Silkmoths and more: Macrothylacia rubi

This is one of my favorite European caterpillars. The Fox Moth (Macrothylacia rubi) is still fairly common in most of Europe especially in dry meadows, (heather) moorland and open woodland. At the end of the summer full grown caterpillars can be found by the hundreds in moorland, however there is no point in collecting them as most are parasitized. Better is to collect a female and start from eggs. Rubi is fairly easy to rear on Rubus, Rosa, Potentilla, Calluna, Erica, Salix, Vaccinium, Trifolium, Betula and other typical plants found in moors. It's a Lappet with a somewhat strange life cycle. The caterpillars grow throughout summer and are full grown somewhere at the end of September. At this point they stop feeding and go dormant. They are best overwintered outdoors. Early spring, when temperatures rise, the caterpillars wake up, move to a sunny position, stay in the sun for a while and then start spinning their cocoons without having fed. So, basically, they could have pupated in autumn. No idea what the benefit is of overwintering as caterpillar. Anyway, a few weeks after they've pupated the moths will emerge and the cycle starts all over again.