Six-belted Clearwing Moth
The presence of salt and lime rich soils arising from waste disposal activities of the former chemical industries provide ideal conditions for both the Dingy Skipper Butterfly and Six-belted Clearwing Moth.
The Six-belted Clearwing is a day-flying moth which is found at Ashton’s Flash, where there is abundant Bird’s Foot Trefoil. This wasp-mimicking moth can be found between June and August, with peak activity around early July.
They are small (15-21mm wingspan) and difficult to spot, but counts of 200 – 250 moths have been found at Ashton’s Flash, by far the largest population of this species in Cheshire and probably North West England.