Magical Moths

from Dales Life Summer 2019

MAGICAL MOTHS

Brian Pike reports on the magnificent moths you’re most likely to see this summer

Nobody has a bad word to say about butterflies – except for the ones whose caterpillars chew cabbage leaves to shreds – but moths are rather less popular. Many people find the big, night-flying ones downright creepy, and of course nobody wants to find clothes moths lurking in their wardrobe.

Moths, though, are a much larger and more varied group of insects than butterflies. There are around 60 species of butterfly found in the British Isles, as compared with over 2,500 species of moth. Although most moths are tiny – and some are highly destructive – many are extraordinarily beautiful.

Along with most kinds of insect, moth populations have plummeted in recent years. But here are half a dozen stunning species that are still relatively common, and that you’ve got a decent chance of seeing between now and autumn. Most can be spotted during daylight hours, often in rural gardens, so there’s no need for any late-night expedition with your torch!

FLYING ACE

The Hummingbird Hawk Moth

True to its name, the hummingbird hawk moth looks and behaves just like a humming bird. It hovers effortlessly in the air, its wings a blur, as it uses its long proboscis to sip nectar from its favourite flowers.

Hummingbird hawk moths are summer visitors, migrating from mediterranean Europe during spells of warm weather, often in large numbers. They are commonest in southern England, but can be found as far north as the Shetlands.

The adults have grey-brown bodies and forewings, with a wingspan of around 45mm; their hind wings are a soft, rich orange. They are especially attracted to valerian, honeysuckle, lilac, buddleia and tobacco plant. The hummingbird hawk moth’s handsome green caterpillars feed on various native plants, especially bedstraws and wild madder.

DEBONAIR BUT DANGEROUS

The Garden Tiger Moth

Whereas the hummingbird hawk moth impresses with its aerobatics, the garden tiger moth is notable for its stunning good looks.

From the point of view of a hungry bird, however, the garden tiger’s dramatic colour scheme is bad news. The eye-catching patterns are a warning that the moth is highly toxic to small creatures.

The garden tiger’s forewings are creamy white with dark brown blotches, and its hind wings are scarlet with black dots. It’s a fairly large moth, with a wingspan up to 65mm.

The garden tiger’s caterpillars are equally distinctive. Popularly known as ‘woolly bears’, they are densely hairy, and can often be seen stomping across country lanes in search of new food sources, which include nettles, docks, foxgloves and plantain.

PALE AND INTERESTING

The White Plume Moth

The smallest of our selection, with a wingspan of just 30mm, the white plume moth is nonetheless one of the most intriguing.

It is snow white, and its deeply divided, feathery wings give it an eerie, otherworldly beauty. There are thirty or so species of plume moth in the British Isles, but the others – being brown, and smaller – tend not to attract so much attention.

Despite being fairly common, little is known about plume moths. Most of them roll up their wings into tight tubes when they are at rest, giving them a distinctive ‘T’ shape, although the white plume moth seems less liable to do this than some of its cousins.

The white plume moth is often seen in gardens in June and July. Its caterpillars feed on one of the gardener’s pet hates, bindweed.

PRETTY IN PINK

The Cinnabar Moth

With its dark grey and vibrant pink wings, the cinnabar moth is easy to spot as it flits over the grassland and forest rides that are its favourite habitat.

The cinnabar moth’s caterpillars, ringed with yellow and black bands, are equally attentiongrabbing – a sure sign they taste bad to birds. That’s because their favourite food plant is ragwort, whose leaves are full of toxins. The caterpillars aren’t affected by the poison, which they store in their bodies (and pass on to the adults) to deter predators. Ragwort is dangerous to livestock, and control of the weed has caused cinnabar moth numbers to dip sharply. The caterpillars can also feed on related plants such as groundsel, but fewer will survive to become adults.

THE EYES HAVE IT

The Elephant Hawk Moth

The handsome gold-and-pink elephant hawk moth is a night-flyer, but it can often be found resting by day amongst the stems of its preferred food plants, notably honeysuckle. It is best known, though, for its spectacular caterpillars, which are amongst the largest found in the UK.

In late summer elephant hawk moth caterpillars – which can reach nearly 9cm long and which feed predominantly on rosebay willowherb – can often be found wandering around, looking for a suitable spot to pupate.

Each caterpillar has two pairs of vivid, eye-like markings on its ‘shoulders’. When it feels threatened it pulls its head back into its shoulders, puffing up the ‘eyes’ and making them suddenly far more prominent, a move that appears to startle potential predators.

MOORLAND MARVEL

The Emperor Moth

If you want to catch a glimpse of the beautifully patterned emperor moth, head for open country – heather moorland, heaths, bogs or sand dunes.

Female emperor moths fly only at night, but males are on the wing during the day, covering large distances in search of females, whose scent they detect with their prominent feathery antennae.

With a wingspan of 70mm or more, four prominent ‘eye-spots’, and a colour scheme combining white, black, brown, pink and orange, this is one of Britain’s most photogenic moths.

The caterpillars, which are bright green with black hoops, feed mainly on moorland plants such as heather, bramble, hawthorn, willow and birch. You’re unlikely to see adults on the wing much later than June, but the caterpillars like to bask in the sunshine well into late summer.

OPENING PAGES LEFT Elephant hawk moth RIGHT Six-spot burnet moth CENTRE PAGES LEFT Hummingbird hawk moth RIGHT TOP Garden tiger moth CENTRE LEFT White plume moth RIGHT Cinnabar moth caterpillar BOTTOM Cinnabar moth THIS PAGE TOP Elephant hawk moth caterpillar BOTTOM Emperor moth

This article is from:

Dales Life Summer 2019