The
garden tiger is an attractive, brown-and-white moth of sand dunes,
woodland edges, meadows and hedgerows; it will also visit gardens. In
decline, it is suffering from the 'tidying up' of our countryside.
About
A
large, brightly coloured moth, the garden tiger is on the wing towards
the end of the summer, during July and August. It is a night-flying moth
of scrub-covered sand dunes, woodland edges, wet meadows, parks and
gardens. The striking caterpillars are large, black and covered in long,
dense, black and ginger hairs and they are commonly called 'Woolly
Bears'. They feed on stinging nettles, dock leaves and many garden
plants.How to identify
The
garden tiger has a chocolate-brown, furry body, brown-and
white-patterned forewings, and bright red hindwings with four or five
large black spots. There are five similar tiger moths in the UK, all of
which are smaller. The wood tiger and cream-spot tiger have
yellowy-orange hindwings instead of red; the jersey tiger has white
stripes on its black forewings; and the scarlet tiger has white spots on
its black forewings.Distribution
Widespread.Did you know?
The garden tiger is
well-protected against predators: the hairs on the caterpillar are
irritating; the bright colours on the adult warn that it is unpalatable;
and adults can rub their wings together to create a rasping noise.
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