Calyptra (moth)
Encyclopedia
The genus
Calyptra is a group of moth
s in subfamily Calpinae
of the family
Noctuidae
. They are a member of the Calpini
tribe
. whose precise circumscription is uncertain but includes a number of other fruit-piercing or eye-frequenting genera currently classified in Calpinae.
The common name of many of these species, vampire moth, refers to the habit that they have of drinking blood from vertebrate
s. According to a recent study, some of them (C. thalictri
) are even capable of drinking human blood through skin. However, the moths are not thought to cause any threat to humans.
Some species of this genus have been classified with genus name Calpe and they include more than one blood-sucker.
, but is turning up in northern Europe
. In 2000, they were observed in Finland
and in 2008 they were seen further west in Sweden
. The Swedish observation was in Skutskär
north of the capital Stockholm whilst the sightings in Finland have been more numerous. It is found in southern Finland
, in particular in the south east.
The moth Calyptra thalictri has been seen to be associated with the plant meadow-rue
.
by an insect is familiar in creatures such as mosquitoes, but the moth uses a specially developed proboscis to penetrate the skin of buffalo. A species in Malaysia was observed to use its hollowed out proboscis
which is divided into two halves. The insect first rocks its attention from one half to the other until its pierces the skins. It then uses a rocking motion of its head to drill the tube deeper into the skin. It is the blood pressure
of the victim that supplies the power to raise hooks on the proboscis that ensure the insect is not easily detached. It is thought that the evolution of this moth's ability to pierce the skin of mammals would have started with an earlier ability to pierce fruit. Using the same ability to drink blood is just a natural extension of this skill. After human skin has been penetrated it tends to turn red and be sore for the following two to three hours. Despite the wound being more severe than that of a mosquito it is thought that there is no health risk and the moths need not be avoided.
Although it has been reported that moths have bitten humans in Asia, it was not until the summer of 1999 when a Russian scientist, Vladimir Kononenko, observed that this species of moth was capable of filling its stomach with human blood. Only male moths exhibit this ability, as opposed to mosquitoes, where the female is the one that drinks blood.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Calyptra is a group of moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
s in subfamily Calpinae
Calpinae
Calpinae is a subfamily of moth family Noctuidae. It is closely related to the Catocalinae; both subfamilies contain large species with wingspans larger than 5 centimetres ....
of the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Noctuidae
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....
. They are a member of the Calpini
Calpini
Calpini is a tribe of moths in subfamily Calpinae of the family Noctuidae.-Genera:* Africalpe Krüger, 1939* Calyptra Ochsenheimer, 1816* Eudocima Billberg, 1820* Feranta Walker, [1858]* Gonodonta Hübner, 1818...
tribe
Tribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
. whose precise circumscription is uncertain but includes a number of other fruit-piercing or eye-frequenting genera currently classified in Calpinae.
The common name of many of these species, vampire moth, refers to the habit that they have of drinking blood from vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
s. According to a recent study, some of them (C. thalictri
Calyptra thalictri
Calyptra thalictri is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is native to the area ranging from Japan and Korea, south to China and Malaysia, west through the Urals to Southern Europe, but it has recently expanded its range to northern Europe...
) are even capable of drinking human blood through skin. However, the moths are not thought to cause any threat to humans.
Some species of this genus have been classified with genus name Calpe and they include more than one blood-sucker.
Habitat
These insects have been changing their habitat in recent years. The species Calyptra thalictri was native to Malaysia, the Urals and Southern EuropeSouthern Europe
The term Southern Europe, at its most general definition, is used to mean "all countries in the south of Europe". However, the concept, at different times, has had different meanings, providing additional political, linguistic and cultural context to the definition in addition to the typical...
, but is turning up in northern Europe
Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
. In 2000, they were observed in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and in 2008 they were seen further west in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The Swedish observation was in Skutskär
Skutskär
Skutskär is a bimunicipal locality and the seat of Älvkarleby Municipality in Uppsala County, Sweden with 6,136 inhabitants in 2005. According to the census of 2000 6,003 people lived in Skutskär, most of them in Älvkarleby Municipality, but a minor part in Gävle Municipality in Gävleborg...
north of the capital Stockholm whilst the sightings in Finland have been more numerous. It is found in southern Finland
Southern Finland
Southern Finland was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2010. It bordered the provinces of Western Finland and Eastern Finland. It also bordered the Gulf of Finland and Russia.- History :...
, in particular in the south east.
The moth Calyptra thalictri has been seen to be associated with the plant meadow-rue
Thalictrum
Thalictrum is a genus of 120-200 species of herbaceous perennial flowering plants in the buttercup family native mostly to temperate regions....
.
Penetrating skin
The difficulty of piercing the skin of a mammalMammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
by an insect is familiar in creatures such as mosquitoes, but the moth uses a specially developed proboscis to penetrate the skin of buffalo. A species in Malaysia was observed to use its hollowed out proboscis
Proboscis
A proboscis is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In simpler terms, a proboscis is the straw-like mouth found in several varieties of species.-Etymology:...
which is divided into two halves. The insect first rocks its attention from one half to the other until its pierces the skins. It then uses a rocking motion of its head to drill the tube deeper into the skin. It is the blood pressure
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
of the victim that supplies the power to raise hooks on the proboscis that ensure the insect is not easily detached. It is thought that the evolution of this moth's ability to pierce the skin of mammals would have started with an earlier ability to pierce fruit. Using the same ability to drink blood is just a natural extension of this skill. After human skin has been penetrated it tends to turn red and be sore for the following two to three hours. Despite the wound being more severe than that of a mosquito it is thought that there is no health risk and the moths need not be avoided.
Although it has been reported that moths have bitten humans in Asia, it was not until the summer of 1999 when a Russian scientist, Vladimir Kononenko, observed that this species of moth was capable of filling its stomach with human blood. Only male moths exhibit this ability, as opposed to mosquitoes, where the female is the one that drinks blood.
Species
- Calyptra albivirgataCalyptra albivirgataCalyptra albivirgata is a moth of the Noctuoidea family. It is found in Asia, including China and Japan.-External links:*...
Hampson, 1926 - Calyptra bicolorCalyptra bicolorCalyptra bicolor is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in India. It has been known to feed on humans, as well as a variety of other mammals....
Moore, 1883 - Calyptra canadensisCalyptra canadensisThe Canadian Owlet is a moth of the Noctuoidea family. It is found from Nova Scotia to North Carolina in mountains, west to Texas, north to Saskatchewan. Occasionally straying to Alberta....
Bethune, 1865 - Calyptra eustrigataCalyptra eustrigataCalyptra eustrigata is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in Sri Lanka....
Hampson, 1926 - Calyptra fasciataCalyptra fasciataCalyptra fasciata is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in India. It has been known to feed on humans, as well as a variety of other mammals....
Moore, 1882 - Calyptra fletcheriCalyptra fletcheriCalyptra fletcheri is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is has been found in China....
Berio, 1956 - Calyptra gruesaCalyptra gruesaCalyptra gruesa is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in China. C. gruesa has a wingspan range of ....
Draudt, 1950 - Calyptra hokkaidaCalyptra hokkaidaCalyptra hokkaida is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in China and Japan. The larvae length of C. hokkaido is roughly ....
Wileman, 1922 - Calyptra imperialisCalyptra imperialisCalyptra imperialis is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is has been found in India....
Grünberg, 1910
- Calyptra lataCalyptra lataCalyptra lata is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in Japan and far-east Russia. The larvae length of C. lata is roughly ....
Butler, 1881 - Calyptra minuticornisCalyptra minuticornisCalyptra minuticornis is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in Indonesia and India. The coloration of C. minuticornis is grey, with darker colored viens....
Guenée, 1852 - Calyptra nyeiCalyptra nyeiCalyptra eustrigata is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It has been found in India....
Bänziger, 1979 - Calyptra ophideroidesCalyptra ophideroidesCalyptra ophideroides is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in East Indies. It has been known to feed on humans, as well as a variety of other mammals....
Guenée, 1852 - Calyptra orthograptaCalyptra orthograptaCalyptra orthograpta is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is has been found in China and India. It has been noted to be a relatively rare species....
Butler, 1886 - Calyptra parvaCalyptra parvaCalyptra parva is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in India. It has been known to feed on humans, as well as a variety of other mammals....
Bänziger, 1979 - Calyptra pseudobicolorCalyptra pseudobicolorCalyptra pseudobicolor is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in India. It has been known to feed on humans, as well as a variety of other mammals....
Bänziger, 1979 - Calyptra subnubilaCalyptra subnubilaCalyptra subnubila is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is has been found in Indonesia....
Prout, 1928 - Calyptra thalictriCalyptra thalictriCalyptra thalictri is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is native to the area ranging from Japan and Korea, south to China and Malaysia, west through the Urals to Southern Europe, but it has recently expanded its range to northern Europe...
Borkhausen, 1790)