Eilema caniola

Eilema caniola
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Arctiidae
Genus:	Eilema
Species:	E. caniola
Binomial name
Eilema caniola (Hübner, 1808)
Synonyms
Bombyx caniola Hübner, [1808] Bombyx albeola Hübner, [1824] Lithosia lacteola Boisduval, 1834 Lithosia carniola Guérin-Ménéville, 1867 Lithosia albula Walker, 1854 Lithosia cameola Birchall, 1865 Lithosia caniola var. complanoides Fuchs, 1891 Eilema caniola gibrati Oberthür, 1922 Eilema torstenii von Mentzer, 1980

The Hoary Footman (Eilema caniola) is a moth of the family Arctiidae. It is found in North Africa, Western and Southern Europe and Eastern Europe up to South-Western Russia.

Technical Description and variation

See glossary for terms used

The wingspan is 28–35 mm.Almost the same in colouring as Eilema griseola and Eilema lurideola but the forewing much smaller, the outer margin oblique, only slightly excurved; the colour much lighter, more yellowish grey, so that the pale yellow costal stripe is less prominent. Hindwing very pale, scarcely darker at the costal margin, with the apex much more pointed than in the two species mentioned,with which it might be confounded. At once distinguished from Eilema complanum by the underside of the forewing, on which the pale grey colour extends to the margin, the latter not being broadly yellow as in complanum. - ab. vitellina Bdv. is a form with the forewing dusted with grey close to the distal margin and of a pale bright yellow ground-colour in the male - ab. albeola Hbn. is considerably smaller, and, except for the bright yellow thorax, entirely white on the upper side; it occurs among ordinary specimens.^[1]

Subspecies

• Eilema caniola caniola
• Eilema caniola torstenii von Mentzer, 1980 (Spain)

Biology

The moth flies from July to September depending on the location.

Larva grey or reddish brown with dark dorsal line, red subdorsal lines edged with black and occasionally spotted with white or black. The larvae feed on Lichen growing on rocks.

References

1. Seitz, A. in Seitz, A. Ed. Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde, Verlag Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart Band 2: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes,Die palaearktischen Spinner und Schwärmer, 1912- 1913

External links

• www.lepiforum.de Taxonomy and photos
• Funet Taxonomy
• Moths and Butterflies of Europe and North Africa
• Fauna Europaea
• Hoary Footman on UKmoths