| Apple Ermine (Yponomeuta malinella (Zeller, 1838)) |
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Scientific name: Yponomeuta malinella (Zeller, 1838) Common name: Apple Ermine French name: Hyponomeute du pommier, Teigne du pommier. Order: Lepidoptera Suborder: Microlepidoptera Family: Yponomeutidae Subfamily: Yponomeutinae Wingspan: 16-23 mm. Biotope: Hedgerows, parks, gardens, orchards, bushy places. Geographic area: Europe, Asia east to Japan. Locally introduced to North America. Flight time: July-August. Number of generations : 1 Caterpillar: Caterpillars lives gregariously in a silken web covering the branches of the host plant. Host plant: Apple trees (Malus sp.), Plum trees (Prunus sp.). |
The Apple Ermine is a small moth with pure white forewings covered with small black spots. The hindwings are greyish and fringed. This is a pest to fruit trees. The proliferation of caterpillars are sometimes spaced by several years. There are also other species of Yponomeutidae, the identification is difficult. One of the best way to identify the species is the host plant where the caterpillars feed. You can try to tell imagos apart with the help of the following notes: The Apple Ermine shows 3 rows of black spots but the Bird-cherry Ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella) shows 5 rows. The Spindle Ermine (Yponomeuta cagnagella) has pure white terminal cilia on the forewings, they are slightly greyish on the Apple Ermine. Yponomeuta plumbella has a large black patch on the forewing. Yponomeuta sedella has no black spot near the tip of the forewings. It is very difficult to tell apart imagos of Apple Ermine from Orchard Ermine (Yponomeuta padella) or Willow Ermine (Yponomeuta rorrella). |
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I have read that the terminal cilia on the forewings are a darker grey on Yponomeuta malinella than on Yponomeuta padella. I have based this identification on this criteria. However this is highly uncertain. |
André Bon May 2010