Last modified: April 2, 2022, 7:08 p.m.
A fairly common species in many places in Belgium. It became less common in orchards than in the past, most likely due to the extensive use of insecticides.
Native
Specimens of Yponomeuta malinellus, Y. padella and Y. cagnagella can in many cases not be identified beyond doubt either by external characteristics or by genital differences and even less by photos of living moths. Knowledge of the caterpillar host plant is indispensable.
Body pale yellow-green with two rows of large black spots, head, prothoracic and anal plate brown-black.
In spring the young hibernated caterpillars initially make small full depth mines but they soon leave them to live together in a communal web.
See also bladmineerders.be
The larvae live gregariously in a silken web on the foodplant.
Pupation in a dense white silken cocoon, neatly arranged together in the larval web.
The adults are attracted to light.
The adults fly from early June till the end of August.
This species feeds monophagously on Malus species.