Coleophora idaeella

Checklist Number
37.023 [B&F: 0505]

Verification
Record requires retention of specimen until confirmed, and may require dissection. Consult with CMR if unsure

Classification

Family:Coleophoridae
Subfamily:Coleophorinae
Genus:Coleophora
Species:idaeella
Authority:Hofmann, 1869

Vulnerable (proposed as a future Red Data Book species) in pine woodland and Calluna heathland in the eastern Highlands of Scotland, from Kincardineshire to east Inverness-shire (MBGBI Vol 3). Unlikely to be recorded in Hampshire or on the Isle of Wight. Wingspan male 13-15 mm, female 11.5-13.5 mm. Like many of the Coleophora, imagines are virtually impossible to identify without recourse to dissection, and the larvae, which live in cases of characteristic form and which can sometimes be found on the foodplant, may be easier to identify by comparison against a reference collection. Larva mines leaves of Cowberry, living within a movable case, over-wintering twice.