49.177 BF1071

Argyroploce arbutella

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Wingspan c.14 mm.

This distinctive species usually inhabits mountain moorland, and is found in the Highlands of Scotland, the Hebridean Islands and parts of western Ireland.

The adults are purplish-red with silvery or plumbeous striations, and occur on the wing during May and June, when they can be found flying in sheltered locations in the afternoon sunshine.

The larva feeds within spun terminal shoots of bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi), overwintering when young and feeding again in the spring.