Description: Wingspan 16-20 mm. Forewings pale whitish brown, becoming darker along the costa and outer margin. The crosslines are faint and difficult to see in all but fresh specimens. There is a small discal spot near the costal margin and a fine broken black line along the outer margin of the forewing. The hindwings pale white, becoming suffused with brown towards the tornal area. End of June to late July. Skinner gives June and early July as the normal flight period in Britain.

World Distribution: Widespread throughout Europe east to central Asia.

Irish Distribution: This species was generally thought to be scarce and local with only a few genuine records from Cos. Antrim and Armagh back in the early 1970s. In 1998 it was recorded from Tullyreagh Bridge along the Colebrooke River in Fermanagh. Since then it has been taken at several other sites in south Fermanagh at Gortmaconnell Rock, Crom Estate and Cookes Bridge. The only other recent record outside this county is from the Peatlands Park, Armagh in 2000.

Ecology: This species inhabits grassy fields, roadside banks and coastal saltmarshes. The larvae feed from July to September on Field Scabious Knautia arvensis, hawk's-beards Crepis spp. and Ragwort Senecio jacobaea. It overwinters as a pupa.

Key Identification Features:

• Dark suffusion along the costa and outer margin of the forewing
• Black discal spot and broken black line along the outer margin
• Pale hindwings

Distribution Map from NBN: Eupithecia subumbrata at National Biodiversity Network mapping facility, data for UK.

iNaturalist: Eupithecia subumbrata at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.