UKMoths Emperor Moth Saturnia pavonia - Distribution map
Please note that the NBN Gateway map service has been terminated as of 1 April 2017.
As soon as a replacement map service is available, distribution maps will hopefully appear here again.
In the meantime, you can get some idea of distribution from the NBN Atlas website.
68.001 BF1643
Emperor Moth Saturnia pavonia
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Wingspan 40-60 mm.
The spectacular Emperor moth is Britain's only resident member of the Saturniidae family. It is reasonably common over much of Britain, occupying moorland and open country.
The males, which have bright orange hindwings, fly during the daytime in search of the greyer females, which fly at night. Both sexes are on the wing in April and May.
The fully grown caterpillar is green with black hoops containing yellow wart-like spots, and feeds on moorland plants such as heather (Calluna) and bramble (Rubus).
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