''Euthrix potatoria'', the drinker, is an
orange-brown 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
Lasiocampidae
The Lasiocampidae are a family of moths also known as eggars, tent caterpillars, snout moths (although this also refers to the Pyralidae), or lappet moths. Over 2,000 species occur worldwide, and probably not all have been named or studied. It i ...
.
The species' common and scientific names derive from the larva's supposed drinking of drops of
dew
Dew is water in the form of droplets that appears on thin, exposed objects in the morning or evening due to condensation.
As the exposed surface cools by thermal radiation, radiating its heat, atmospheric moisture condenses at a rate grea ...
.
Name
The scientific name ''Euthryx potatoria'' was given to this moth by
Carl Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
in 1758. In choosing the name ''potatoria'' 'drinker-like', he was inspired by the Dutch entomologist
Johannes Goedaert, who had called the animal ''dronckaerdt'' 'drunkard' "because it is very much inclined to drinking". This remark refers to the moth's habit of repeatedly plunging its head into the water. The English name ''drinker (moth)'' also refers to Goedaert's analogy.
Subspecies
Subspecies
In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
include:
*''Euthrix potatoria mikado'' Bryk
*''Euthrix potatoria potatoria'' (Linnaeus, 1758)
Distribution and habitat
This species can be found in
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 ...
. The species is fairly common in the southern half of Britain. In Scotland, it is common in the west but not in the east of the country. It is most frequently found in marshy places, fens and riversides but may also be seen in drier, grassy terrain.
[
]
Description
Imago
The imago has a wingspan of . The yellowish females are slightly larger than the orange-brown male but both sexes usually show the two distinctive white spots on the forewing.
Larvae and pupae
The fully grown larva is about long, hairy, striped and spotted, with distinctive tufts fore and aft. Larvae hibernate while young and resume feeding in the spring, pupating in a cocoon during the summer.
Biology
This nocturnal moth flies from June to August depending on the location. Males especially are attracted to light.[ The females lay their eggs in small clusters, mainly on the stem of grasses or reeds.][ The larvae feed on various grasses and reeds ('']Alopecurus
''Alopecurus'', or foxtail grass, is a common and widespread genus of plants in the grass family. It is common across temperate and subtropical parts of Eurasia, northern Africa, and the Americas, as well as naturalized in Australia and on vari ...
'', ''Deschampsia
''Deschampsia'' is a genus of plants in the grass family Poaceae, commonly known as hair grass or tussock grass. The genus is widespread across many countries.[Dactylis
''Dactylis'' is a genus of Eurasian and North African plants in the bluegrass subfamily within the grass family. ''Dactylis'' is native to North Africa, they are found throughout the world, and are an invasive species. They are known in English ...]
'', '' Elymus'' (syn. ''Elytrigia''), ''Carex
''Carex'' is a vast genus of over 2,000 species of grass-like plants in the family (biology), family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges (or seg, in older books). Other members of the family Cyperaceae are also called sedges, however those of ge ...
'', ''Luzula
''Luzula'' is a genus of flowering plants in the rush family Juncaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, with species occurring throughout the world, especially in temperate regions, the Arctic, and higher elevation areas in the tropic ...
'' and other Gramineae
Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated i ...
).
Gallery
File:Euthrix potatoria Eating.jpg, Drinker moth caterpillar eating grass.
File:Euthrix potatoria caterpillar (side view) - Keila.jpg, Caterpillar
File:Euthrix potatoria caterpillar underside.jpg, Caterpillar (ventral)
File:Male Euthrix potatoria on its chrysalis.jpg, alt=
File:Euthrix potatoria 001.jpg, Mounted specimen. Male
File:Euthrix potatoria.female.jpg, Female
References
External links
Lepiforum.de
{{Taxonbar, from=Q261060
Lasiocampidae
Moths described in 1758
Moths of Japan
Moths of Europe
Moths of Asia
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus