Common in woodland, heathland and scrub throughout the British Isles. The distribution in Hampshire mirrors those areas in which trapping effort is concentrated, and the moth is probably more widely distributed than the records suggest; very infrequently recorded from the Isle of Wight. Wingspan 15-19 mm. Superficially resembles the far more widespread and common
Scrobipalpa costella, but
H. rhomboidella is larger and has characteristic short, black, apical line. Larva feeds on Birch and Hazel, living within a spun or rolled leaf.