A RARE moth has been seen in York city centre.

The white-spotted black micro-moth has not been seen in Britain since 2011, but experts recently took a picture of one in Museum Gardens.

It was found as part of a three-year study by students at Pennsylvania University working on placement at Shandy Hall, Coxwold, which includes comparing the populations of moths in rural North Yorkshire to the city centre of York.

Stuart Ogilvy, assistant curator of natural sciences at York Museums Trust, said: “We are made up to find a species living in our midst which has not been recorded in Yorkshire before. The Gardens team have been working hard to make the space as friendly to wildlife as possible and it is great to welcome in experts to help us to catalogue the increasing number of creatures which call the gardens home.”