Phobetron pithecium

Phobetron pithecium
This article is about Phobetron pithecium. For Lithacodes fasciola, also known as the Ochre-winged hag moth, see Yellow shouldered slug.
Phobetron pithecium
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Limacodidae
Genus: Phobetron
Species: P. pithecium
Binomial name
Phobetron pithecium
(JE Smith, 1797)

The hag moth (Phobetron pithecium), is a moth of the family Limacodidae. Its larva is known as the monkey slug.

Contents

Life cycle

There is one generation a year in the north, but two or more in southern USA.[1]

Egg

Larva

Larva, Michigan, mid-August
Underside of larva, showing reduced legs

The larva is distinctive, with no close analogues although it may be mistaken for the shed skin of a hairy spider or leaf debris. It has six pairs of curly projections, three long and three short from the flattened body, each densely covered in hairs. According to David L. Wagner, who experimented on himself, the hairs do not sting, contrary to popular belief. However, susceptibility can vary among humans and it may produce a reaction in some people. Some members of the family Limacodidae do sting. Like all limacodids, the legs are shortened and the prolegs are reduced to suction cups. The 'arms' can fall off without harming the caterpillar. Maximum length of larvae, 2.5 cm.[2]

It is solitary and is not a very significant agricultural threat, but it is a common sight in orchards.

Pupa

Pupates in a cup-shaped coccon with a circular escape hatch.

Adult

The adult moth has a wingspan of up to 3 cm. The male has translucent wings, and the female is drab brown and gray, with yellow puffs on her legs. The day-flying female is said to mimic a bee, complete with pollen sacs, and the male mimics a wasp.[3]

Food plants

Eats a variety of deciduous trees and shrubs, not limited to: apple, ash, birch, cherry, chestnut, dogwood, hickory, oak, persimmon, walnut, willow.[4]

References

  1. ^ Wagner, DL, 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton University Press.
  2. ^ Wagner, DL, 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton University Press.
  3. ^ Wagner, DL, 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton University Press.
  4. ^ Wagner, DL, 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton University Press.

External links

  • [1] Photos at BugGuide
  • [2] Large photos of adults

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Phobetron pithecium — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • borer — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Hag — (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild woman.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Hag moth — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • hagfish — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Hag's tooth — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Myxine glutinosa — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sleepmarken — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • slime eel — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sucker — Hag Hag (h[a^]g), n. [OE. hagge, hegge, witch, hag, AS. h[ae]gtesse; akin to OHG. hagazussa, G. hexe, D. heks, Dan. hex, Sw. h[ a]xa. The first part of the word is prob. the same as E. haw, hedge, and the orig. meaning was perh., wood woman, wild …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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