The Jersey Mocha (Cyclophora ruficilaria) is a species of moth in the Geometridae family.
Description[]
This species is very similar to the Blair's Mocha, False Mocha and Maiden's Blush, and in worn specimens needs dissection. This species is a medium sized geometrid, and is straw to dark brown in colour, often with a white dot on each wing, and sometimes with a crossline. This species is often very speckled.
Blair's Mocha is often a more orange colour, with distinctively hooked tips to the forewings. Maiden's Blush has an reddish tint to the forewings, as well as often grey marks near the outer edge (but these aren't always present). False Mocha is the most likely confusion species, but is generally more strongly marked, with distinct dots on the cross line (though these are present in the Jersey Mocha). Specimens which look intermeadiate between the two should be dissected for confirmation.
Range[]
While it is now resident in Cornwall and the Channel Islands, this species is still a rare vagrant to most of the south coast, and rare where it is resident. Apparently becoming a more frequent immigrant, though still rare. In some locatiosn in the southwest, it appears this species is breeding.
Larvae[]
This species feeds on Oak, which gives it the alternative name Large Oak Mocha.