The Magpie
Abraxas grossulariata
A magpie moth caught my eye this afternoon resting on the leaves of a euonymous type bush in a neighbours garden in Fraserburgh.
The eye catching, butterfly like moth has black and white wings with an orange band, the head is orange with black markings.The wingspan is about 4cms. The unusual wing markings make the moth conspicuous and act as a warning to predators that moth is poisonous. A night flier it is attracted to light so is easily caught in light traps. Victorian naturalists were given to collecting and breeding this moth in order to produce colour variations.
The moth is short lived the adults emerge from over wintering as pupae in late spring and live for only three to four weeks.The caterpillars, as brightly coloured as the adults, feed on bushes including gooseberry and currant and were considered a pest until their numbers declined.
The moth is short lived the adults emerge from over wintering as pupae in late spring and live for only three to four weeks.The caterpillars, as brightly coloured as the adults, feed on bushes including gooseberry and currant and were considered a pest until their numbers declined.
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