Technically the two groups have very different feeding habits. Coleophora larvae make small, transparent windows in the leaf as they 'mine' the leaf between both upper and lower surfaces.

Psychidae larvae 'graze' lichens and algae on more solid objects such as walls, tree trunks and fence posts etc.

Nottinghamshire Coleophoridae species list

There are approximately 109 species of Coleophoridae known from the UK, of which Nottinghamshire seems to have a species list of 47. The larval cases of some 27 Nottinghamshire species are currently illustrated.

Some recent additions to the county list have been made as a result of deliberate searches targetting specific species, but we found cases of the nationally rare Coleophora inulae completely by accident, while searching the leaves of Fleabane for the more expected Coleophora follicularis. This latter moth, almost certainly still awaits discovery in Nottinghamshire.

Not all searches are accompanied by instant success though. For instance, a single larval case of Coleophora artemisicolella took us around two weeks and many hours of searching to find, compared to just over 20 minutes to find Coleophora juncicolella.

All Coleophoridae moths known to either still occur, or have occurred in Nottinghamshire are listed below. The order of species follows that used in the 2013 Checklist of the Lepidoptera of the British Isles by D. Agassiz, S. Beavan, R. Heckford.

Unless bred through to adult from the larval stage, the identification of any adult Coleophorid is only reliably done by dissection of the genitalia. Most Coleophoridae are readily identifiable by their larval cases (most of which are characteristically distinct) and by the host plant. A few species are more liberal in their choice of foodplant, so some caution has to be used. Below are four Coleophora larval cases, all constructed by a cut section of rolled leaf. A typical Psychidae case is also illustrated, which is a basic case of silk, on to which fragments of Lichen, plant materials or insect fragments may be attached.

Coleophora females lay their eggs on the leaves, or (in the case of those with Rushes or Sedges as foodplant) the flowers or seed heads of the preferred foodplant. On hatching, the young larva either mines into the leaf initially, or constructs a portable case for protection. Cases are made from a cut out section of leaf which is then rolled into shape, but seed cases and or flower petals are used by some species.

The larva lives and feeds from within each case it constructs, often constructing a new case as growth continues, or by frequently expanding the original case. The early cases of some species are often very different to the final case produced and larval cases can vary considerably in appearance, depending on the chosen foodplant. Coleophora lineolea is perhaps the most extreme, but an excellent example of this, when feeding on either Hedge Woundwort (Stachys sylvatica) or Lambs' ear (Stachys byzantina).

The pupa of all Coleophoridae and Psychidae moths are formed within the case. Further information on Nottinghamshire's Psychidae moths can be found via the link at the bottom of this page.