Little lichen bear
| Little lichen bear | ||||||||||||
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High alpine form of the lichen bear, ( Setina aurita ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Setina aurita | ||||||||||||
| ( Esper , 1787) |
The lichen bear ( Setina aurita ) is a butterfly ( moth ) from the subfamily of the bear moth (Arctiinae).
features
The moths reach a wingspan of 25 to 32 millimeters. They have whitish-yellow to orange-yellow forewings, on which a black network of veins can be seen that goes up to just before the wing tips. Black dots are lined up on the outer edge around the tips. But there are also specimens on which the vein network is missing and instead black points are visible on the entire wing. The wing drawing depends heavily on the inhabited altitude. Over 2,000 meters, the moths only have stripes, while animals with dots are increasingly found below.
The caterpillars are about 22 millimeters long and black. They have yellow spots on five longitudinal rows. Her hair is exceptionally long and black.
Similar species
- Stone lichen bear ( Setina irrorella )
- Smoky-winged lichen bear ( Setina roscida )
Occurrence
The animals are only found in the Alps between 1000 and 3000 m in open and stony terrain and stony, sunny meadows . They are very common on this site. The flight time depends heavily on the altitude and varies from April to October.
Way of life
They are diurnal and do not fly to light sources at night like other diurnal bear moths do.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars eat yellow lichen ( Xanthoria parietina ) and other lichens .
Development path
The females lay their eggs on stones. After hatching, the caterpillars eat lichen that grows on the stones. When they aren't eating, they hide under stones. They overwinter as a caterpillar, are active on mild winter days and even eat food. Depending on the altitude, they pupate after one to three years in a fine web under stones.
swell
literature
- Heiko Bellmann : The new Kosmos butterfly guide. Butterflies, caterpillars and forage plants. Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-440-09330-1 .
Web links
- www.lepiforum.de: Taxonomy and photos
- www.schmetterling-raupe.de
- Setina aurita at Fauna Europaea