Species Arctia caja - Great Tiger Moth - Hodges#8166

8166

Garden Tiger (adult in Europe)

Woolly Bear (larva in Europe)

Black Woolly Bear (larva)

6 synonyms listed at All-Leps: Arctia auripennis; erinacea; orientalis; phaeosoma; sajana; wiskotti

originally placed in genus Phalaena by Linnaeus in 1758

4 subspecies in North America listed at All-Leps: A. c. caja; americana; utahensis; waroi - and several more subspecies in Eurasia

uncommon to rare in North America; European numbers have been declining in recent years

wingspan 45-70 mm

Adult: forewing chocolate brown with irregular mosaic pattern of white lines and spots; hindwing yellow to orangish with large dark blue spots outlined in black

Larva: black on top, brownish-orange below, with 4 white lateral spots on each segment; body completely covered by hair, with mix of very long black hairs and some white hairs dorsally

holartic: in North America, occurs from Labrador and Nova Scotia to New York, west to Minnesota, and across southern Canada to British Columbia, plus south in the west to Colorado, Utah, Nevada, northern California

occurs throughout Eurasia

woods, shrubby areas, open spaces, gardens

adults fly from June to September; July and August in the north

larvae present from spring to June, and again in fall

larvae feed on a wide variety of woody and herbaceous plants - see list of species at FUNET

one generation per year; overwinters as a larva

This species, formerly common throughout the UK, has steadily declined over the past 20 years, with numbers falling by around 30%. There has been a general movement away from the south and toward the north, with climate change believed to be a contributing factor. Warm, wet winters and warm springs are followed by a decrease in the number of tiger moths the following summer (Conrad et al, 2002).

Arctia caja was a favourite with early European collectors, who selectively bred it to create unusual colours and forms.

St. Lawrence Tiger Moth (Platarctia parthenos) forewing lacks complete white lines, and hindwing lacks dark spots (compare images of both species at CBIF)

Conrad K.F., I.P. Woiwod, and J.N. Perry. 2002. Long-term decline in abundance and distribution of the garden tiger moth (Arctia caja) in Great Britain. Biological Conservation, 106(3) 329-337.

live and pinned adult images by various photographers, plus common name references (Moth Photographers Group)

live images of all life stages plus report of declining numbers in England (Sarah Anderson, UK)

live adult and larva images by various photographers, plus note on declining numbers, and other info (Ian Kimber, UK Moths)

live adult, larva, and pupa images plus foodplant list (Moths and Butterflies of Europe and North Africa)

pinned adult image (CBIF)

pinned adult images plus collection site map in eastern Canada (All-Leps)

adult illustration plus brief description and distribution (enchantedlearning.com)

common names in 8 countries plus images of all life stages, list of foodplants, world range map, list of subspecies with distribution and synonyms, and links to other sites (Markku Savela, FUNET)

US distribution map (butterfliesandmoths.org)

distribution in Canada list of provinces (U. of Alberta, using CBIF data)