Pine Shoot Moth - Rhyacionia buoliana

Wingspan 16-24 mm. Attractive moth which is a light brick-red streaked with paler colours.

Pine woodland, coniferous woodland, plantations and nurseries.

The adults fly between June and August, when they can be attracted to light, though they are sluggish if disturbed in the daytime.

This species can be a pest in Pine plantations due to the larval habit of burrowing into the needles and feeding inside developing buds.

Widely but locally distributed in England and Wales. In the Butterfly Conservation’s Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as local.

Fairly frequent but not common in Leicestershire & Rutland. L&R Moth Group status = B (scarce resident or restricted distribution or regular migrant)