Ghost Moth

The Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli), also known as the Ghost Swift, is a moth of the family Hepialidae. It is common throughout Europe except for the far south-east.

The male has a wingspan of about 44 mm and both forewings and hindwings are pure white (although in H. h. thulensis, found in Shetland and the Faroe Islands, there are buff-coloured individuals). The female is larger (wingspan about 48 mm) and has yellowish-buff forewings with darker linear markings and brown hindwings. The adults fly in June and July and are attracted to light. The species overwinters as a larva.

The Ghost Moth gets its name from the display flight of the male, which hovers, sometimes slowly rising and falling, over open ground to attract females. In a suitable location several males may display together in a lek.

The larva is whitish and maggot-like and feeds underground on the roots of a variety of wild and cultivated plants. Recorded food plants include burdock, dock, hop, nettle and strawberry as well as a variety of grasses and the species can be an economically significant pest in forest nurseries.

References

Chinery, Michael Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe 1986 (Reprinted 1991)

Skinner, Bernard Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles 1984

Link

Matthew Cooper's insects page