With it being really cold last night and the sun shining this morning I was wondering if the Wall Brown larvae that I found in December would be visible. On the bank where the larvae are the sun was beaming down as well as being protected from the wind and it was actually quite warm. I only checked the 2 grass clumps where the larvae were in December and in both spots I found one sitting around 2 inches up a grass stem. The first one still had some dew on it, the other one that was lower on the bank was sitting on a bit of grass that was well eaten at the top, presumably by the larva.
Both larva had grown a little with them being approx 1.5 cm long.
Wall Brown larva with dew drops. Also note the forked tail.
A slightly larger Wall Brown larva with eaten grass.
A pair of Stonechat were also nearby. Hopefully they will not spot the well camouflaged and slow moving Wall larvae!!
Female Stonechat.
Green larva is difficult recognize.
ReplyDeleteHi Anne. You are right there. There are so many moth larva which are difficult to tell apart. Fortunately butterfly larva are easier, partly as there are not so many. The larva of the 'Brown' family have a small forked tail that can be seen on the top photo. The Speckled Wood larva is very similar to the Wall Brown although it doesn't have such a defined white line down the side, as seen on the 2nd image. Meadow Brown larva are much hairier as well as the fork in the tail being whiter. The other larva that I find in the same area is the Marbled White. These are a bit stubbier and have a darker stripe down the middle of the back. Marbled White also have a brown larva form as well as the green form.
ReplyDeleteI hope this helps!! Many thanks for your interest in my blog and happy hunting.