Eilema caniola

Eilema caniola
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Arctiidae
Genus:	Eilema
Species:	E. caniola
Binomial name
	Eilema caniola; (Hübner, 1808)
Synonyms
	Bombyx caniola Hübner, [1808]; Bombyx albeola Hübner, [1824]; Lithosia lacteola Boisduval, 1834; Lithosia carniola Guérin-Ménéville, 1867; Lithosia albula Walker, 1854; Lithosia cameola Birchall, 1865; Lithosia caniola var. complanoides Fuchs, 1891; Eilema caniola gibrati Oberthür, 1922; Eilema torstenii von Mentzer, 1980;

The Hoary Footman (Eilema caniola) is a moth of the family Arctiidae. It is found in North Africa, Western and Southern Europe and Eastern Europe up to South-Western Russia.

Technical Description and variation

See glossary for terms used

The wingspan is 28–35 mm.Almost the same in colouring as Eilema griseola and Eilema lurideola but the forewing much smaller, the outer margin oblique, only slightly excurved; the colour much lighter, more yellowish grey, so that the pale yellow costal stripe is less prominent. Hindwing very pale, scarcely darker at the costal margin, with the apex much more pointed than in the two species mentioned,with which it might be confounded. At once distinguished from Eilema complanum by the underside of the forewing, on which the pale grey colour extends to the margin, the latter not being broadly yellow as in complanum. - ab. vitellina Bdv. is a form with the forewing dusted with grey close to the distal margin and of a pale bright yellow ground-colour in the male - ab. albeola Hbn. is considerably smaller, and, except for the bright yellow thorax, entirely white on the upper side; it occurs among ordinary specimens.^[1]

Subspecies

Eilema caniola caniola
Eilema caniola torstenii von Mentzer, 1980 (Spain)

Biology

The moth flies from July to September depending on the location.

Larva grey or reddish brown with dark dorsal line, red subdorsal lines edged with black and occasionally spotted with white or black. The larvae feed on Lichen growing on rocks.

References

^ Seitz, A. in Seitz, A. Ed. Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde, Verlag Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart Band 2: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes,Die palaearktischen Spinner und Schwärmer, 1912- 1913

External links

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[1] Seitz, A. in Seitz, A. Ed. Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde, Verlag Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart Band 2: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes,Die palaearktischen Spinner und Schwärmer, 1912- 1913

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