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White Ermine Moth and caterpillar (Spilosoma lubricipeda) photographs and information of this common moth and it's commonly seen hairy caterpillar
Learn about the White Ermine moth and their identification. Get details about their size, their life cycle, the caterpillar and their diet, the pupa and the adult moth.
Spilosoma lubricipeda, the white ermine, is a moth of the family Erebidae. It is found throughout the temperate belt of Eurasia from Europe through Kazakhstan and southern Siberia to Amur Region, China, Korea and Japan. In China several sibling species occur. Caterpillar Illustration from John Curtis's British Entomology Volume 5
Spilosoma lubricipeda. A white moth with small black spots on the forewing, however, the number of black spots varies greatly from largely white examples which are almost entirely plain to those with many more spots that may even join together to form streaks along the wing veins.
Spilosoma lubricipeda (White Ermine) §1 male. ID: Forewing usually a slightly creamy white with a variable number of black spots which may form a curved median row from costa to dorsum; hindwing usually white with at least one central black spot.
Wingspan 34-48 mm. Widely distributed and fairly common over much of Britain, there is considerable variation in the degree of black speckling, and in certain parts of Scotland, there are forms with a buffish ground colour. It generally flies from May to July, sometimes later in the south.
Description. Wingspan 34-48 mm. There is considerable variation in the degree of black speckling and, in certain parts of Scotland, there are forms with a buffish ground colour. Identification difficulty. Habitat. Gardens, hedgerows, grassland, heathland, moorland and woodland. When to see it.
