Caterpillar on oak

[JohnR]

Anyone know who this vandal is? There were 18 on my best oak sapling, they had stripped about half of the leaves. I hope it's not the oak processionary moth.

Oak.JPG (28 KiB) Viewed 240 times

John

[Pete Eeles]

Hi John,

Looks like Buff-tip moth to me.

Cheers,

- Pete

[JohnR]

Hi John,

Looks like Buff-tip moth to me.

Cheers,

- Pete

Thanks; can you suggest a good caterpillar book for the ignorant and for that matter a slightly more exciting moth book than the Townsend and Waring's Concise Guide that I already have?

[Pete Eeles]

The only caterpillar-specific book I'm aware of is "caterpillars of the British Isles" by Jim Porter.

As for exciting moth books, that really depends on your definition of exciting! Do you mean more illustrations/photos, more informative?

Cheers,

- Pete

[Matsukaze]

Roy Leverton, "Enjoying Moths" - though definitely not an ID guide.

[JohnR]

The only caterpillar-specific book I'm aware of is "caterpillars of the British Isles" by Jim Porter.

As for exciting moth books, that really depends on your definition of exciting! Do you mean more illustrations/photos, more informative?

Cheers,

- Pete

I'd settle for a Thomas & Lewington The Moths of Britain and Ireland, if there were such a book.

[Michaeljf]

For a beautiful (but general) book on both Butterflies and Moths - which also shows a range of the most common caterpillars - I would highly recommend 'British Moths and Butterflies - a photographic guide' by Chris Manley. An absolutely beautiful book (ISBN 9780713686364). P.S. Not sure why the ISBN on this has 13 digits

If you want a book on moths, the 'Field guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland' By Paul Waring and Martin Townsend, illustrated by Richard Lewington (ISBN 0953139921). (sorry, you already have this!)

If it's caterpillars you want to identify, there is only one book worth recommending for the UK species 'The colour identification guide to Caterpillars of the British Isles' By Jim Porter (ISBN 0670875090).


As mentioned - the caterpillar is that of the the Buff-Tip Moth. Being in Surrey I'm surprised you haven't seen them before. The caterpillars are gregarious in the first stages of their life and will always strip several branches of trees while they're growing. The bushes usually recover though!