Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Geometridae Rank Species | Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Pareulype | |
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Similar Mesoleuca albicillata, Larentia clavaria, Aplasta ononaria, Anticlea derivata, Idaea emarginata | ||
The Barberry Carpet Moth (Pareulype berberata) is a moth of the Geometridae family. It is found in most of Europe, in the Near East and North Africa. There are two generations per year with adults emerging from May to June and again in August. Its wingspan is 27–32 mm. The larvae feed on the Barberry shrub (Berberis) from July to October.
Barberry hedgerow shrub, on which the larva exclusively feed, was eliminated by farmers in the England because they host a rust fungus that also infects wheat. Rust resistant wheat was developed, but not before the Barberry shrub disappeared. Although the Barberry Carpet Moth could not survive in the wild, captive colonies were maintained. After the barberry snub was reintroduced, captive moths were released and are now found at many locations throughout southern and central England. The programme was managed by the "Barberry Highways Group", including Chester Zoo, Dudley Zoo, British Waterways, Drayton Manor Theme Park, West Leeds Country Park and Butterfly Conservation.