Davey, P., 2009: A species confined to the coastal counties in southern England, the larva feeding on terrestrial mosses (Musci spp.). In Dorset, the moth occupies two biotypes. The first is on sandy soils across the Poole Basin, where it is locally abundant. The second is the coastal belt as far west as, and including, Chesil Beach, where it is usually at low density; one notable exception is the chalk cliffs to the east of Studland where it is abundant. A host moss, Dicranum scoparium, discovered by Dr P Sterling to be the principle foodplant on the heaths of south-east Dorset, is common on acid soils and in leached grassland on chalk summits within the county: Merritown Heath, many larvae on Dicranum scoparium on 8 May 1998 (Dr P Sterling).