Food Plant: Parietaria judaica (Pellitory-of-the-wall)

Pupa: Within a white silk cocoon, beneath a turned down leaf edge

Mine: late May -June, October-January

Notes: The mines are found most abundantly in shaded situations. The mines found on the UK mainland in the Summer are not numerous. The mine usually starts in the lower part of the leaf and then broadens out towards the tip. The mine appears whitish on plants growing in the shade (and are very obvious as pale patches on usually the larger leaved examples of the plant), but more grey or brown in brighter habitats. The mine is lined with silk strands. After the first discovery of a moth in Dorset in 2001, Rich Austin and Peter Costen discovered colonies in Guernsey in 2002. It is now found in southern coastal regions of the UK and inland. Mine on Parietaria judaica, showing how larvae eject the frass from their mine. This usually drops off in the field, but here, in captivity it has remained attached.

Data: 20.viii.2023, Cowley Road, Oxfordshire, VC23

Image:© Will Langdon