''Yponomeuta malinellus'', the apple ermine, is a

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

of the family

Yponomeutidae : ''Certain members of the unrelated snout moths (Pyralidae) are also known as "ermine moths." Spilosoma lubricipeda is an unrelated moth with the common name "white ermine."'' An ermine moth is any moth in the family Yponomeutidae, which has s ...

. It is native to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, and it has spread to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is . The forewings are white and have 12 to 16 black dots, which are arranged in three irregular lines. The moth flies from June to October. The larvae feed on

apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

species. It can defoliate apple trees and negatively impact fruit production for several years following an outbreak. ''Y. malinellus'' larvae initially burrow into Malus leaves, and produce a silken web in May and early June, within which they feed. The larvae, when fully grown, vary in length from 18 to 25 mm. The moth is found across England, whereas there are few reports of it in Scotland, Wales or Ireland. In Britain, the adult moth flies in July and August.

References

External links

waarneming.nl lepiforum.deApple ermine at UKmoths
Yponomeutidae Insect pests of ornamental plants Moths described in 1838 Moths of Europe {{Yponomeutidae-stub