Noctuidae

73.089 Mediterranean Brocade/ African Cotton Leafworm Spodoptera littoralis (Boisduval, 1833)

Immigrant / Adventive

Similar species: This moth is unlikely to be mistaken for any other British or Irish species, although the occasionally imported Asian Cotton Leafworm Spodoptera litura can only be separated by checking the genitalia. Knowledge of whether it arrived with goods from Africa or Asia would be useful in determining the identification.

Forewing: 14 to 19mm

Habitats: In Africa and the Mediterannean region it inhabits a wide variety of habitats including arable land and gardens.

Habits: The moth comes to light.

Foodplant: The larva feeds on the young shoots, buds and flowers then leaves of Potato, Sweet Potato, Tomato, Cabbage, Cotton, beans, Peanut, Maize, Wheat, Banana and many other herbaceous plants, fruit and vegetables of at least forty plant families. It is considered a pest. In captivity it will accept Chrysanthemum and Dandelion. The larva were imported with Chrysanthemums from the Canary Islands in the 1960s and became a greenhouse pest. It pupates in the soil.