Page 400 - The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species From Around the World

MOTH CATERPILLARS

FAMILY Saturniidae
TRIBUTION
DIS
DISTRIBUTION Southwest Europe
DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT
HABITAT T Pine forests, at 2,950–5,900 ft (900–1,800 m) elevation
HABIT
A
HOST PLANTS
HOST PLANTS
HOS T PLANT S Pine trees, including Pinus sylvestris, P. laricio, and P. uncinata
NOTE
NO TE Colorful caterpillar that is under threat from habitat loss
NOTE
CONSERVATION STATUS
T
CONSERVATION STATUS Not evaluated, but considered vulnerable
CONSERV
A
TION S
TUS
A
ADULT WINGSPAN
2½–3⅜ in (63–85 mm)
CATERPILLAR LENGTH
2¾–3⅛ in (70–80 mm)
GRAELLSIA ISABELLAE
SPANISH MOON MOTH
398
(GRAËLLS, 1849)
The female Spanish Moon Moth lays up to 150 eggs, either
singly or in small groups at the base of young pine needles. The
caterpillars hatch within ten days and feed on the pine needles,
where they are well disguised. When young, they are gray
brown and resemble the twigs on which they rest, while the
mature caterpillar often rests with its front segments pu ed up

to give the appearance of a pinecone. Growth is slow because
of the cool temperatures, so the caterpillars take up to eight

The Spanish Moon Moth caterpillar has an weeks to reach maturity.
apple-green body and brown head, legs, and
prolegs. There is a dark brown stripe down
the back, bordered on each side by a broken, When fully grown, the larvae crawl down from the tree and
white stripe. Laterally, there are alternate,
oblique stripes of brown and white. The overwinter in a cocoon on the ground, among pine needles. The
whole body is covered with tiny, white dots cocoon is golden brown, and its silken threads deter predators
and long, white hairs.
such as birds. The adult moths y from spring to early summer.

The species has become a rare sight—its decline is the result of
adults being collected and, more recently, habitat loss.

Actual size