'' Vaccinium''

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e of a number of

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

species, including:

Monophagous A generalist species is able to thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions and can make use of a variety of different resources (for example, a heterotroph with a varied diet). A specialist species can thrive only in a narrow range of env ...

Species which feed exclusively on ''Vaccinium'' * Coleophoridae ** Several '' Coleophora'' case-bearer species: *** '' C. glitzella'' – only on lingonberry (''V. vitis-idaea'') *** '' C. idaeella'' – only on lingonberry (''V. vitis-idaea'') *** '' C. murinella'' *** '' C. uliginosella'' – only on

bog bilberry ''Vaccinium uliginosum'' (bog bilberry, bog blueberry, northern bilberry or western blueberry) is a Eurasian and North American flowering plant in the genus ''Vaccinium'' within the heath family. Distribution ''Vaccinium uliginosum'' is native ...

(''V. uliginosum'') *** '' C. vaccinivorella'' *** '' C. vitisella'' – only on lingonberry (''V. vitis-idaea'')

Polyphagous Feeding is the process by which organisms, typically animals, obtain food. Terminology often uses either the suffixes -vore, -vory, or -vorous from Latin ''vorare'', meaning "to devour", or -phage, -phagy, or -phagous from Greek φαγε ...

Species which feed on ''Vaccinium'' and other plants * Coleophoridae ** Several '' Coleophora'' case-bearer species: *** '' C. plumbella'' – recorded on bog bilberry (''V. uliginosum'') *** '' C. vacciniella'' * Gelechiidae ** ''

Chionodes viduella ''Chionodes viduella'' is a moth of the family Gelechiidae. It is found in France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland, Bulgaria, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Baltic region and Russia. It is also found in nor ...

'' – recorded on bog bilberry (''V. uliginosum'') * Geometridae ** ''

Alcis repandata The mottled beauty (''Alcis repandata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. Subspecies and forms Subspecies and forms include: *''Alcis repan ...

'' (mottled beauty) ** ''

Chloroclysta truncata The common marbled carpet (''Dysstroma truncata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is sometimes placed in the genus '' Chloroclysta''. It is very common throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East. The species was first described ...

'' (common marbled carpet) ** ''

Crocallis elinguaria The scalloped oak (''Crocallis elinguaria'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. Distribution This common species can be found from Europe to eas ...

'' (scalloped oak) ** ''

Ectropis crepuscularia The engrailed and small engrailed (''Ectropis crepuscularia'') are moths of the family Geometridae found from the British Isles through central and eastern Europe to the Russian Far East and Kazakhstan. The western Mediterranean and Asia Minor ...

'' (engrailed) ** ''

Epirrita autumnata The autumnal moth (''Epirrita autumnata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Moritz Balthasar Borkhausen in 1794. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East and has a much wider distri ...

'' (autumnal moth) ** '' Eupithecia succenturiata'' (bordered pug) – recorded on

bilberry Bilberries (), or sometimes European blueberries, are a primarily Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs in the genus ''Vaccinium'' (family Ericaceae), bearing edible, dark blue berries. The species most often referred to is ''Vaccinium myrtillus ...

(''V. myrtillus'') ** '' Eupithecia vulgata'' (common pug) – recorded on bilberry (''V. myrtillus'') ** '' Itame argillacearia'' (blueberry spanworm) – recorded on

lowbush blueberry Blueberries are a widely distributed and widespread group of perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berries. They are classified in the section ''Cyanococcus'' within the genus ''Vaccinium''. ''Vaccinium'' also includes cranberries, bi ...

(''V. angustifolium'') and others ** ''

Hemithea aestivaria The common emerald (''Hemithea aestivaria'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species is found throughout the Nearctic and Palearctic regions and the Near East. It is mostly commonly found in the southern half of the British Isles. It was ...

'' (common emerald) ** ''

Odontopera bidentata The scalloped hazel (''Odontopera bidentata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759. Distribution It is a common species of northern and central Europe including the British Is ...

'' (scalloped hazel) – recorded on bilberry (''V. myrtillus'') *

Noctuidae The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other f ...

** ''

Diarsia mendica The ingrailed clay (''Diarsia mendica'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775. It is distributed through most of Europe and the Palearctic. This species occurs in a huge range ...

'' (ingrailed clay) ** ''

Diarsia rubi The small square-spot (''Diarsia rubi'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was Species description, first described by Karl Friedrich Vieweg in 1790. It is found in Europe apart from the far south-east then east through the Caucasus, ...

'' (small square-spot) ** ''

Melanchra persicariae The dot moth (''Melanchra persicariae'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1761. It is a very distinctive species with very dark brown, almost black, forewings marked with a large white stigm ...

'' (dot moth) – recorded on bilberry (''V. myrtillus'') ** ''

Orthosia gothica The Hebrew character (''Orthosia gothica'') is a moth in the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It is found throughout Europe. Both the common and binomial name ...

'' (Hebrew character) – recorded on bilberry (''V. myrtillus'') ** ''

Xestia c-nigrum The setaceous Hebrew character (''Xestia c-nigrum'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It is found in the Palearctic realm. It is a common specie ...

'' (setaceous Hebrew character) * Pyralidae ** ''

Endotricha flammealis ''Endotricha flammealis'', the rose-flounced tabby, is a species of snout moth, family (biology), family Pyralidae. Taxonomy The proposed subspecies ''carnealis'' and several supposed form (zoology), varieties seem to be indistinguishable from t ...

'' * Saturniidae ** '' Pavonia pavonia'' (emperor moth)

External links

*{{cite web , last1=Robinson , first1=Gaden S. , last2=Ackery , first2=Phillip R. , last3=Kitching , first3=Ian J. , last4=Beccaloni , first4=George W. , last5=Hernández , first5=Luis M. , name-list-style=amp , date=2010 , url=https://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/data/hostplants/search/list.dsml?&PGenus=Vaccinium&sort=Family , title=Hostplant Genus: ''Vaccinium'' , website=HOSTS - A Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants , publisher=

Natural History Museum, London The Natural History Museum in London is a museum that exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. It is one of three major museums on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, the others being the Science Museum an ...

Vaccinium +Lepidoptera