Latticed heath
Unlike most of its geometrid relatives, it readily flies in full sunshine and is easily flushed from grass on a warm afternoon.
| Where | Moorland, grassland and waste ground |
|---|---|
| Size | 20 to 25 mm wingspan |
| When | April to September |
Its wings carry a fine network of dark cross lines over a ground colour that varies from yellowish to nearly white, giving a checkered or latticed pattern on both the upper and lower wing surfaces. Wingspan runs about 20 to 25 mm.
Caterpillars feed on clovers and other low legumes such as lucerne, and the species usually produces two generations a year, flying in spring and again in late summer.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Yellow, White, Brown
Active
Day and night
To people
Harmless
Activity through the year
Often confused with
The common heath has a more mottled, less regularly netted wing pattern than the fine lattice of cross lines on the latticed heath, and males show noticeably feathered antennae.
Questions
Is the Latticed heath dangerous to people?
The Latticed heath is harmless to people.
When can you see the Latticed heath?
The Latticed heath can be seen from April to September, by day and at night.
Plate retouched from a photo by Didier Descouens, CC BY‑SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons Licence
The plate on this page is shared under the same licence as its source, CC BY-SA.
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Butterflies and moths›Geometer moths›Chiasmia
Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.