Geometridae : Larentiinae
Cypress Pug
EUPITHECIA phoeniceata (Rambur 1834)
Cypress Pug
EUPITHECIA phoeniceata (Rambur 1834)
Kind permission - © Tim Norriss
Life Cycle Guide
Description
Wingspan: 18 - 22mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - found in (Canary Isle,Channel Isles ,Bosnia,Corsica,Croatia,France,Greece,Ireland, Italy,Malta, Portugal, Sicily & Spain,)
UK Distribution: Well established in Scily and along south coast from Cornwall to Kent.Inland northwards to N Hampshire,Surrey,London area and Essex. Also resident in Somerset and Glamorgan with recording north to Warwickshire and Ireland
UK Conservation Status -
Habitat: Gardens : Parks : Plantations
Similar Species -
Pupa: Pupates in a cocoon during the winter among pine needles
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: The moth was thought to have been introduced into this country on garden plants and is now fully naturalised.It was first recorded in Cornwall in 1959 and has since expanded its range along the southern coasts as far as Kent and inland the species has been recorded as far north as Warwickshire a trend one expects to continue thanks to the use of Cypresses as a privacy hedge.
The moth is light brownish grey with pointed apex and fairly clear cross lines in black.
It is unlike any other pug so recognition should not be a problem.
It is a fairly uncommon in Europe only occurring around the Mediterranean basin and along the Atlantic coast and as far eastwards as Greece.
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - found in (Canary Isle,Channel Isles ,Bosnia,Corsica,Croatia,France,Greece,Ireland, Italy,Malta, Portugal, Sicily & Spain,)
UK Distribution: Well established in Scily and along south coast from Cornwall to Kent.Inland northwards to N Hampshire,Surrey,London area and Essex. Also resident in Somerset and Glamorgan with recording north to Warwickshire and Ireland
UK Conservation Status -
- Local(alien-foodplant)
- Restricted to South & south West
- Larentia phoeniceata (Rambur 1834)
- Phalaena absinthiata Clerck, 1759
- Not Specified
Habitat: Gardens : Parks : Plantations
Similar Species -
- None
Pupa: Pupates in a cocoon during the winter among pine needles
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: The moth was thought to have been introduced into this country on garden plants and is now fully naturalised.It was first recorded in Cornwall in 1959 and has since expanded its range along the southern coasts as far as Kent and inland the species has been recorded as far north as Warwickshire a trend one expects to continue thanks to the use of Cypresses as a privacy hedge.
The moth is light brownish grey with pointed apex and fairly clear cross lines in black.
It is unlike any other pug so recognition should not be a problem.
It is a fairly uncommon in Europe only occurring around the Mediterranean basin and along the Atlantic coast and as far eastwards as Greece.
Photo Gallery
Larval Food Plants Worldwide
Note - Plants hyperlinked in red below take the visitor to the relevant plant page on"Plants for a Future" website where further information like photos,physical characteristics,habitats,edible uses,medicinal uses,cultivation,propagation,range,height etc. are clearly listed.
Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.
Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.
- Cupressaceae - Cypress Family
- Chamaecyparis lawsoniana - Lawson Cypress
- Cupressocyparis leylandii - Leyland Cypress
- Cupressus macrocarpa - Monterey Cypress
- Juniperus phoenicea - Phoenicean juniper
Larval Food Plants
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Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
Subkingdom: Phylum: Subphylum: Class: Order: Superfamily: Family: Subfamily: Tribe: Genus: Accepted Species Name: Type Species - EUPITHECIA: Original Species Name: Genus Names: Literary Ref: Type Locality: Forms: |
Animalia
Eumetozoa Arthropoda Hexapoda Insecta Lepidoptera Geometroidea Geometridae Larentiinae Eupitheciini EUPITHECIA Curtis, 1825 Eupithecia phoeniceata (Rambur 1834) - Phalaena absinthiata Clerck, 1759 - LARENTIA phoeniceata (Rambur 1834) - EUPITHECIA Curtis, 1825 = Tephroclystia Hübner [1825] - Annales de la Société entomologique de France : Rambur 1384 - Volume T3 : Title Page : p.392 - 394 - pl. VIII - fig. 6 - Not Specified - E.p.f.albescens Dietze,1910 - background extremely pale |