Notodontidae

Notodontidae [‚nōd·ə′dän·tə‚dē]

(invertebrate zoology)

The puss moths, a family of lepidopteran insects in the superfamily Noctuoidea, distinguished by the apparently three-branched cubitus.

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Notodontidae 

a family of Lepidoptera. The wingspread is 4–10 cm. The posterior margin of the forewings usually has a hairy process in the form of a dens. The mouthparts are rudimentary, and the proboscis is most often underdeveloped. The auditory organs are on the metathorax. The females deposit their eggs on the leaves of trees and shrubs. The caterpillars are usually naked, although some are covered with short hairs. They often develop protrusions that give them fantastic shapes; the last pair of abdominal legs is usually absent or converted into slender appendages. The caterpillars feed on leaves. Many species are narrowly specialized in their diet, that is, they are adapted to certain species of plants.

Notodontidae are distributed in the forests of the torrid and temperate zones. Of approximately 3,000 known species, about 100 occur in the USSR. Some species are forest pests. The caterpillars of Phalera bucephala, which flies from May to July, develop on willow, aspen, poplar, birch, and other deciduous trees. The species is distributed in the European USSR, the Crimea, the Caucasus, Siberia, and the Far East. Peridea anceps, which flies from April to June and whose caterpillars develop on oak, is distributed in central and southern parts of Europe, the Caucasus, and the Far East.

REFERENCES

Zhizn’ zhivotnykh, vol. 3. Moscow, 1969.
Gornostaev, G. N. Nasekomye SSSR. Moscow, 1970.

M. I. FALKOVICH