73.282 BF2170

Varied Coronet Hadena compta

([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)

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Wingspan 25-30 mm.

An adventive colonist, being relatively unknown in the British Isles until the late 1940's, when it started to appear in numbers in the south-east. Since then it has spread rapidly and now can be found as far north as Lincolnshire.

The main foodplant is sweet william (Dianthus barbatus), and as a result it is often common in gardens, but it also feeds on bladder campion (Silene vulgaris), in both cases consuming the seeds.

The main flight period is from June to July, when the species comes to light.