of sallow and the delicate blossoms of blackthorn. This nocturnal feeding supports their energy needs for reproduction before they later overwinter as pupae.
• Adult common Quakers feed on flower nectar, favouring the fluffy catkins of sallow and the delicate blossoms of blackthorn. They are active at night during March and April, a period when they also come to artificial lights and sugary baits.
• The common Quaker is found throughout the whole of Europe, extending its range into Turkey, the Palestine region, Transcaucasia, Russia and eastern Siberia. Its widespread distribution means it inhabits a variety of habitats across this broad area. Although the flight season given for the species refers to the British Isles, the timing of its appearance can differ in other parts of its range.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Common Quaker

In the whispered hours of dusk, the Common Quaker moth stirs, its delicate wings unfolding like pale petals as it takes to the evening air. With a gentle, lapping flight, it navigates the shadowy realms of woodland and garden, drawn to the sweet, heady scent of blooming flowers. As it flits, its soft grey plumage seems to absorb and reflect the fading light, rendering this unassuming creature all but invisible, a phantom of the twilight world.

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