Lymantria monacha

Nun moth

Description

Males have a wingspan of 30-40 mm, while females are slightly bigger (45-55 mm); the wings are white, with a dense black wavy pattern. The swarming season is late summer. The females rest on tree trunks, and their sex pheromone attract actively flying males. After mating they lay eggs in groups of 100-150, primarily in the lower part of the tree trunk. The eggs overwinter. Young larvae hatch in spring and stay in groups for a while. Then they climb up to the crown and feed on young needles. They are grey-brown and hairy, with six blue or red warts on each body segment. They grow up to a 40 mm length, first consume fresh and later also older needles on spruce (vice versa in case of pine). They pupate on tree trunks or in crowns. The nun moth is distributed throughout Europe, in Central Europe, however a major damage is caused in Poland, Germany and Czech Republic, where cause a strong defoliation during regular outbreaks. Less common in Austria, Romania, Slowenia and Slovakia.