Coleophoridae

37.053 Birch Pistol Case-bearer Coleophora betulella Heinemann, [1876]

Local

Similar species:

Forewing: 5 to 7mm

Habitats: Birch woodland rides and margins, heathland birch stands.

Habits: The moth flies from dusk onwards and is occasionally attracted to light.

Foodplant: The larva feeds on birches. The young larva mines the leaves and makes a small hole on the underside where it ejects frass. When this has built up it enters it and walks away with this new dotted, grey case. It continues feeding and constructing its case until October when it overwinters next to a bud on a twig. In late April it may feed on the catkins, graze out windows from the under surface of the leaves or feed along the leaf margins. The final matt black, pistol case is about 7mm long, m.o. at a 30° to 45° angle. By early June it has pupated on a leaf or less often a twig.

On the European mainland it has been recorded feeding on both Silver Birch and Downy Birch.