45.037 BF1523

Dusky Plume Oidaematophorus lithodactyla

(Treitschke, 1833)

Wingspan 26-29 mm.

A reasonably common species in the southern half of England, becoming gradually scarcer in the north.

The adult moths have a greyish forewing with an angled darker marking just inside the cleft. Members of the genus Oidaematophorus have noticeable scale tufts on the tibia.

Flying in July and August, it occupies roadside verges and grassland habitats.

The larvae feed on common fleabane (Pulicaria dysenterica) or ploughman's spikenard (Inula conyza), initially in the shoots, but later on the leaves, which become riddled with holes.