Euproctis chrysorrhoea
| Brown-tail | |
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| Euproctis chrysorrhoea, upperside | |
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| Female underside with the tuft of brown hairs | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Clade: | Euarthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Superfamily: | Noctuoidea |
| Family: | Erebidae |
| Genus: | Euproctis |
| Species: | E. chrysorrhoea |
| Binomial name | |
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Euproctis chrysorrhoea (Linnaeus, 1758) |
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The brown-tail (Euproctis chrysorrhoea) is a moth of the family Erebidae.
This species can be found throughout Europe. It is an invasive species in the US, having arrived in the USA in the 1890s on plants coming from Europe. Through the early parts of the 20th century is was present in much of coastal New England from Connecticut to Maine, but years of cold and wet spring weather reduced its extent to the coast and islands of Maine and also parts of Cape Cod.
The wings of this species are pure white, as is the body, apart from a tuft of brown hairs at the end of the abdomen. The brown coloration extends along most of the back of the abdomen in the male. In the female, the back of the abdomen is white, but the tuft of brown hairs is much bigger. The wingspan is 36–42 millimetres (1.4–1.7 in). The species flies at night and is attracted to light.
This species is rather similar to Euproctis similis, Hyphantria cunea and Spilosoma urticae.
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♂
The larva is brown with red and white markings and is very hairy. These hairs provide protection for this species throughout its life cycle: the larva incorporates some into the cocoon within which it pupates; the emerging adult female collects some on its tail and uses it to camouflage and protect the eggs as they are laid. The species overwinters communally as larvae within a tough, silken tent. In areas where the species is abundant, these tents are a familiar sight, and can be seen on a huge range of plants (see list below).
Cicely Blair wrote a paper about the rash caused by the brown-tail moth caterpillar in 1979. It was found that the loose hairs break off as barbs and on contact with skin can cause rashes, skin irritation, headaches and breathing difficulties. The species should be handled using protective gloves at all stages of its life cycle. Shed hairs blow about, and can be tracked indoors on shoes, so rash can occur without direct contact.
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Wikipedia