Stigmella perpygmaeella
Least Hawthorn Dot

Wingspan c. 5mm.

Reasonably well-distributed throughout Britain, the larvae of this species feed on hawthorn (Crataegus), where they form a compact twisting gallery that usually becomes a 'false blotch' - where the gallery twists back on itself and touches the sides of the earlier part of the gallery.

There are two generations, with larvae to be found in July and October, and adults on the wing in May and again in August. As is usual with the Nepticulidae, the autumn mines are generally more plentiful.

Adult moths are unicolorous, the forewings being greyish to dark brown, with a slight bronzy or purplish sheen. The head is yellow or orange and the eyecaps creamy-white.

See also:
Leafmine (British Leaf Mining Fauna)
Leafmine (De bladmineerders van Nederland)