Phobetron pithecium

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Phobetron pithecium
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Limacodidae
Genus: Phobetron
Species: P. pithecium
Binomial name
Phobetron pithecium
(JE Smith, 1797)
This article is about Phobetron pithecium. For Lithacodes fasciola, also known as the Ochre-winged hag moth, see Yellow shouldered slug.

The hag moth (Phobetron pithecium), is a moth of the family Limacodidae. Its larvae is known as the monkey slug.

Contents

[edit] Life cycle

There is one generation a year in the north, but two or more in southern USA (Wagner, 2005).

[edit] Egg

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[edit] Larva

Larva, Michigan, mid-August
Larva, Michigan, mid-August
Underside of larva, showing reduced legs
Underside of larva, showing reduced legs

The larva is distinctive[citation needed], with no close analogues[citation needed] although it may be mistaken[citation needed] for the shed skin of a hairy spider or leaf debris. It has six pairs of curly projections, three long and three short from the flattened body, each densely covered in hairs. According to Wagner (2005), who experimented on himself, the hairs do not sting, contrary to popular[citation needed] belief. However, susceptibility can vary among humans and it may produce a reaction in some people. Some members of the family Limacodidae do sting. Like all limacodids, the legs are shortened and the prolegs are reduced to suction cups. The 'arms' can fall off without harming the caterpillar. Maximum length of larvae, 2.5 cm.

It is solitary[citation needed] and is not a very significant agricultural threat[citation needed], but it is a common[citation needed] sight in orchards.

[edit] Pupa

Pupates in a cup-shaped coccon with a circular escape hatch.

[edit] Adult

The adult moth has a wingspan of up to 3 cm, and has a short lifespan. The male has translucent wings, and the female is drab brown and gray, with yellow puffs on her legs. The day-flying female is said to mimic a bee, complete with pollen sacs, and the male mimics a wasp (Wagner 2005).

[edit] Food plants

Eats a variety of deciduous trees and shrubs, not limited to: apple, ash, birch, cherry, chestnut, dogwood, hickory, oak, persimmon, walnut, willow (Wagner, 2005).

[edit] References

  • Wagner, DL, 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton University Press.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
  • [1] Photos at BugGuide
  • [2] Large photos of adults
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