Eilema caniola

(Hübner, [1808])

  • Subfamily: Arctiinae, Lithosiini, Lithosiina
  • Wingspan: 28-35 mm
  • Flight period: Jun - Oct
  • Spread: Common
  • Host plants: Lichens, algae and mosses

Information

The Eilema caniola also known as Hoary footman is a moth of the Erebidae family, subfamily Arctiinae, with a wingspan of 28-35 mm.
In Europe it is visible in Portugal, Spain Ireland, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Greece, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine. In Italy it is also present in the islands. *

The coloring of the front wings is pearl gray or white with the yellow costa up to the apex, which at rest are kept in a position close to the body. The hind wings are wide and have a cream or white-gray color. The head, on the other hand, is yellow with filiform antennae in females, doubly ciliated in males, the palps are short and the spiritromba is developed.

The collar (Patagia) is yellow like the head, while in the similar Eilema griseola the collar is more gray than the top of the head. The front wings are also narrower and white-gray in contrast to Eilema griseola, where the front wings are wider and gray. In the similar Eilema pseudocomplana , the front wings are narrower. The last third of the abdomen is colored yellow. The hind wings have an ocher tint.
In Eilema caniola the front wings are wider. The abdomen is gray in color and the hind wings are white-gray as mentioned above. **

It prefers lowland and hilly environments, but it is also found above 1500 m and has fluctuations from June until late November. It is a polyvoltine species in southern Europe, single or bivoltine in the rest of Europe. It overwinters as a larva, to pupate in spring.
The caterpillars are black with some orange spots along the sides and carry tubercles with tufts of short bristles. The pupae are squat reddish/brown in color.

The larvae feed on several species of lichen, algae and moss, has also been reported on Lotus cornicolatus.


* Lepidoptera mundi https://lepidoptera.eu/ - Fauna Europea https://fauna-eu.org/
** Bestimmungshilfe für die in Europa nachgewiesenen Schmetterlingsarten - http://lepiforum.de/ -

Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola
Eilema caniola