70.156 BF1852

Brindled Pug Eupithecia abbreviata

Stephens, 1831

Wingspan 19-22 mm.

An early spring species, and one of the first Pugs of the season to be regularly encountered, it flies in one generation in April and May.

Like several other species, in addition to the typical form there is a fairly common melanic form, ab. hirschkei, devoid of many markings.

It inhabits deciduous woodland, and is fairly common in much of Britain, except the far north of Scotland.

The larvae feed on oak (Quercus) and hawthorn (Crataegus).