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. This species is now considered the only species in the genus Hepialus which previously included several other species now reclassified into other genera.

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 (see list below). The species can be an economically significant pest in forest nurseries.

The term ghost moth is sometimes used as a general term for all Hepialids.

1. The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.

Recorded food plants

• Arctium - Burdock
• Asparagus
• Beta - Beet
• Brassica
• Cannabis
• Chrysanthemum
• Dahlia
• Daucus - Carrot
• Fagus - Beech
• Fragaria - Strawberry
• Helianthus - Jerusalem artichoke
• Humulus - Hop
• Lactuca - Lettuce
• Pastinaca - Parsnip
• Phaseolus - Bean
• Pisum - Pea
• Poaceae - Grasses
• Quercus - Oak
• Rumex - Dock/Sorrel
• Solanum - Potato
• Urtica - Nettle
• Fungi

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

External links

• Matthew Cooper's insects page

Hepialidae