Food Plant: Eriophorum angustifolium (Cotton-grass)

Mine: September-May

Notes: Mines the stem and lower leaf in the autumn, then overwinters in the mine. In Spring the leaf is mined, initially in the reddish basal part then into the green part of the leaf. The mine is from 20-65mm long. The mine is hidden and frass filled. It then pupates in a cocoon in detritus or in the leaf. The habitat is damp moors, fens and salt marshes. Adults reared and larvae DNA barcoded to confirm ID. Monochroa suffusella habitat at Westhay Moor mire restoration area, Somerset. Larvae were found in mines on larger Cotton Grass plants growing on the drier hummocks along the edge of wet ditches. This may reflect a preference on the part of the moth, or simply that these plants are much easier to search, with more of the base of the leaves visible.

Data: 07.i.2022, Westhay Moor, Somerset, VC6

Image:© Will Langdon