Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
726
727
726
Male lackey moth (
Malacosoma neustria
).
727
Larva of lackey moth (
Malacosoma neustria
).
Malacosoma neustria
(Linnaeus) (
726-729
)
Lackey moth
An often common pest of trees and shrubs, including
alder (
Alnus
), birch (
Betula
),
Cotoneaster
, crab-apple
(
Malus
), elm (
Ulmus
), firethorn (
Pyracantha
),
hawthorn (
Crataegus
), flowering cherry (
Prunus
), lilac
(
Syringa
), rose (
Rosa
) and willow (
Salix
); sometimes of
importance in nurseries, parks and gardens. Eurasiatic.
Present throughout much of Europe, except for the
extreme north.
spinosa
), hawthorn (
Crataegus
), oak (
Quercus
) and
broad-leaved willows such as grey willow (
Salix
cinerea
). In some countries (e.g. England and Ireland)
the insect is restricted mainly to wild blackthorn and
hawthorn hedgerows, and is not regarded as a pest.
Widely distributed in central and northern Europe.
DESCRIPTION
Adult female:
42 mm wingspan; wings thinly scaled,
greyish brown to pale reddish brown, with a pale wavy
crossline and, on each fore wing, a pale sub-central
spot; abdomen with a greyish anal hair tuft.
Adult
male:
32 mm wingspan; similar to female but darker
and without the anal hair tuft; antennae strongly
bipectinate.
Egg:
olive-green, oval.
Larva:
up to
50 mm long; black or greyish black, with reddish to
whitish hairs and a series of brown, yellowish-edged
patches along the back; head black; early instars are
darker and recently moulted final-instar larvae brightly
coloured, with a gingery-brown head.
DESCRIPTION
Adult:
30-40 mm wingspan; wings and body pale
ochreous to dark brown; each fore wing with two
crosslines, often (particularly in female) enclosing a
darker band.
Egg:
0.5 mm across; cylindrical, laid in a
large batch.
Larva:
up to 50 mm long; greyish blue,
with a white dorsal stripe, and with orange-red, black-
edged stripes running along the back and sides; body
clothed in reddish-brown hairs; head blue, with two
black spots.
Pupa:
18 mm long; brownish black and
hairy.
LIFE HISTORY
Adults appear in February and March, females
depositing batches of eggs on the twigs of host plants.
The eggs are then covered with hairs from the anal tuft.
Larvae fed from May to June or July, living
gregariously and constructing dense, silken webs.
Pupation occurs in large, yellowish-white to reddish-
brown cocoons, usually formed in the ground. Most
adults emerge in the following year but some
individuals remain in the pupal stage through two or
more winters.
LIFE HISTORY
Moths occur from late July to September, each female
depositing about 100-200 eggs in a characteristic band
(6-14 mm wide) around a twig or spur of a host plant.
Each egg mass, protected by a clear varnish-like coating
secreted by the egg-laying female, remains
in situ
throughout the winter. The eggs hatch in the spring,
usually in late April and May. The young larvae are
blackish but soon become more brightly coloured. They
feed gregariously in a communal web or 'tent'. These
larval tents, which are very conspicuous and may
exceed 30 cm in length, are gradually extended as the
larvae and their feeding areas grow. Larvae are fully fed
DAMAGE
Larvae cause considerable defoliation and the webs are
disfiguring, but infestations rarely affect plant growth.
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