Collita griseola

Collita griseola, the dingy footman, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1803. It is found in Europe and North and South-East Asia.

Collita griseola
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Subfamily:	Arctiinae
Genus:	Collita
Species:	C. griseola
Binomial name
Collita griseola (Hübner, 1803)
Synonyms
Bombyx griseola Hübner, [1803] Eilema griseolum Eilema griseola Lithosia flava Haworth, 1809 Lithosia plumbeolata Stephens, 1829 Lithosia stramineola Doubleday, 1847 Collita lilacina Moore, 1878 Lithosia cinerea Poujade, 1886 Lithosia lenta Leech, 1890 Lithosia fuscicilia Hampson, 1894 Eilema submontana Inoue, 1982 Lithosia griseola f. pallida Lempke, 1961 Lithosia griseola f. aurantiaca Lempke, 1961 Lithosia sachalinensis Matsumura, 1930

The wingspan is 32–40 mm. The moth flies from May to August depending on the location.

The larvae feed on lichen.

This species has shown a spectacular increase in abundance in Britain during the period 1968 to 2007, like a number of moth species with larva that feed on lichens and algae.[1] In Britain it was originally limited to southern fens and marshy areas, but has since spread northwards and now occupy a variety of habitats, including gardens.[1]