The adult Scallop Shell is unmistakable as no other UK moth has this pattern of sharp, parallel, jagged lines covering the wings. It has been found throughout D&G with 71 records since 1862. At the Scottish level it is a moth mostly found in D&G although there are quite a few recent (since 2000) records from Ayrshire and in western Scotland north of that. There are only a few eastern records.
The adult moth can be found from mid-June to mid-August. Although most records are from moth trapping a significant number are from netting an adult during the day after disturbing it from the vegetation.
The night feeding caterpillar is dull, pale brown with a thin dorsal line and a broader stripe below that. This is a woodland moth and the larvae have been found eating sallows, aspen and bilberry between late July and October before pupating just beneath the soil or woodland leaf litter.
