Hantsmoths

Common in marshes, fens, damp meadows, woodland rides and saltmarshes throughout much of the British Isles. In Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight occurs principally in the south of the county and the north of the Island, with isolated records in the north of the county, at Sherborne St John, Fleet Pond, Eelmoor Marsh and Winnall Moor. Wingspan 10-12 mm. Very similar to C. alticolella. 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 feeds on seeds of Compact Rush, Soft-rush, Hard Rush and Saltmarsh Rush, living within a movable case.