 |
| The Conformist: Sighted in Strathspey. |
A moth - named The Conformist - which has only been seen in the UK once before, has been spotted in the Highlands.
A moth so rare it has been seen only once before in the UK since 1946 has turned up in a nature reserve in Strathspey.
The insect - known as The Conformist - was discovered in a light-trap set up by visiting entomologists from England at the RSPB's Insh Marshes reserve in the Highlands.
The species has never been spotted in Scotland before and it is thought to have reached the Strathspey reserve after an arduous journey across the North Sea.
Tom Prescott, species conservation officer at Butterfly Conservation Scotland, described its discovery as "exciting".
He said: "Considering how little we've seen of this moth it's a real surprise for it to turn up in a moth trap at the Insh Marshes reserve.
"It was just my luck that the day it was spotted I was away on holiday just five miles away, and missed seeing it. I would have loved to have seen it, but it's just nice someone else got to see it.
"It's thought that it migrated from Scandanavia, possibly this spring, but it's often unclear why something like this happened, as exciting as it is.
"It just shows the amazing things that can be found in a moth trap if you leave one out. I think there will be further investigations to see what moths can be found at this particular reserve."
He said he wasn't clear why the moth was called The Conformist, as it was just one of many moths to be given an unusual name over the years.
He said: "There's also a moth called The Nonconformist. There's one called The Confused and another called The Uncertain.
"Many were named in Edwardian times, which is probably part of the reason for the unusual names."
