This moth has grey forewings with a large pale cream blotch on each tip, creamy-white hindwings, and an orange-brown body. This strong pattern, coupled with its habit of folding its wings tightly along its body and jutting its pale buff thorax forward over its head, actually creates the illusion that the moth is a dead and peeling piece of birch or oak stem.
Pupates in loose soil.
Woodland, scrub and hedgerows.
Recorded in 127 (47%) of the 270 2km squares of Huntingdonshire.
Last recorded in May 2024
Recorded date range (Adult): 03 April to 27 August
Recorded date range (Larva/Leafmine): 28 June to 28 September