Moth Of The Week

Moth of the Week

Antler Moth

Cerapteryx graminis

The antler moth is a part of the family Noctuidae. It was first described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus. This moth gets its name from the antler shaped mark in its forewings.

Description This moth species has brown forewings, with a “basal streak” of white that branches out. This mark may vary in size per moth. The forewings show a mirrored pattern of the base brown broken up by the branches and a few spots and lines of lighter brown. The forewing also may or may not have black streaks. The hindwing is dark brown with a white fringe.

Males are smaller than females with fluffier antennae.

Male Wingspan: 27 - 32mm (≈1.06 - 1.26in)

Female Wingspan: 35 - 39mm (≈1.38 - 1.53in)

Diet and Habitat The larva of this species feeds on grasses such as Deschampsia, Sheep’s-fescue (Festuca ovina), Mat-grass (Nardus stricta) and Purple Moor-grass (Molinia caerulea). It has also been found on sedges and rushes. When the larva population is concentrated enough, they can damage pastures. Adults feed on flowers such as thistles and ragworts.

This species is common through most of Europe. It’s northernmost reach is Iceland and above the Arctic Circle. It’s easternmost reach is Siberia and North Mongolia. This moth does not occur in the dry southern regions of Europe. It has been introduced to North America. Additionally, this species inhabits the Alps. They prefer habitats of grassland, favouring acid upland pasture, moorland and downland.

Mating Adult moths are seen flying from July to September. They presumably mate in this time frame.

Predators This moth flies during the day, especially in the north, warm weather, and early mornings, and at night. They are presumably preyed on by both daytime and night time predators like birds and bats. They are attracted to light. To protect themselves during the day, this moth hides in the grass.

Fun Fact The antler moth rises to an altitude of 2100 meters in the Alps.

(Source: Wikipedia, Butterfly Conservation)

Moth of the Week

Garden Tiger Moth

Arctia caja

The garden tiger moth or great tiger moth is a moth of the family Erebidae. They were first described in 1758 by Charles Linnaeus. The caterpillars are known as “woolly bears.”

Description The forewings of this moth are brown with white patterning. This white pattern can be missing entirely. The hindwings are orange with black dots which also may vary from moth to moth due to chance and artificial reasons. French entomologist Charles Oberthür discovered about 500 different variation in patterns.

The patterns on the moth’s wings warn predators that they are toxic. The toxin in this species in part contains neurotoxic choline esters which interfere with the acetylcholine receptor.

The head is lined with red over dark brown and has white antennae while the thorax is a matching dark brown. The abdomen matches the hindwings with bright orange fur and black stripes.

Wingspan Range: 45 - 65 mm (1.8 to 2.6 in)

Diet and Habitat This species are called generalists, meaning they eat a wide variety of plants. That are known to eat plants in the Digitalis and Plantago genuses. These plants produce pyrrolizidine alkaloids, a common chemical that causes toxicity in moths. Adult moths eat nectar from flowers and have no observed preference.

They range from the northern United States and Canada to Europe and Northern and Central Asia. In Europe, it goes north until Lapland. They prefer cold, temperate climates and are found in the mountains of Tien Shan (up to an elevation of 3,000 m (9,800 ft)), grasslands, sand dunes, meadows, woodland edges, hedgerows, gardens, and forests. Because this species are generalists in diet, they are not confined to one habitat due to host plant locations.

Mating Females lay around 50 eggs on the underside of host plant leaves. Eggs hatch from August to September when the former generation has died. It has been observed that generations do not overlap.

Predators Adult moths use their wing patterns and colors to warn predators that they are inedible. Their diet allows them to gain toxins including neurotoxic choline esters which interfere with the acetylcholine receptor. The full effects of the toxins are not known. The adults are mostly preyed on by birds and bats. Another way the adults protect themselves from bats is to make noise with their wings which interferes with the bats’ behaviors.

However, several species of endoparasitic flies prey on the species as larva. These include: Carcelia gnava, Carcelia lucorum, Carcelia tibialis, Compsilura concinnata, Exorista fasciatax Exorista grandis, Hubneria affinis, Pales pavida, Thelaira leucozona, Thelaira nigripes, and Thelymorpha marmorata.

The larvas’ defense against outside forces is stinging hairs that cause hives and irritation in mammals, including humans. These hairs are not fatal.

Fun Fact The garden tiger moth has been a protected species since 2007 by the Biodiversity Action Plan in the United Kingdom.

(Source: Wikipedia, Butterfly Conservation, Moth Identification)

rosy maple moth pls

Hello! I have covered this moth before, you can find it here! :]

Moth of the Week

Angle Shades

Phlogophora meticulosa

Image source

The angle shades is a part of the family Noctuidae. This species was first described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus. According to Wikipedia, this moth gets its common name from the colors and marking on its wings.

Description The forewings of this moth are shaped with a sharp point. Most of the forewing is buffish as well as the head, legs, body, and antennae. The middle of the forewing is split by a triangle. The bottom of the triangle lays on the termen of the forewing or “the edge of the wing most distant from the body.” The triangle is made of layers of brown and pink. The hindwings are whitish with darker veins.

ab. roseobrunnea ab. nov [Warren], the central triangle is a rich red brown tinged with fulvous (tawny/orange), the whole wing reddish tinged, and the green shades all strongly mixed with red, the metathorax and dorsal tufts also being deep fulvous instead of green; found in São Jorge Island in the Azores

Wingspan Range: 45 - 52 mm (≈1.77 - 2.05 in)

Diet and Habitat This species eats a wide range of herbaceous plants such as Common Nettle (Urtica dioica), Hop (Humulus lupulus), Red Valerian (Centranthus ruber), Broad-leaved Dock (Rumex obtusifolius), Bramble (Rubus fruiticosus), Hazel (Corylus avellana), birches, oak, basil, and broccoli.

They are distributed throughout Europe. Their reach spans eastto the Urals, southeast to Syria, Armenia, and Asia Minor, west to Azores, and south to Algeria. They are a strongly migratory species. It is found in a variety of habitats such as gardens, hedgerows, fens, woodland, grasslands, farmland, wetlands, heathland, and moorland.

Mating This moth is generally seen from May to October and has two generations per year. The larva overwinter in soil as pupa.

Predators This species flies mainly at night. They are presumably preyed on by nighttime predators such as bats. This moth uses its coloration to disguise itself as a wilted leaf when at rest. They can be seen during the day resting on walls, vegetation, and feces.

Fun Fact The angle shades is attracted to light and sugar.

(Source: Wikipedia [1][2], Butterfly Conservation, The Wildlife Trusts)

I have a poplar hawk moth and a elephant hawk moth for you!

Hello! So sorry for the late reply, these are such great photos!

Fun fact: the poplar hawk moth is known for how it pushes its hindwing up so that the hindwing is seen in front of the forewing. This hides the red patch on the hindwing which this species will display if disturbed. (Source)

Another fun fact: elephant hawk moths have very sensitive eyes that allow them to have colour vision even at nighttime. (Source)

I’m sure you probably know a lot about these species if they are in your area, but let me know if you’d like to see a post on these moths! :]

Moth of the Week

Crimson-Speckled Moth

Utetheisa pulchella

The crimson-speckled moth is a part of the family Erebidae. This species was first described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus. It is also called the crimson-speckled flunkey and crimson-speckled footman.

Description The forewings are white or cream with red spots broken up by smaller black spots. Black dots also line the lower edge of the forewing called the outer margin. The pattern of spots may vary and the red splotches can merge into lines across the wings. The hindwings are much blander, they are all white except for a waved black/dark brown edge on the bottom of the hindwing, also called the outer margin, and a mark of the same color in the middle of the hindwing.

The head and back of the thorax is spotted buff yellow and black while the abdomen is only white or cream to match the wings. The moth’s legs are white and its antennae are dark brown/black and filiform.

These colors warn predators that this species is toxic.

Wingspan Range: 29 – 42 mm (≈1.14 - 1.7 in)

Diet and Habitat The caterpillars eat forget-me-nots, starflower, ribwort plantain, and plants from the genuses Echium, Solanum, and Anchusa. In their Afrotropical range they feed on Northern bluebell and plants in the genuses Lithospermum, Heliotropium, Trichodesma and Gossypium.

These plants contain alkaloids which makes the caterpillars and adult moths toxic to predators.

This species has a large range and are native to the Afrotropics, North Africa, the Near East, and Central Asia. This species also migrates to the United Kingdom, though its patterns are defined as “sporadic.”

These moths inhabit dry open places, meadows, shrublands, grasslands, and parks.

Mating This species has multiple generations a year: the broods are “continuous” in the tropics while elsewhere they have 3 per year.

Predators These moths fly both during the day and night. They have no camouflage but instead their colors advertise to predators that they are unpalatable. The plants they eat as caterpillars contain alkaloids which make them toxic to birds and other animals.

Fun Fact The crimson-speckled moth has 5 subspecies: Utetheisa pulchella antennata, Utetheisa pulchella completa, Utetheisa pulchella dilutior, Utetheisa pulchella kallima, and Utetheisa pulchella pulchella.

(Source: Wikipedia, Butterfly Conservation)