Juniper Looper (Eupithecia interruptofasciata)

Taxonomy

Domain	Eukarya
Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Arthropoda
Subphylum	Hexapoda
Class	Insecta
Subclass	Pterygota
Infraclass	Neoptera
Superorder	Holometabola
Order	Lepidoptera
Superfamily	Geometroidea
Family	Geometridae
Subfamily	Larentiinae
Tribe	Eupitheciini
Genus	Eupithecia

Scientific Name

Eupithecia interruptofasciata

Common Name

juniper looper

Maier, C.T.; Lemmon, C.R.; Fengler, J.M.; Schweitzer, D.F.; Reardon, R.C.; Caterpillars on the Foliage of Conifers in the Northeastern United States. Morgantown, WV. USDA Forest Service. Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. FHTET-2004-01. March 2004. 151 p.

Description

Slender, green body with pale spiracular stripe. Yellowish green head mottled with reddish brown on lobes; yellowish green thoracic legs. Dark green middorsal stripe; yellow and white spiracular stripe. Yellow annulations on segments; narrow yellow band at hind margin of segments; anal plate usually with brown to reddish brown in center and yellow laterally. Up to 14 mm.

Food

Common juniper.

Life Cycle

One generation. Egg overwinters. Mature caterpillar present from May to July.

Comments

One variety of this caterpillar has an indistinct, whitish subdorsal stripe. Although the juniper looper superficially resembles the red-striped juniper looper, Thera juniperata, it lacks the purplish red spiracular stripe.