Scythris inspersella

Wingspan about 14 mm. A blackish brown moth with scattered white scales.

Gen det required.

Areas where the larval foodplants occur.

The adult moths fly during the day, especially in sunshine, visiting flowers of the foodplant. They are on the wing in July and August.

The larvae feed on Rosebay Willowherb as well as other willhowherbs, spinning the terminal shoots together.

A recently discovered species in the British Isles, having been first found in North Norfolk in 1977, though not identified until 1980, when it was found to be quite common in its favoured locality. More recently, a colony has been discovered in Yorkshire, and perhaps it will appear elsewhere, as the foodplants are quite common. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as RDB 2.

Rare or rarely recorded in Leicestershire and Rutland. The first VC55 record for this species came from Cloud Wood on 25th May 2020 when an adult was reared from a larva found in spun willowherb leaves.