Apaidia mesogona (Godart, [1824])


Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Male (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late July 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Male (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late July 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Male (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in mid-August 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, photographed on 17. June 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Half-grown larva (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, photographed on 17. June 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, photographed on 27. June 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, photographed on 27. June 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larva (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female pupa (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female pupa (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Female pupa (e.l. rearing, Spain, Candasnos, larvae in early May 2022, eclosion in late May 2022) [S] Apaidia mesogona: Larval habitat (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [N] Apaidia mesogona: Larval habitat (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [N] Apaidia mesogona: Larval habitat (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [N] Apaidia mesogona: Larval habitat (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [N] Apaidia mesogona: Larval habitat (Spain, Monegros, Candasnos, early May 2022) [N]

Host plants:
The larvae feed on lichens and algae of twigs of scrub like Quercus coccifera.

Habitat:
Apaidia mesogona inhabits hot and often dry habitats like Quercus coccifera scrub, maquis, garigue and open woodland.

Life cycle:
The adults occur between May and September. The real phenology is not clear yet. I recorded many larvae in the Spanish Monegros in late April and early May 2022. They showed two different sizes: fully-grown with adults in late May and very small (one third) with adults in summer/late summer. In most sites, however, larvae are not supposed to grow substantially during summer drought. The larvae live on scrub that is rich in algae and lichens and can be beaten from the twigs.

Remarks:
Apaidia mesogona occurs from NW-Africa to SW-Europe (Iberian Peninsula, S-France, also mentioned from Corsica and Sardinia).