Autumnal moth
| Autumnal moth | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Geometridae |
| Genus: | Epirrita |
| Species: | E. autumnata |
| Binomial name | |
| Epirrita autumnata Borkhausen, 1794 | |
The autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East and has a much wider distribution than its two close relatives (see below). In Lapland, in some years the numerous autumnal moth larvae may defoliate square miles of birch forests on mountains.
This species is very similar to the November moth and pale November moth and identification is usually only possible by examining the genitalia. In general this is the least variable of the three with melanic forms occurring less often. It is also usually on the wing earlier in the year, flying in September and October , although the flight seasons of all three species overlap.
The caterpillar feeds on a wide variety of trees and shrubs (see below). The species overwinters as an egg.
- ^ The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.
Recorded food plants
- Abies – fir
- Alnus – alder
- Betula – birch[1]
- Carpinus – hornbeam
- Corylus – hazel
- Crataegus – hawthorn
- Larix – larch
- Lonicera – honeysuckle
- Malus – apple
- Picea – spruce
- Pinus – pine
- Populus – poplar
- Prunus
- Pseudotsuga – Douglas-fir[2]
- Quercus – oak
- Salix – willow
- Sorbus – rowan
- Thuja – western redcedar
- Tilia – lime
- Tsuga – hemlock
- Ulmus – elm
- Vaccinium
- Viburnum – nannyberry
Subspecies
- E. a. altivagata
- E. a. autumnata
References
Michael Chinery Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe 1986 (Reprinted 1991)
Bernard Skinner Colour Identification Guide to the Moths of the British Isles 1984
Sadik Tuzun and Elizabeth Bent (2006) Multigenic and Induced Systemic Resistance in Plants, published by Birkhäuser, 521 pages ISBN 0-387-23265-6
Line notes
- ↑ Sadik Tuzun and Elizabeth Bent, 2006
- ↑ C. Michael Hogan (2008) Douglas-fir: Pseudotsuga menziesii, globalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Strõmberg