Leaf-mine: The larvae initially mining the leaves in a short, contorted gallery. As the larva develops it leaves the mine to feed externally, creating windows on the upperside of the leaves (UKMoths).

Oviposition at the leaf upperside, egg shell iridescent. Small, hook-like corridor, mostly in a vein axil. Frass in a very thick central line. The larva soon leaves the mine through an untidy hole and subsequenty feeds living freely on the leaf (Bladmineerders van Europa).

The mine is also illustrated in British leafminers.

Larva: Mining larvae uniformly greenish yellow with a darker head and prothoracic shield (Emmet, 1985a) (Bladmineerders van Europa).

The larva is illustrated in British leafminers.

Pupa: Pupation occurs in a ribbed white cocoon spun on debris. The winter is passed in this stage. (UKMoths). The cocoon is illustrated in British leafminers.

Adult: The adult is illustrated in UKMoths. The male and female genitalia are illustrated by the Lepidoptera Dissection Group.

Hosts in Britain:

Hosts elsewhere:

Time of year - larvae: July and August (UKMoths; British leafminers).

Time of year - adults: May and early June (UKMoths).

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: The moth occurs in wooded areas throughout England and southern Scotland (UKMoths) including Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, East Norfolk, East Suffolk, Herefordshire, North Essex, North Hampshire, Shropshire, South Wiltshire, Stafford, West Kent, West Norfolk, West Suffolk and Worcestershire (NBN Gateway, includes Watsonian Vice Counties having records that fall within or overlap the vice county border at 10km resolution or better). See also British leafminers distribution map.

Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland (Karsholt and van Nieukerken in Fauna Europaea).

NBN Grid map: Note that not all datasets on the NBN Gateway may be available on the map below. If you are an NBN Gateway registered user you can request access for missing datasets via the link 'Open interactive map in new window' below.

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Corsica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Danish mainland, Estonia, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Hungary, Italian mainland, Kaliningrad Region, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Portuguese mainland, Romania, Russia - Central, East and Northwest, Slovakia, Spanish mainland, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Ukraine and Switzerland (Karsholt and van Nieukerken in Fauna Europaea).

NBN interactive distribution map(s) of known host species in Great Britain and Ireland and elsewhere:

Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Unknown.