De rerum: an acknowlegement and explanation.
INDEX: Linnaean

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Rhanidophora sp.




We found this Dice Moth in Mandy's cottage. I realised that I had a photo of the larva. I took it home to photograph and overnight it laid a batch o eggs. (Yes, the first photo is a composite and was fudged. )
I think that the remarkable appendages of the larva are designed to mimic wasp eggs, saying I am already parasitised and not worth adding any more. I also suspect that they would present problems to the wasp's landing gear.
At bottom is the food-plant,  Thunbergia alata, the Black-eyed Susan, self-sown in our garden and common at the side of the road in Hilton.
Having taken my photograph, I released the moth to find another Thunbergia on which to lay eggs.
       

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