Hantsmoths

Nationally scarce (Nb) in scrub, hedgerows, farmland, damp heathland and mosses in parts of south-eastern England and southern England, a priority species under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan. In Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight the uncertainty of the weather in early spring has made the accurate monitoring of this species more difficult in recent years, and several attempts to re-locate it in classical localities in the New Forest have failed. However, it is still present in several locations in the New Forest, and also in the Cranmore area of the Isle of Wight. Wingspan 27-31 mm. The most likely confusion species is Early Moth Theria primaria, which see for differences. The moth may be found after dark, resting on small blackthorn bushes at the time of flowering. Larva feeds on Blackthorn, over-wintering as a pupa.