Boxwood Moth

Boxwood Moth: How To Identify It Safely

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Recognizing the moth flight of the boxwood moth is the first step towards a successful and early control. We introduce you to the butterfly. The moth of the boxwood moth ( Cydalima perspectalis ) is pretty to look at in contrast to the annoying moth caterpillars. Attracted by the scent of the butterfly lilac, it can rarely be observed during the day, although it prefers the dark hours of the night. We have compiled everything for you that you need to know about the little butterfly.

The sighting of a boxwood moth means that eggs will soon be laid and hungry caterpillars will appear on the boxwood (Buxus). So that you can recognize it safely, we explain and show what the box tree moth’s butterfly looks like when it can be found, and what the life cycle of this small butterfly is like.

The caterpillars of the boxwood moth are quite easy to recognize - for example by their black head

What does the boxwood moth look like?

The box tree moth is a small butterfly with a wingspan of just 4 to 4.5 centimeters. This roughly corresponds to the top two links of your index finger. If the wings are spread out, they run obliquely backward. Both the hind wings and the fore wings end semicircular. The base of the wings is hairy, the compound eyes are black and the antennae are long and thin. Like all butterflies, the boxwood moth has a proboscis that it wears rolled up under its head when it is not needed to drink flower nectar.

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There is one thing with the coloring of the wings: the most common are white wings, the edges of which are lined with a brown ribbon. This band is pierced by a white spot on the front edge. More rarely, however, are white-beige, completely brown, almost black and even dark purple shimmering shades of color. The color of the abdomen is always adapted to the color of the wings and therefore also ranges from pure white to black.

The most common are the moths with white-brown wings

When can the boxwood moth butterfly be found?

The moth is predominantly nocturnal. During the day it stays in the resting position on the underside of the leaves of plants in the vicinity of the box tree. If you want to know exactly when moths are in your own garden, you should make your own observations with a pheromone trap for boxwood moths such as the Gardender moth trap.

The installation is most likely to be successful in June and August, in very warm years a butterfly can be trapped in May and July. Knowing about the flight of moths is an important part of successful control of the moth because mating and oviposition take place during the moth flight, which lasts several days so that the appearance of the first voracious larvae can be predicted with great precision.

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Once the moths have been discovered, control is usually necessary. It pays to act quickly. The bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which is also contained in our Gardender borer-free, is extremely effective in combating it. The agent is used when the caterpillars have hatched and then stops eating immediately.

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Way of life and life cycle of the box tree moth

Depending on the weather and temperature, two to three generations occur in Europe each year; overwintering takes place in the caterpillar stage. From about mid-March to May, the larvae go through several developmental stages, grow up to five centimeters in size and eat hard on the boxwood. If they were initially in the protected interior of the bush, they now gradually penetrate into the periphery.

The boxwood moth hibernates as a pupated larva until the coming spring

After the last of the six caterpillar stages, pupation and then hatching of the butterfly follow. This only lives for about eight to nine days, during which it mates and lays eggs. If it is the last generation of the year, the hatched caterpillars overwinter in the third or fourth instar, pupate in webs of caterpillar silk in the bush until they become active again in March at temperatures above 12 ° C and the cycle begins again. In a relatively cool USA, there are usually two generations.

The hatched butterfly only lives 8 to 9 days in which it lays its eggs

Because the development of the butterfly from egg to butterfly can accelerate rapidly in warm temperatures, these figures are only rough guidelines.

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