Status and Distribution
Scarce, found very locally in Monmouthshire, West Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.
National Status:
Bradley & Fletcher no:
Provisional Map
Maps updated with all data received by January 2020.
Imago
Larva
Dissection Group
Foodplant and Larval Feeding Signs
Tilia cordata (small-leaved lime), see plant distribution map. In Europe, also reported to use Betula pendula (silver birch), Carpinus betulus (hornbeam), Corylus avellana (hazel), Fagus sylvatica (beech), Salix sp. (willows), Prunus sp. and Acer campestre (field maple).
Between flatly spun leaves eating out holes between the veins or occasionally between a spun bract and leaf.
Foodplant Map
Habitat
Deciduous woodland containing small-leaved lime.
Finding the Moth
Larva: feeds between flatly spun leaves or a leaf and a bract, overwintering from October in a folded leaf on the ground.
Adult: has been known to rest in the sunshine on a leaf of the foodplant and comes to light.
Similar Species
Distinctive palps and the dark, rich reddish-brown with the central golden-ochreous suffusion rule out any other species.
Larval Occurrence
Flight Period
Single-brooded, flying from late May to June, occasionally into early July.