Autumnal moth
Template:Short description Template:Speciesbox
The autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Moritz Balthasar Borkhausen in 1794. 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 Sápmi (Lapland), in some years, the numerous autumnal moth larvae defoliate square miles of birch forests on mountains.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
DescriptionEdit
This species is very similar to the November moth, the small Autumnal moth, and the pale November moth, and identification is usually only possible by examining the genitalia.<ref>Martin C. Townsend, Jon Clifton and Brian Goodey (2010). British and Irish Moths: An Illustrated Guide to Selected Difficult Species. Butterfly Conservation.</ref> In general, this is the least variable of the four, with melanic forms occurring less often. It is also usually on the wing earlier in the year, flying in September and October,{{#if:|{{{2}}}|[1]}} although the flight seasons of all three species overlap.
The caterpillar feeds on a wide variety of trees and shrubs.<ref>Sadik Tuzun and Elizabeth Bent, 2006</ref><ref>Hogan, C. Michael (2008). "Douglas-fir: Pseudotsuga menziesii". globalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Strõmberg Template:Webarchive</ref> The species overwinters as an egg.
SubspeciesEdit
- E. a. altivagata
- E. a. autumnata
NotesEdit
- <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>^{{#if:| }} The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.
ReferencesEdit
- Chinery, Michael Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe 1986 (Reprinted 1991)
- Skinner, Bernard Colour Identification Guide to the Moths of the British Isles 1984
- Tuzun, Sadik & Bent, Elizabeth (2006). Multigenic and Induced Systemic Resistance in Plants, published by Birkhäuser, 521 pages Template:ISBN