Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
854
855
854 Larva of buff ermine moth ( Spilosoma luteum ).
855 Male buff ermine moth ( Spilosoma luteum ).
Phragmatobia fuliginosa (Linnaeus) ( 849-850 )
Ruby tiger moth
This locally common species is associated mainly with
wild plants such as dandelion ( Taraxacum officinale ),
dock ( Rumex ), golden-rod ( Solidago virgaurea ) and
plantain ( Plantago ), but is sometimes a minor pest in
flower borders; slight damage may also be caused to
greenhouse-grown ornamentals. Adults (30-35 mm
wingspan) are mainly reddish brown, with the fore
wings thinly scaled centrally and the hind wings pink,
suffused with dark grey; the abdomen is red, marked
with black. The moths occur mainly during May and
June, eggs being laid in batches on the foliage of various
herbaceous plants. Larvae feed from late May or June
onwards, most completing their development in the
autumn and then overwintering. Individuals reappear in
the following spring; they do not feed but, instead, spin
brown, silken cocoons amongst foliage or debris on the
ground and then pupate. Adults appear a few weeks
later. Some larvae develop more rapidly than normal,
become fully grown by August and give rise to a partial
second generation of adults in September. The larvae
(up to 35 mm long) are blackish, with a red dorsal stripe,
red spots subdorsally and yellowish, reddish or
brownish hair tufts arising from large, grey verrucae.
Spilosoma lubricipeda (Linnaeus) ( 851-853 )
syn. Spilosoma menthastri (Esper)
White ermine moth
Larvae of this widespread and generally common
species feed on low-growing plants from late July to
September. They sometimes attack cultivated plants in
herbaceous borders, grazing indiscriminately on the
foliage, but damage caused is of no importance. Minor
infestations sometimes occur on ornamental shrubs such
as elder ( Sambucus ), honeysuckle ( Lonicera ), lilac
( Syringa ) and privet ( Ligustrum vulgare ). Larvae
(35-40 mm long when fully grown) are dark brown,
with a red or orange dorsal stripe and tufts of brown
hairs arising from black verrucae; young specimens are
dull greenish to yellowish green, with very prominent
verrucae. Pupation occurs in silken cocoons formed
amongst debris on the ground. The mainly white or
creamish-white, black-spotted adults (35-45 mm
wingspan) appear in the following May or June.
Spilosoma luteum (Hufnagel) ( 854-855 )
syn. Spilarctica lutea (Hufnagel)
Buff ermine moth
Widespread and common, the greyish-brown, hairy
larvae occurring mainly on weeds such as dandelion
( Taraxacum officinale ) and dock ( Rumex ) but also
sometimes attacking the foliage of herbaceous garden
plants. They feed during the summer and pupate in the
autumn. The pale yellow to ochreous, black-marked
adults (36-42 mm wingspan) appear in the following
June.
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