Leucoma salicis
Poplar Spinner ( Leucoma salicis )
The poplar moth ( Leucoma salicis ) is a butterfly (moth ) from the subfamily of Trägspinner ( Lymantriinae ) within the family of cutworms ( Noctuidae ).
- 3.1 Flight times and caterpillars
- 3.2 food of the caterpillars
- 5.1 Notes and references
Description
The moths reach a wingspan from 37 to 50 millimeters. Her whole body and wings are colored pure white. Only the legs are alternately striped black and white. The antennae of the males are cut long, those of the females there are only briefly.
The caterpillars are about 40 mm long. They are colored very vividly. The basic color is blue-gray, but this can be seen on the sides only. The back is broad dyed black and has very large, whitish spots that spread between the segments and grow together in part. At the edge between the gray-blue and black color you can see another small whitish spots. In addition, the body is provided with numerous, seated in the middle of the segments point warts. These are dark red, small on the sides, as the left and right of the back and carry more or less long, pale yellowish hairs.
♂
Similar Species
- American Webebär ( Hyphantria cunea )
Occurrence
The animals are found in almost all of Europe, but not in the British Isles and in the North. East of the species is spread to Japan. They live in open to partially shaded, slightly humid places, such as forest edges and hedgerows with their food plants, but also in avenues, parks and gardens. They are often almost anywhere, but occur only in small numbers. There are also reports of outbreaks, but these are only known from historical times.
Way of life
The nocturnal moths are attracted at night by artificial light. During the day they sit on tree trunks. If one bothers them, but on the abdomen, a yellowish liquid out.
Flight times and caterpillars
The moths fly from June to August, the caterpillars are found from May to June.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars feed on various species of poplar, mainly of aspen (Populus tremula ), but also of willow, such as by Pussy Willow (Salix caprea ) and basket willow ( Salix viminalis ). But you should also eat at birch, oak and alder.
Development
The females lay their eggs in groups of 50 to 80 pieces on the leaves and twigs of forage plants from. Then they are coated with a white, foamy secretion cures. The resulting hatching caterpillars initially live together and eat sitting on the leaf underside. But they eat only the lower leaf side so that the top surface remains intact. With a size of about three to four millimeters, they are loners and set out to search for a suitable hibernation site. They build webs to oval in the crevices of the bark or between leaves. In the following spring the caterpillars finish their development and pupate on tree branches and leaves in a loose white cocoon. After cooking the Hibernation takes place in the egg. The pupa is dark purple and light pink patterned and has bright yellow hair.