Lasiocampidae

  Ten species of moths, known as the Eggars. All hairy and can cause a rash.

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Common Name Latin Name Food plant(s) Description
December Moth   Poecilocampa populi Birch, oak, poplar, elm, hawthorn and blackthorn   Bluish-grey, tinged green, greyish hair. Widely distributed
Pale Eggar   Trichiura crataegi Hawthorn, blackthorn, sallow, birch, bramble, heather and bilberry   Greyish-black with lighter markings that are variable in colour, some have orange dashes, some may have yellow bands, all have long brownish hairs. Southern parts of Britain, less frequent in the Midlands and the north
Small Eggar   Eriogaster lanestris Hawthorn, blackthorn and dog rose   Velvety black, reddish-brown marks dorsally bordered by white lines, fine brownish hairs. Only as far north as Yorkshire, less common than it once was.
Lackey Malacosoma neustria Hawthorn, sallow, bramble, blackthorn, laurel and other trees   Blue with thin white dorsal line bordered with stripes of black and orangish-red. Gingery hairs. Widespread but less common in the north
Ground Lackey   Malocosoma castrensis Sea lavender, sea wormwood, sea plantain and other saltmarsh plants.   Brownish-black, pale blue along the sides, thin wavy orangish lines along the top and sides, gingery hairs. Local to Kent, Essex & Suffolk
Grass Eggar   Lasiocampa trifoli Sallows, bramble, heather, broom, blackthorn and many other plants.   Blackish, dense gingery hairs dorsally, greyish hairs on the sides. Coastal distribution in the southern counties.
Oak Eggar   Lasiocampa quercus Heather, bramble, sallows, broom, hawthorn, ivy and may other plants   Blackish-brown, covered in pale greyish hairs dorsally, light brown hair on the sides. Widespread
Fox Moth   Macrothylacia rubi Heather, bramble, bilberry, sallows and other plants   Covered in long dark brown hairs, greyish hairs on the sides, shorted hairs on the back which are reddish. Throughout the British Isles
Drinker Euthrix potatoria Common reed. cock's-foot, reed, canary grass and other grass   Greyish-black, speckled with orange, short tufts of brown hair dorsally, white tufts near the spiracles. Widely distributed
Small Lappet   Phyllodesma ilicifolia Bilberry   Bluish-grey, broad brown dorsal stripe edge with white, bands of orangish-red, gingery hairs. Last recorded in the British Isles in 1965, possibly extinct.
Lappet   Gastropacha quercifolia Hawthorn, blackthorn, buckthorn, sallow, plum and apple   Grey, dark blue segmental divisions, orangish fringe of hair above the legs along the body. Widespread