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Insectica - Vampire Moth - Parasitic Insect Week

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There are a bazillion species of moths (duh :P)

However, there is one species of Moth that solely feeds on blood... That species in known as Calyptra.

"The genus Calyptra is a group of moths in subfamily Calpinae of the family Noctuidae. They are a member of the Calpini tribe. whose precise circumscription is uncertain but includes a number of other fruit-piercing or eye-frequenting genera currently classified in Calpinae.

The common name of many of these species, vampire moth, refers to the habit that they have of drinking blood from vertebrates. According to a recent study, some of them (C. thalictri) are even capable of drinking human blood through skin. However, the moths are not thought to cause any threat to humans.

Some species of this genus have been classified with genus name Calpe and they include more than one blood-sucker.

These insects have been changing their habitat in recent years. The species Calyptra thalictri was native to Malaysia, the Urals and Southern Europe,[5] but is turning up in northern Europe. In 2000, they were observed in Finland and in 2008 they were seen further west in Sweden. The Swedish observation was in Skutskär north of the capital Stockholm[4] whilst the sightings in Finland have been more numerous. It is found insouthern Finland, in particular in the south east.[6]

The moth Calyptra thalictri has been seen to be associated with the plant meadow-rue.[7]

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