Biology:Mimas tiliae

Short description: Species of moth

Mimas tiliae
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Sphingidae
Genus:	Mimas
Species:	M. tiliae
Binomial name
Mimas tiliae (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Mimas tiliae clara Mimas tiliae colon Mimas tiliae constricta Mimas tiliae diluta Mimas tiliae discifera Mimas tiliae excessiva Mimas tiliae fasciata Mimas tiliae griseothoracea Mimas tiliae inversa Mimas tiliae latefasciata Mimas tiliae lutescens Mimas tiliae marginalis Mimas tiliae margine-puncta Mimas tiliae montana Mimas tiliae pallida-centripuncta Mimas tiliae pallida-costipuncta Lempke, 1959 Tutt, 1902 Jordan, 1911 Gillmer, 1916 (Vilarrubia, 1973) (Vilarrubia, 1973) Gillmer, 1905 (Clark, 1891) (Lempke, 1959) Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 (Closs, 1911) (Clark, 1891) Caradja, 1893 (Clark, 1891) (Clark, 1891) Sphinx tiliae Linnaeus, 1758 Smerinthus tiliae pechmanni Smerinthus ulmi Heydenreich, 1851 Mimas tiliae pallida-marginepuncta Mimas tiliae pallida-transversa Mimas tiliae postobscura Dilina tiliae brunnescens Mimas tiliae rubra Mimas tiliae rufobrunnea Mimas tiliae semiobsoleta Staudinger, 1901 Mimas tiliae virescens-bipunctata Mimas tiliae virescens-maculata Mimas tiliae virescens-obsoleta Dilina tiliae exstincta Mimas tiliae vitrina Smerinthus tiliae brunnea Smerinthus tiliae centripuncta Staudinger, 1901 Hartmann, 1879 Dilina tiliae roseotincta Schawerda, 1922 Merinthus tiliae tilioides (Holle, 1865) Mimas tiliae angustefasciata (Vilarrubia, 1973) Mimas tiliae atroviridis Closs, 1911 Mimas tiliae bicolor (Vilarrubia, 1973) Mimas tiliae bimaculata Gillmer, 1916 Mimas tiliae bimarginalis Gillmer, 1916 Mimas tiliae brunnea-centripuncta Tutt, 1902 Mimas tiliae brunnea-costipuncta Tutt, 1902 Mimas tiliae brunnea-marginepuncta Tutt, 1902 Mimas tiliae brunnea-obsoleta Tutt, 1902 Mimas tiliae brunnea-transversa Tutt, 1902 Closs, 1917 Gillmer, 1916 Gillmer, 1916 Cockayne, 1953 Closs, 1917 Gillmer, 1916 Gillmer, 1916 Cabeau, 1931 Gillmer, 1916 (Vilarrubia, 1973) Tutt, 1902 Mecke, 1926 Tutt, 1902 Daniel & Wolfsberger, 1955 Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 (Lempke, 1959) (Lempke, 1959) Cockayne, 1953 Lenz, 1925 Tutt, 1902 Jordan, 1911 Lempke, 1937 Tutt, 1902 Tutt, 1902 Jordan, 1911 Gehlen, 1931 Bartel, 1900 (Clark, 1891) Bartel, 1900 Bartel, 1900 Smerinthus tiliae maculata Mimas tiliae pallida-maculata Mimas tiliae pallida-obsoleta Mimas tiliae pallida Mimas tiliae pseudo-trimaculata Mimas tiliae reducta Mimas tiliae rufescens Mimas tiliae semicentripuncta Mimas tiliae suffusa Mimas tiliae typica-bipunctata Mimas tiliae virescens-centripuncta Mimas tiliae virescens-marginepuncta Mimas tiliae virescens-transversa Mimas tiliae viridis Smerinthus tiliae bipunctata Smerinthus tiliae brunnea Smerinthus tiliae costipuncta (Wallengren, 1863) Smerinthus tiliae ulmi Smerinthus tiliae obsoleta Smerinthus tiliae immaculata Mimas tiliae virescens Mimas tiliae transversa Mimas tiliae pseudobipunctata

Mimas tiliae, the lime hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East, and has also been identified in Canada's east and western provinces and in northern Spain (Europe). The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.

This species is quite variable, though not confusable with any other sphingid of the Palearctic in its markings, the ground colour of the forewings being pinkish or buff, darker towards the tornus, marked with one or two dark green or brown blotches which are sometimes merged to form a continuous band across the middle of the forewing. The hindwings are plainer, grey or buffish brown. The wingspan is 70–80 millimetres (2.8–3.1 in). It exhibits sexual dimorphism, the male usually being smaller but more strongly marked than the female. Usually, the forewing ground colour is brownish in females and decidedly green in males, but there are many exceptions. The female abdomen is straight and fat with fully formed eggs, which are already present when the female emerges (as in all species of Smerinthini). The male abdomen, on the other hand, is strongly curved and slender.

Forms include

• f. brunnea Bartel ground colour brown
• f. pallida Tutt ground colour grey
• f. lutescens Tutt yellow
• f. virescens Tutt ground colour green
• f. transversa Tutt dark median band of the forewing entire
• f. tiliae dark median band narrowly separated
• f. obsoleta Clark dark median band completely absent

This moth flies at night in May and June, and is attracted to light. The adults do not feed.

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  Caterpillar

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  Pupa

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  Mimas tiliae ♂ - MHNT

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  Mimas tiliae ♂ underside - MHNT

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  Mimas tiliae ♀ - MHNT

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  Mimas tiliae ♀ underside - MHNT

The larva is green with yellow and red markings along the side and a blue horn at the hind end, typical of the family. It feeds mainly on lime but has also been recorded feeding on other trees and shrubs (see list below). The colour changes to purple-grey when ready to pupate, at which point the larvae wander in search of a pupation site. The species overwinters as a pupa in the soil at the base of its host tree.

Recorded food plants

• Alnus - alder
• Betula - birch
• Morus - mulberry
• Prunus
• Quercus - oak
• Tilia - lime
• Ulmus - elm

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
• Pittaway, A. R. (2018). "Mimas Hübner, [1819"]. http://tpittaway.tripod.com/sphinx/m_til.htm. Retrieved December 12, 2018. 

External links

• Lime Hawk-moth UKMoths
• Description in Richard South The Moths of the British Isles
• Lepiforum e.V.
• Discover the Lime Hawk Moth

Wikidata ☰ Q428187 entry