Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
BIOLOGY
Moths are active from late May or June to July.
Their eggs are laid in large batches on the under-
side of leaves and then covered in hairs from the
female's abdomen. Larvae feed gregariously
from July or August onwards but, unlike many
other gregarious species, they do not form webs.
In their final instar, the larvae tend to become
solitary. Pupation occurs in the autumn in earthen
cells, and adults emerge in the following year.
DESCRIPTION
Adult
55-65 mm wingspan, body noticeably
hairy;
forewings
light grey to silver-grey, with
scattered reddish-brown and black markings
and a prominent whitish-yellow apical blotch;
hindwings
pale yellow to whitish
(Fig. 313).
Larva
up to 60 mm long;
body
pale yellow with
black longitudinal stripes interrupted by yellow-
ish-orange intersegmental cross-bands;
body
hairs
fine and whitish;
head
mainly black and
shiny.
Pupa
25-28 mm long, purplish-brown;
cremaster
with four short spines.
Fig. 313
Buff-tip moth,
Phalera bucephala
(x2).
Family LYMANTRIIDAE
Euproctis chrysorrhoea
(L.)
Brown-tail moth
In areas such as the coastal regions of southeast-
ern England, infestations of this locally distrib-
uted and sporadically important species occur
occasionally on fruit trees. The pest is, however,
far more notorious as a public nuisance and
defoliator of hedges. The urticating hairs of the
larvae can cause skin rashes.
Fig. 314
Female brown-tail moth,
Euproctis
chrysorrhoea
(x3).
BIOLOGY
Adults fly in July and August. Egg batches, cov-
ered in hairs from the female's anal tuft, are then
laid on twigs of host plants, especially
Crataegus
monogyna
and
Primus spinosa.
Eggs hatch in
about 3 weeks and the larvae immediately spin a
dense, opaque communal web or tent in which
they feed and eventually hibernate. In spring,
larvae become active and often bask on the out-
side of the tent during sunny weather. The web-
bing is extended over the branches as the larvae
grow. Older larvae often wander away and be-
come more or less solitary. Pupation occurs singly
or in groups on host plants, amongst a web of silk.
DESCRIPTION
Adult
32-42mm wingspan;
head and thorax
white and fluffy;
abdomen
brown, with a distinct
anal tuft of hair (in the female, bulbous and
dense)
(Fig. 314);
forewings
brilliant white (in
