Aporia crataegi (L.)
Common name: Black-veined white.
Taxonomic placing: Insecta, Holometabola, Lepidoptera, Pieridae.
This widely spread taxon has subspecies in different parts of the world that infest diverse host plants.
Morphology: The body of the adult is blackish, the forewings and hindwings are translucent white, with bold black veins. The larvae (caterpillars) are green-grey with transverse banding and many dorsal and lateral whitish setae.
Geographical distribution: Northwest Africa, Middle and Far East.
Host plants: Various Rosaceae (especially, stone fruits) and Salix phylicifolia L.
Life history: During early summer the eggs, in groups of 30-100, are placed on food plants. They hatch in about 3 weeks and the caterpillars remain and feed together on leaves, forming dense webbing. Later they move to other host parts, including buds. They overwinter as a colony among webbed, entwined leaves, and the pupal stage lasts another three weeks. The adults are social, feed on the nectar of available flowers. When occurring in large numbers they may undertake mass migrations, which can bring them to new areas. The abundance of A. crataegi varies greatly from year to year.
Management
Biological control: The pest is attacked by several parasitoids, such as Cotesia glomerata and Trichogramma. In China A. crataegi is infected by a nuclear polyhedrosis.
REFERENCES
Benyamini, D. 1990. A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Israel Including Butterflies of Mt. Hermon and Sinai. Israel Keter Publishing House Ltd., 234 pp.
Bulut, H. and Kilinçer, N. 1989. Investigations on species of Trichogramma spp. (Hym.: Trichogrammatidae), egg parasitoids of important lepidopterous pests of fruit trees and their distribution in Ankara. (Ankara ilinde meyve ağaçlarında zarar yapan önemli lepidopterlerin yumurta parazitlerinden Trichogramma türleri (Hym. Trichogrammatidae) ve bunların yayılıșı uzerinde araștırmalar). Bitki Koruma Bulteni 29 (1-2): 19-46.
Hou, A.J. and Bi, S.C. 1986. A study on the nuclear polyhedrosis virus of Aporia crataegi. Scientia Silvae Sinicae 22: 191-195.
Jiang, Shuanglin. 2001. Biology of Aporia crataegi and its control. Entomological Knowledge 38: 198-199.
Sato, Y. 1978. Experimental studies on parasitization by Apanteles glomeratus L. (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). III. Comparison of parasitization potential among females of different origins. Applied Entomology and Zoology 13:76-83.
Talhouk, A.S, 1977. Contributions to the knowledge of almond pests in East Mediterranean countries. VII. The defoliators. Zeitschrift fur Angewandte Entomologie 84: 242-250.
Zhang, G.Y. and Li, J. 1993. Investigations on the parasites and hyperparasites [parasitoids and hyperparasitoids] of Aporia crataegi L. (Lep.: Pieridae). Chinese Journal of Biological Control 9: 47.
Websites
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aporia_crataegi#/media/File:Pieridae_-_Aporia_crataegi-001.JPG
