Red List: Least Concern (LC). GB Status: Common.

Identification

Usually distinctive.

Recording Method

Most records refer to larvae found on the foodplant. Adult only occasionally attracted to light.

Life cycle

One generation. Overwinters as a pupa, sometimes for several years. Larvae late May to July. Pupates underground.

Larval foodplants

Wild and cultivated mulleins, figworts and buddleias.

Habitat

Rough ground, grassland, roadside verges, parks, gardens and coastal shingle.

History

The first record for D&G was around 50 larvae feeding on Verbascum near Auchencairn (VC73) on 25 June 2023. Further larval sightings were recorded at Kirkandrews (VC73) and Dumfries (VC72) in 2024 and then at Cally Gardens near Gatehouse (VC73) in 2025.