| Operophtera fagata | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Male | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Geometridae |
| Genus: | Operophtera |
| Species: | O. fagata |
| Binomial name | |
| Operophtera fagata (Scharfenberg, 1805) | |
Operophtera fagata, the northern winter moth, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is widespread through much of Europe.
This species’ range extends through central and northern Europe to southeast Russia. It is widespread in the UK and Northern Ireland.
In Europe, this species prefers common beech woodland, but will also use birch. [1] The larvae feed on apple (Malus), plum, cherry ( Prunus ), birch (Betula), lime (Tilia), beech (Fagus). [2]
The oval egg is blunt at the micropyle end and has a strongly reticulated surface. It is pale green at first, becoming pale orange. [3]
The larva is initially greenish black with white lines along the body and black or dark brown head. It gradually becomes more yellowish green. [4]
The pupa is yellowish brown and larger than in O. brumata. The cremaster comprises a short, stout shaft with long divergent spikes. [3]
The adult male measures up to 33 mm in body length. The forewings are silvery greyish brown with dark brown crossbands. The hindwing is yellowish white. The head and body are pale yellowish brown. The female is smaller and has greatly reduced wings, so is flightless.
This species morphologically resembles its congener Operophtera brumata , but males of O. fagata are slightly larger and do not have the brown underwings characteristic of Operophtera brumata. Microscopically, there are also clear differences in the morphology of the genitalia between the two species. In O. fagata, the uncus is more pointed with a broader and flatter base that is more triangular in O. brumata (Kellner, 2005). Although co-occurring in the same habitat with overlapping flight times, the two species do not interbreed, which is probably because females produce species-specific pheromones that attract males of only their own species. [5]
From mid-May until early June, mature larvae fall from trees to the woodland floor to pupate in the soil. They remain there until October and November when adults emerge to reproduce. [6] Wingless females crawl up tree trunks, while males fly in swarms at night to encounter females to mate with. Females lay eggs on twigs close to leaf buds in November, where they overwinter. [6] In the UK, adults are active October - December. The larvae hatch April – May, which in Europe happens at the same time as birch leaves come out. [7]
The larva of this moth can be a serious pest of fruit trees in northern Britain by attacking the foliage and blossom. [3] Damage to fruit trees by defoliation is more likely when birch trees, a natural host plant, are growing nearby. [8] In Northern and Central Europe, the larva is a serious defoliator of beech and birch plantations and can sometimes destroy whole seedling plantations. [9]
The ghost moth or ghost swift is a moth of the family Hepialidae. It is common throughout Europe, except for the far south-east.
The winter moth is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is an abundant species in Europe and the Near East and a famous study organism for evaluating insect population dynamics. It is one of very few lepidopterans of temperate regions in which adults are active in late autumn and early winter. The adults use endothermy for movement in these cold temperatures. The females of this species are virtually wingless and cannot fly, but the males are fully winged and fly strongly. After the initial frosts of late fall, the females emerge from their pupae, walk to and up trees and emit pheromones in the evening to attract males. After fertilization, they ascend to lay, on average, around 100 eggs each. Typically, the larger the female moth is, the more eggs she lays.
The pale November moth is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Allen in 1906. It is a fairly common species in Western Europe including the British Isles.
The scalloped oak is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The pine processionary is a moth of the subfamily Thaumetopoeinae in the family Notodontidae, known for the irritating hairs of its caterpillars, their processions, and the economic damage they cause in coniferous forests. The species was first described scientifically by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775, though it was known to the ancients, with remedies described by Theophrastus, Dioscorides and Pliny the Elder. Its processionary behaviour was described in 1916 by the French entomologist Jean-Henri Fabre. It is one of the most destructive species to pines and cedars in Central Asia, North Africa and southern Europe.
The dotted border is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1776. It is found throughout Europe, except the far north, and the Near East.
The mottled beauty is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Campaea margaritata, commonly known in the UK as the light emerald, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1767 12th edition of Systema Naturae. It is widely distributed throughout Europe, the Near East and North Africa. The habitat is mixed forests including parks and large gardens.
Campaea perlata, the pale beauty, also known as the fringed looper (caterpillar), is a species of moth in the family Geometridae, known as geometer moths, found in North America. Some sources also name it the light emerald, though this may be confused with the related European moth Campaea margaritata. It is common throughout its range.
Athous haemorrhoidalis is a species of European and Asian click beetles in the genus Athous. Several variations are recognized.
Alsophila aescularia, the March moth, is a species of moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout Europe and can be a pest of fruit trees.
Calliteara pudibunda, the pale tussock, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The Dutch common name for the moth (Meriansborstel) comes from the butterfly and insect painter Maria Sibylla Merian. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is found in Asia and Europe.
The March dagger moth is a moth of the subfamily Chimabachinae. It is found in Europe and was first described by Michael Denis & Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775.
Operophtera is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae erected by Jacob Hübner in 1825.
Operophtera bruceata, the Bruce spanworm, hunter's moth, or native winter moth is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by George Duryea Hulst in 1886. It is found from coast to coast in southern Canada and the northern parts of the United States.
Paradarisa consonaria, the brindled square spot or square spot, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found in north and central Europe and east to south-eastern Siberia and Japan.
Cyzenis albicans is a species of fly in the family Tachinidae. A parasitoid, it lays its eggs on leaves of oak, maple, birch and other trees, so that when the leaves are consumed by the larvae of the host winter moth, the eggs hatch inside the larvae. The fly is native to Europe and Asia but has been introduced into North America as a biological control agent of the invasive winter moth.
Lymantria dispar dispar, commonly known as the gypsy moth, European gypsy moth, LDD moth, or North American gypsy moth or spongy moth, is a species of moth in the family Erebidae. It has a native range that extends over Europe and parts of Africa, and is an invasive species in North America.
Agrypon flaveolatum is a species of parasitoid wasp belonging to the family Ichneumonidae described by Johann Ludwig Christian Gravenhorst in 1807. It is a parasite of the larva of the winter moth, and has been used in biological pest control to control this moth, whose larvae feed on foliage and defoliate trees.
Proteodes carnifex is a species of moth in the family Depressariidae. It is endemic to New Zealand. Both the larvae and the adults of this species are variable in appearance. However the adults are normally easily identified as the outline is characteristic and the size is consistent. In appearance, adult moths mimic the leaves of their larval host plants. This species has been found near Wellington in the North Island, the tableland of Mount Arthur, in the Canterbury region, Arthur's Pass and at Lake Wakatipu in the South Island. The larval hosts of this species are southern beech trees, particularly black beech and mountain beech but larvae have also been found on red beech, hard beech and silver beech . The female moth deposits her eggs individually on the underside of native beech tree leaves. Once hatched the larvae feed on those leaves through winter and spring and then pupate in January. The adult moth emerges from the pupa after fourteen days and is on the wing from January until April. They are day flying moths and are not attracted to light. Various insects parasitise the larvae of this moth including several species of wasp as well as flies including the endemic fly, Pales funesta.
| Authority control databases: National |
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