The Cudweed is a moth

Moth

A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...

 of the Noctuidae

Noctuidae

The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....

 family. It is found from most of Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 (except Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 and most of the Balkan Peninsula) to Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, Transcaucasia, Mongolia

Mongolia

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...

 and Sayan

Sayan

Sayan may refer to:* Sayan Mountains, a mountain range in Siberia, Asia* Sayan, India* Sayan, Bali, a village in Bali* Sayán District, Peru* Sayán, city in Peru* Sayana, 14th century Indian commentator on the Vedas...

.
The wingspan

Wingspan

The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...

 is 38-46 mm. Adults are on wing from May to July. There is one generation per year.

The larvae feed on the flowers and leaves of Solidago virgaurea

Solidago virgaurea

Solidago virgaurea is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae. It is grown as a garden flower with many different cultivars. It flowers profusely in late summer.-Herbalism:...

, Solidago canadensis

Solidago canadensis

Solidago canadensis is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae native to North America. It is often grown as a wildflower....

, Artemisia absinthium

Artemisia absinthium

Artemisia absinthium is a species of wormwood, native to temperate regions of Eurasia and northern Africa....

and Artemisia vulgaris

Artemisia vulgaris

Artemisia vulgaris is one of several species in the genus Artemisia which have common names that include the word mugwort. This species is also occasionally known as Felon Herb, Chrysanthemum Weed, Wild Wormwood, Old uncle Henry, Sailor's Tobacco, Naughty Man, Old Man or St...

. The species overwinters in the pupal stage, in a tough earthen cocoon usually among surface debris or sometimes underground.