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The larvae of
of clearwing moths are major wood-boring pests
of woody plants.
Hosts include
alder, ash,
birch,
fir,
oak,
pine,
willows and poplars,
sycamore, and stone fruit trees (Rosaceae)
such as apricot, cherry, peach, and plum. Larvae
that closely resemble those of clearwing moths
include the American plum borer (Euzophera
semifuneralis, family Pyralidae), a serious
boring pest of hosts that include fruit and nut
trees, mountain ash, olive, and sycamore. Other
common wood-borers include
bark beetles (family Scolytidae), longhorned
borers (Cerambycidae),
and roundheaded borers (Buprestidae).
The larvae of the Sesiidae are typically wood-borers, or burrow
in plant roots. Many species are serious pests of fruit-tree or
timber cultivation, or crop plants (e.g. Melittia spp. on
squash) (Edwards et al., 1999). The Sesiidae share their
common name with moths in the Hemaris genus of
the family Sphingidae; the
hummingbird clearwing and
snowberry clearwings are members of Hemaris.
They are generally much larger and furrier than
the Sesiidae and are much more able mimics, of
bumblebees and
hummingbirds. [2]
Clearwing moth adults have long, narrow front
wings and shorter, wider hind wings. The hind
wings, and in some species the front wings, are
mostly clear. These moths fly during the day or
at twilight, and their yellow and black coloring
resembles that of paper wasps or yellowjackets.
Adults display wasplike behavior by
intermittently running while rapidly fluttering
their wings. They differ in color depending on
species and sex.
Clearwing moths develop through four life
stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Adults do
not directly damage plants and live only about 1
week. Soon after emerging from the pupal case,
female moths emit a pheromone that attracts
males. After mating, the female deposits her
tiny reddish to pale pink eggs in cracks,
crevices, and rough or wounded areas on bark.
Eggs hatch in about 1 to 4 weeks. The newly
emerged larvae bore into the bark, cambium, or
heartwood of the host tree. Mature larvae pupate
beneath bark, except for the peach tree borer,
which pupates in soil. The species discussed
here have one generation per year except for the
western poplar clearwing, requiring 1 to 2 years
to complete one generation.
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