Euthrix potatoria | |
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Male | |
Female | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Lasiocampidae |
Genus: | Euthrix |
Species: | E. potatoria
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Binomial name | |
Euthrix potatoria | |
Synonyms | |
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Euthrix potatoria, the drinker, is an orange-brown moth of the family Lasiocampidae. [1]
The species' common and scientific names derive from the larva's supposed drinking of drops of dew. [2]
The scientific name Euthryx potatoria was given to this moth by Carl Linnaeus 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”. [3] This remark refers to the moth's habit of repeatedly plunging its head into the water. [4] The English name drinker (moth) also refers to Goedaert's analogy.
Subspecies include: [1]
This species can be found in Europe. [5] The species is fairly common in the southern half of Britain.[ citation needed] In Scotland, it is common in the west but not in the east of the country. [6] It is most frequently found in marshy places, fens and riversides but may also be seen in drier, grassy terrain. [7] [8]
In a recent survey[ citation needed] to determine the status of all macro moths in Britain this species was classified as common.
The imago has a wingspan of 45–65 mm. The yellowish females are slightly larger than the orange-brown male but both sexes usually show the two distinctive white spots on the forewing. [8] Females have slightly serrated antennae, while male have deeply combed antennae. [9]
The fully grown larva is about 6 cm 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. [7]
This nocturnal moth flies from June to August depending on the location. Males especially are attracted to light. [7] [8] The females lay their eggs in small clusters, mainly on the stem of grasses or reeds. [9] The larvae feed on various grasses and reeds ( Alopecurus, Deschampsia, Dactylis, Elytrigia, Carex, Luzula and other Gramineae). [10]